BABY SIGN LANGUAGE
Often times, babies have
thoughts and ideas that they would like to
share with others, but do not yet have the
verbal skills to effectively communicate.
This can be a big source of frustration for
children in the eight to 30 month age range.
There is a growing trend
in teaching babies simple sign language to
communicate their feelings and desires
before they are ready to speak. Signs that
are especially helpful for babies to learn
include the desire for food or drink,
wanting to be picked up or changed.
Simple signs for these
requests can offer a way for a baby to
communicate and can minimize frustration.
There are programs that offer training to
parents and babies in sign language skills
READING TO CHILDREN
Teaching your child to
read and appreciate books is one of the most
important gifts that you can ever give your
child. Because children’s brains rapidly
develop, it is important to begin reading to
them in infancy. Studies have shown that
even newborns respond to the sound of a
parent or caregiver’s voice and enjoy
rhyming sounds and colorful pictures found
in books.
As babies grow, reading
aloud can help develop speech, vocabulary,
and creativity, as well as promote quality
family. Since a child will learn the
majority of their vocabulary in the first
five years of life, books can be powerful
learning tools that will have long lasting
benefits. Researchers have proven that
children who have strong reading skills have
better self esteem and may continue to do
better overall in their life than those who
have difficulties with reading.
Incorporate reading into
your child’s day-to-day life by having a
reading ritual like a story before bedtime.
As well, read newspaper or magazine articles
with your child whenever you have the
chance. Finally, take advantage of story
time at local libraries and bookstores.
LEARNING DISABILITIES
Learning disabilities are
neurological problems that cause
difficulties in learning skills such as
reading, mathematics, and writing. The
disabilities can also affect one’s ability
to problem solve, organize, and manage time.
There is a large array of
learning disability symptoms including:
-
Poor memory
-
Difficulty following
directions
-
Poor reading or writing
skills
-
Poor hand/eye
coordination
-
Lack of organization
-
Difficulty
differentiating between sounds, numbers,
or letters
-
Reversing letters
-
Restlessness
-
Difficulty sounding out
words
-
Unable to follow rules
-
Difficulty telling time
or right from left
Often, a learning
disability is not discovered until a child
is in school, and frequently, a teacher
notices the symptoms first. It is important
to keep in mind that a learning disability
is not a learning problem such as being
hearing or visually impaired or mentally
retarded. Rather, most individuals with
learning disabilities are of average or
above average intelligence. They often will
compensate for their lack of ability in one
area of learning by being especially skilled
in another.
There is no known cure for
a learning disability. However, therapy and
support is very effective, and most children
with learning disabilities go on to be
successful in school, work, and life.
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