SIGN with your BABY phần 3 docx

This kind of miscommunication can be prevented by

understanding how your children learn language. Then you can

adjust your communication to fit their way of perceiving the

world. It is better to simply identify the object and give a

command than it is to supply them with a complex sentence

containing only one or two words they can understand. If the

sign TOUCH-NO were already understood, it would have been

more effective to sign DOG, TOUCH-NO as you say to her, "Don't

touch the dog."

Those parents who introduced the TOUCH-NO sign early in

their children's lives are glad they did; their toddlers understood

and usually followed this warning.

In most cases, children don't produce TOUCH-NO — it's a

caregiver's command. Some children did produce the TOUCH sign

and then look to their parents for approval. Several parents told

me they saw their toddlers sign TOUCH-NO to other children,

warning them of danger.

HOT, WARM, AND COLD

HOT and COLD are useful signs and can be introduced during

feeding time. For example, you have a dish of food that is too hot

to eat. The steam is still rising as you set it on the table out of

reach of your toddler. You point to the food and sign HOT. The

steam rising from food gives your child something visual to

associate with hot.

A warm bowl of water next to a cool bowl of water is a good

way to introduce WARM and COLD. Experiment with each bowl,

allowing your children to feel the water, then show them the

appropriate sign.

"CAN YOU TELL ME WHERE IT HURTS?"

Signing offers this unique benefit: it provides a way for your

children to tell you where they are hurt. When they come to you

crying, show them the PAIN sign as you console them. Make the

sign at the injured area. After a short time, your infants will

associate pain with this sign. Once they learn the relationship

between an injury and the PAIN sign, the stage is set for locating

their pain.