As I watch this video from YouTube on Through Your Child's Eyes: American Sign Language [Subtitled] (13.18 minutes), I did have a major mix feeling about this. Why? Because I was born deaf due to German Measles in 1964 and didn't learn to sign as a baby or young child. I am so thankful that I didn't learned to sign in the first place. My mama would encourage me daily and work with me to use my voice by using program from John Tracy, the deaf son of Spencer Tracy and Louise Treadwell Tracy. His mother taught him to talk.
Here is the history about his mom and John Tracy. I am very thankful for that in every way. You can learn more about John Tracy Clinic. I am sure that they are many other wonderful links about this that you can go to.
Now, if I have learn to sign from birth, I would not have been accepted to go to Central Institute for the Deaf (CID) which is an Oral school for the Deaf. I am thankful that I was able to go to CID since because I didn't know any sign and refuse to learn any sign when I was very young. I went to CID from '73-'80 then went to public school and graduated at public school.
I do believe it is still possible to teach your baby or young child to learn to talk without teaching them ASL or any other sign language. In my personal opinion that teaching them to sign might limit them only to sign and not to use their voice or limit them not to be oral educated. It wouldn't hurt to be bi-lingual but at the early age, I don't think that would be a wise thing to do. This is my personal opinion not to start them in signing at early age but to teach them to talk and use their voice. Now, if I do have a deaf child, I would have him/her to learn to talk with speech therapy at the very early age.
I now do know a little bit of ASL, but I am still very ORAL educated and extremely extrovert in the hearing world.
As an adult, I believe that it wouldn't hurt for them be bi-lingual and to learn to sign ASL or other sign language to reach out into the deaf world. I am trying to learn some since 2003 and still signing isn't my strength. I am not around a lot of deaf friends in my home town. I do see them every now and then. If I do see them more often, then I would have greatly improve my ASL with them.
Caring Heart for the Deaf,
'Guerite ~ BoldLion
