My first year teaching I was delighted to learn that I would be teaching a child who was deaf.  I quickly began to learn sign language in an effort to communicate with the child in my class.  During the process, I noticed other children in the class beginning to sign as well.  The children began to associate words with signs, letters with signs, and began signing as they talked as if this was something they had always done. 

After that first year I began studying how sign language could benefit young children, including babies, and their learning of language (even in children with perfect hearing).  I found several articles that supported this idea for, basically, one main reason.  That reason is that sign language allows children to communicate thoughts and feelings earlier than they can, in many cases, verbally.

As I read more and more I learned that signing can actually assist in boosting a child's ability to read!  The primary reason was because children can start to fingerspell before reading and then make the connections.   

Sign language offers many benefits to children and I believe it adds a unique avenue for communicating with and teaching children.

If you are interested in children's books using sign language, refer to the books below:

The Handmade Counting Book By Luara Rankin

Songs in Sign by S. Harold Collins

Animal Signs by S. Harold Collins

Signing At School by S. Harold Collins

The Handmade Alphabet by Laura Rankin

Simple Signs by Cindy Wheeler

Sign ABC with Linda Bove by Linda Bove

My First Book of Sign Language by Joan Holub (Illustrator)