baby signing

[B.Woll]

I've tried to avoid getting stuck into this, but here goes:

I agree with Anne Baker, Volterra & Caselli 1985; and Petitto.
Unless clear criteria are used to distinguish gestures from signs,
the shared modality is likely to obscure the difference. Most
parents find that their children will produce gestures such as 'bye-
bye' or 'blowing a kiss' before the first true words. That just
demonstrates that gesture precedes language. Claims about the
easier production of signs vs. words also tends to ignore the actual
prolonged development of correct sign articulation. I also have to
agree with the earlier comments: if signing is so great for children's
brains that it's really good for hearing children, why don't we hear
more about how great it is for deaf children. It's frustrating to see so
much publicity about the benefits of signing for the hearing, while
deaf children are still denied exposure to a sign language.

Cheers,


Dr Bencie Woll
b.woll at city.ac.uk
Chair of Sign Language and Deaf Studies
Language and Communication Science
City University, Northampton Square
London EC1V 0HB, UK
Tel: +44 (0)20 7477 8354 (voice) +44 (0)20 7477 8314 (text)
Fax: +44 (0) 20 7477 8577