Does using sign language with young children interrupt or delay their speech development?
A. Actually, research states the opposite is true. Using American Sign Language with your child can accelerate speech development. Since they are already using language in their heads and putting signed words together to communicate things; when their speech articulators are able to form the sounds, they quickly add speech to their signs. Gradually, they drop the signs and only use the spoken word. Much like crawling does not inhibit a child’s ability to walk; there has been no indication of a resulting speech delay from using sign language. Q5. Do I have to learn an entire new language? A. The intention of using sign language is not to teach you or your child a second language, but to facilitate earlier communication. You will be supporting spoken English by modeling signs for key words. Your child will then sign those key words that will become the foundation for language exposure. Sign language “pulls” verbal language from adults. When children use sign language to call attention to
