Signing for speech/language development

[alaurie]

Has anyone had success with sign language for autism? My nephew's developmental pediatrician suggested this at his initial visit with her Monday, and I'm curious to know whether anyone here has tried it and found it to be helpful.

 

[Mirelys]

I've been signing since I was three. My language development was normal, so I can't say if it helped there, but I have often found it useful in situations that I can't hear (I have auditory processing difficulties). It was indispensable when I started going to public school in ninth grade, because there were so many new voices that I had to learn to hear. Also I had difficulty modulating my voice so that people (especially teachers) could hear me.
It's also very useful when spelling. I can't visualize words, but I can feel how it's supposed to be fingerspelled.
And of course my mom thought it was great. She could yell at us while she was on the phone, and whoever she was talking to was none the wiser

 

[vespasia]

If you have a child with a communication disorder then a method for people with a speech disorder or delay is not as helpful.

The majority of autistic apecific schools in the Uk use PECS (use the world wide web dot then pecs.com )as it allows children with severe problems to use their visual skils to begin to pick up meaning. This has taken over from makaton and pagetgormal as it was found more helpful for the kids with the most difficulties.

The PECS stuff itself is not cheap BUT it can be adapted using things like Widget2000 and Makaton Symbols or for the most struggling child photos.

The best people to ask about anything to do with speech and communication are Speech Therapists. Not sure how you would get a referral for one in the US though.

 

[alaurie]

Thanks Mirelys and vespasia.

Mirelys, since I've been reading about signing for babies, I'm learning that a lot of parents are using signing with children who don't have developmental disabilities. Kids are able to sign before they have the ability to vocalize words, and research shows signing helps them master spoken language earlier.

Vespasia - Thank God my nephew's diagnosis is mild autism ...another thank God that he qualifies for state early intervention which includes Applied Behavior Analysis (one session a week with a practitioner and training for all interested friends and family), weekly speech therapy, and an early intervention preschool.

After posting my question here last night, I did more Googling and looked at signing products on Amazon.com. Feedback from parents about the positive effects of signing with their autistic children is very heartening. So far, I've not read a negative anecdotal report.

 

[Salsa_1960]

My 9 yo daughter is unable to talk and does nothing with pictures either. She is able to sign a few basic words though. It's about the only way to communicate with her.

 

[Lena75]

Yes, my son benefitted from signing as well as PECS. Picture Exchange Communication System. He no longer signs, but he still uses pics at school to help him with routine.

 

[we5frogs]

I never had much luck with signing for my child, but we were the exception among his peers in our Autism support group. For almost all of them, signing was extremely successful between parents/teachers, etc, although was limited outside of home, school and therapy by the few people people around them that understood sign.

 

[alaurie]

Thanks for the feedback, all My nephew's diagnosis is mild autism and he's just in the last month or so stopped speaking. We're hoping by getting him started with ABA, occupational and speech therapy, and signing this early (18 months) to have good outcomes.