Red Hot Chili Pepper!
OK - this picture has nothing to do with this week's activities, but it sure is cute!
This weekend, I started taking a sign language course with my friend Tiffany's mommys' group. Saturday was the first class so we went around the room, introduced ourselves and told the instructor and group why we'd decided to take the class. It's sort of the chic-chic "thing to do" right now (example: "Meet the Fockers"), so most people said they'd heard it was good for kids' brains, etc. Although I'm sure that there's merit in what they say, I have other reasons that are also practical and personal.
My Aunt Caroline and Uncle Jim were teachers of the deaf and, naturally, learned to sign for their job. They taught their daughters (my cousins Jimee' and Cassidy) even though the whole family had their complete hearing. What I've seen is not only do my cousins know a second language that can be useful around the world (although usually you may be hard-pressed to find someone to "talk" to - it's not like Spanish or something), but the family could talk in ways that mine couldn't.
As a kid, my mom had a special whistle she used when she needed to talk with one of us when we were too far away to speak. My sister and I would respond by dropping what we were doing and running over to her, but we wouldn't know which one of us she needed much less what she needed until we ran all the way over to her. As a kid, it was kind of a bummer to have to leave your fun just to find out what mom wanted and even more disappointing when she didn't even need you, but your sister, in the first place. Spending summers at my aunt and uncle's, they would just sign what they needed, even from an acre away. My cousins would sign back and we could resume our play. In noisy, crowded places, it also came in useful. No one had to raise their voice in order to be heard. Conversely, no one had to know if you were getting chastised or "yelled" at during church service or another quiet place. What a cool thing to be able to make your point without causing a scene!
Paul thinks I'm crazy, but I'm doing it anyhow. Much like absorbing the spoken language, signing needs to be modeled early before the kids can take it into context. But, because their gross motor skills mature faster than all the little muscles in and around their mouths, they should be able to sign back much earlier, say 8 months or so, than actual talking, which comes around 12 months. I think initially, I'll feel silly doing unusual things with my hands, but learning should prove fun, interesting, and, if I'm as good of a teacher as my Aunt and Uncle, quite useful in the coming years.
