Reading helps children exercise their imaginations and discover new things about the world around them. When my younger son was about 13 months old, he was sitting on our living room floor “reading” a book about Elmo. As he turned the pages, he signed everything he saw in the pictures. At one point, he signed “apple,” followed by “Elmo apple” and “Elmo eat apple.” Then he got up, toddled over to the fridge and asked for an apple. He brought it back to the book and sat down to continue reading.
When my older son was learning to read, often times showing the signs for new words – or at least the first letter in sign – helped him decode and/or understand what he was reading. I definitely attribute these moments to having spent a lot of time with books, reading and signing together.
Sign for “Book” from one of Lora’s Sign Language Books
Most children with Deaf, signing parents learn to read at a very early age in large part due to fingerspelling. There are several words in English that don’t have a counterpart in American Sign Language (ASL), so those words are spelled out using the ASL alphabet. Children learn to understand and express themselves this way as well. Also, the visual and conceptual nature of ASL signs adds to the reading process by providing a memory aid through a visual, kinesthetic, and “big picture” experience.
Sign language aside, reading books together provides an opportunity for quite time and bonding. Your little one will likely go through a phase of preferring to eat the books than read them, but that’s typical. Keep reading anyway! Think about giving your baby one book to hold as you read another. Children whose parents talk to them consistently and read to them aloud tend to have a larger vocabulary and better understanding of language once they begin to talk. Your baby loves to hear your voice, and loves to imitate what you do – seeing you read will motivate your little one to read as well. Simple, repetitive or rhyming text and bright, contrasting pictures or a variety of textures will hold your baby’s attention for longer periods of time.
Some of our favorites early on were: Barnyard Dance, and other books by Sandra Boynton; Hand, Hand, Fingers, Thumb by Al Perkins (in the style of Dr. Seuss); Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak; Brown Bear, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, and other books by Eric Carle.
I recommend having a low shelf or basket filled with books that your baby can take out on his/her own. Board books and cloth books are great to start with when you have a very young child. You can serve as a good role model for reading – put a few books out on the floor or play area for your baby while you’re reading your own book, so you can both have some quiet time. And find a story time event in your community. Most public libraries have story time each week for little ones to attend with their grown-ups, providing an array of books, new voices and other children.
You may have tangible wealth untold-
Caskets of jewels and coffers of gold.
Richer than I you can never be.
I had a Mother who read to me.
~Strickland Gillilan, US Poet
One of Lora Heller’s Sign Language Books www.mybabyfingers.com
Lora is a Board Certified and Licensed Music Therapist with a Master of Science in Special Education/Deaf Education, a Certified Educator of Infant Massage, and a NYC mom. In addition to running Baby Fingers LLC, Lora works as Special Projects Coordinator for Music Therapy at Molloy College, and directs the summer Drama department at the URJ Eisner Camp. She is the author of multiple sign language books for children.
