Sign language helps young children express themselves at Massachusetts day care

By Jordyn Jagolinzer

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    FOXBORO, Massachusetts (WBZ) — More young children are learning to express themselves through sign language at day cares in Massachusetts.

“Imagine having all these big feelings and no way to get it out,” said Jessica Hearn, director of The Learning Experience in Foxboro. “That’s what sign language really helps our children do.”

Sign language for young children Infants as young as six months are being taught the form of communication at their school.

Hearn says more and more research shows that young kids exposed to American Sign Language speak earlier, have larger vocabularies and actually understand more words by age 2, than those not exposed.

“It shows they’re going to have a higher language development, vocabulary and a higher IQ score,” Hearn said. She’s seen the benefits in her own son. “He was really frustrated at a young age, around 18 months, when they usually start developing early words to express themselves.”

That’s when she turned to her own colleagues for help.

“They were able to use the sign language program we have to help him express himself before he got those words which helped eliminate all that frustration he had,” she said.

Benefits of sign language Learning ASL not only helps foster the toddlers’ communication skills, but also empowers them to communicate with one another in the classroom and their families at home.

“In our infant and toddler program before children are able to speak verbally, it’s important for children to understand signs. It helps them communicate with their caregivers,” Hearn said.

She adds that research also shows ASL can help promote interests in books and other language activities as children grow.

In a study published in the Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, data showed sign language systems also helped individuals with hearing impairments and developmental disabilities.

Hearn said it teaches an important message to their young classes that each of them is different and it’s important to accept one another.

“Everyone learns different, so acceptance of all,” she said. “Which is really a big part of TLE.”

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