babysign Archives - Learn2Communicate

The importance of ‘Hello’

Lessons Learned from Abroad

I have recently returned from the trip of a life time; a long awaited trip to France to watch the Rugby World Cup with my husband and tour the south of France. It is the first time we have travelled abroad since having children many years ago so was very special for us both. I took quite some time off blogging whilst I was away and just soaked up as much as I could from being immersed in a different culture and language.

Not being at all proficient in the French language, I was interested to see first hand how powerful the simple act of saying ‘Hello’ was.

“Bonjour!” with a smile was the most important word for us to learn and use when travelling in France. I am guessing that it may be the most important communication starter in any language….

The simple act of being able to greet someone with a smile and word (be that verbal or non verbal) helps to offer warmth, positive connection and a start to any social interaction. We started with a greeting when interacting with Uber drivers, those in cafes and restaurants who were pouring our coffee or serving us our pastries and with those who passed us by on the street or at the various tourist locations we visited

Do we focus on teaching the social communication act of greetings with our children?

I am sure we do but I will be doing so now with far more gusto and intention than previously.

Why?

We managed to ‘get by’ with ‘Bonjour’ and ‘Merci’ as our only French words. These words started and ended many of our social interactions successfully and in a positive, warm manner.

Learning these simple, positive communication rituals early teaches children how to start a conversation with another human in an appropriate manner. Often when a child moves past ‘Hello’ , they start to feel more confident to engage. It certainly breaks down that first hurdle which is so important for our hesitant and less able communicators.

Saying ‘hello’ doesn’t have to be verbal. It can be communicated with eyes, hands (a wave) or even your body. If we positively interpret a child’s attempts to greet us in whichever way they are able to, we will encourage this behaviour to grow.

For those children who find that saying ‘hello’ feels awkward or uncomfortable, we can continue to model this when they are with us. Resist the urge to pressure your children to say ‘hello’ as we want them to associate greetings with positive emotions; not with angst or fear.

How can I teach ‘hello’?

You can start by making it your intention to explicitly model saying ‘hello’ to others when your child is in your presence. Use an animated voice and happy smiling face as you do so that your child is more likely to notice and learn from your modelling.

You can prompt your child to say ‘hello’ to others but start with those communication partners that your child […]

Should I teach my baby Sign Language

The short answer to the first question here is ‘No’…Sign Language is not something we SHOULD be teaching our babies or young toddlers. The long answer is a tad more complex. Using natural gestures to accompany what you say when communicating with your child WILL help him or her to understand language more readily. Modelling such gestures may also assist your little one to start communicating earlier than if you only modelled spoken words.

For those children who are late to acquire spoken language, the use of more of these natural gestures and sometimes the introduction Key Word Sign can be of enormous benefit.

What is Key Word Sign?

Key Word Sign adds signs to spoken english. In Australia, we use signs from the Deaf community’s sign language called Auslan. Key Word Sign can be used to support children to understand language and can also help them to get their message across to others more successfully. We say the full sentence and sign just the key words using Auslan signs https://auslan.org.au/

What is Makaton

Key Word Sign was formerly known a Makaton. Sometimes these terms are still interchanged in our community but it is important to know that if you are teaching Key Word Sign to children in Australia, that you draw upon the signs of Auslan. Makaton was originally derived from British Sign Language so it can be very easy to get confused. The last thing we want is for Speech Pathologists, Parents/Carers and Educators teaching different signs for the same word. To keep consistent, it is best to keep the lines of communication open so that all working the child know which signs are being taught and that we borrow the signs from Auslan.

What Signs should I Teach my Child?

The answer to this one is pretty clear…whichever signs your child needs in order to communicate effectively with others. So often I see ‘finished’ and ‘toilet’ as the only signs being targeted. How functional are these are words we need to communicate to others? Sure…we need to understand them but if we are wanting to teach our children signs to communicate with others, there are far more useful words to start with. We will often recommend ‘Core’ words. These are words that can be used across various situations with different people. How often do you need to use ‘colour’ words when communicating to others versus a Core word such as WANT, MORE, GO, NO, LOOK, GET, COME, and HELP? Sit down with your child’s team and look at the reasons why your child is communicating and how? Where are the gaps? What might be causing frustration? Could you perhaps teach a simple sign for those moments?

How Do I Teach Key Word Signs?

Always Say and Sign simultaneously. Slow your speech rate down. Get face to face with your child to maximise […]