IYC Article about Using Signs from ISEI
January 20, 2015
The following is from an email to members the International Society on Early Intervention (ISEI). Anyone can join for free and get these emails by signing up at their website listed below.
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The journal Infants & Young Children (IYC) is published in conjunction with the ISEI. As part of this relationship, the publisher of IYC has made available on the ISEI website (www.isei.washington.edu) an article from each issue of IYC for our members. The article for this issue of IYC is:
| Using Signs to Facilitate Vocabulary in Children With Language Delays |
Susan Hendler Lederer, Ph.D., CCC/SLP and Dana Battaglia, Ph.D., CCC/SLP
The purpose of this article is to explore recommended practices in choosing and using key word signs (i.e., simple single-word gestures for communication) to facilitate first spoken words in hearing children with language delays. Developmental, theoretical, and empirical supports for this practice are discussed. Practical recommendations for choosing first word–sign pairs from both functional communication and developmental lexical perspectives are provided. A critical reflection of existing word–sign recommendations is undertaken to sharpen clinical decision-making skills. Implementation strategies from language and sign intervention literature are included with examples.
I hope you find this effort to further expand communications among ISEI members interesting and rewarding.
Best regards,
Mike Guralnick
Chair, ISEI