All About the Ear and”Baby Signs” Book Review

by Haley Bono

With its delightful illustrations and engaging pictures, "Baby Signs" by Joy Allen, is an ideal introduction to American Sign Language (ASL) for babies and young kids. This book offers numerous opportunities for parents and children to interact and learn signs together. It covers basic signs such as "eat," "drink," and "all done," which are beneficial for babies to learn and use in their daily lives.

Teaching babies ASL has multiple advantages, including enhanced communication between parents and their developing children. Instead of crying out of frustration, babies can use simple signs like touching their fingers together to indicate "more" when they're still hungry or mimicking drinking from a cup when they're thirsty. This ability to express their needs and wants through signs reduces frustration and strengthens the bond between parent and child.

As children grow, discussing ASL opens the door to exploring deaf culture. Deaf culture has a rich history, with notable figures like Helen Keller and Laurent Clerc. Exploring these stories and learning about the contributions of deaf individuals throughout history provides valuable insights and promotes inclusivity and understanding.

If you are unfamiliar with ASL you can watch this youtube video here. The reader shows what each sign should look like in case you’re unsure. This book is also available on amazon here, but please check out your local bookstore first.

Communication is an important part of any language. Most languages rely on sound waves. Sound waves are the vibrations that sound makes. These sound waves travel through the air and into our ears, and hit the eardrum. The brain interprets these waves into sounds. When someone is deaf, it means that some part of this process is interrupted, and doesn’t work the same way as someone who can hear. Because people who are deaf cannot hear, they have their own unique language that uses their body and hands to communicate. You can go here to explore some awesome deaf people throughout history.

Supplies:

Free EarTemplate (there will be a download at the end of the post), Something to color with, Something to write with, Blank piece of paper (optional), Scissors (optional) Glue, (optional).

Directions:

1. Discuss the different parts of the ear in the picture.
2. Color the picture.
3. Fold the picture along the two dotted lines, like an accordion. This will hide both the middle and inner ear, and only leave the outer ear showing. This is like our ears, since all we can see is our outer ear. However, even though we can’t see all the way into our ear (without special equipment) there is a lot more about our ear than just the outer ear.

Different Variations:

• As mentioned in the instructions there is a blank worksheet, and one with a maze. Pick the worksheet depending on the kiddos you are working with.
• What do hearing aids do? Some people who are not completely deaf, but have a hard time hearing, will wear hearing aids. You can talk with your kids about hearing aids and how they work. Show them a few pictures, and then encourage them to draw their own hearing aid that will fit on their ear picture, then they can cut it out and glue it to their picture.