Sign Language in the Preschool Classroom

Four year olds singing and signing!

The topic for my blog this semester will be incorporating sign language in to the preschool classroom.   I have been teaching preschool for the past thirteen years, first in the classroom and now I as the music teacher.  The children come to visit me two times a week. One day, I teach Spanish through music and the other day, the children have regular music and movement.   I have incorporated the use of sign language when teaching religious songs, Spanish and old favorites like “Old MacDonald.”  There are approximately 330 children in the program, ranging in ages from 10 months to 5 years old. 

Why teach a second language to youngsters? All of the recent brain research has shown that introducing a foreign language in the first five years of life is the optimal time for the children to be exposed.  This is when the neural pathways in the brain are established which will help the children as they continue to take a foreign language.  American sign language is considered another language helping to develop those neural pathways along with many other benefits as well.  Sign language also is the bridge between other languages.  It is the means of bringing everyone to the same page.  No matter what language you use to say the word “cow”, the sign for cow is the same in every country.  This is helpful in classrooms that have children from different backgrounds.  The teacher can use sign language as the bridge when teaching a new word.

As my blog develops, I will discuss the benefits of signing with young children, the benefits of signing in the classroom and share with you some of my experiences in my music class with sign language.

Singing animal songs with sign language!