Guest guest Posted January 5, 2004 Report Share Posted January 5, 2004 Gracie was seen today by our counties MR/DD nurses. They were here to do a deeper study on her development. They are supposed to come back next week with a complete "report" on her development, but they gave me a quick summary. I guess she is developing pretty normally in most areas, but speech and self-help. I was told she is talking at about a 12month old ability, she is 19months. I completely agree, this has been a big issue lately. I know she is ready to talk, even tries to form words, but just cannot. Has anyone had these similar problems, good development except speech? They also suggested having a compete hearing eval. I am going to schedule this soon. Grace is also being referred to a specialist in "baby sign language." Has anyone heard of this? They told me it will be a help for everybody, she can get her point across with less frustration and we can understand her without being pulled around the house guessing. She is getting very good at showing us what she wants, its just hard being pulled around when you have three other kids. If anyone is familiar with this please let me know. I would like to know if it really works, with her so young. They also said it may help her speech, how can this be? At least I finally have someone agreeing that she definitely has speech delays. Her PCP would not even talk about my concerns until she turned 2. I guess she does not get finger cramps, from being pulled around. Thanks to everybody. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 5, 2004 Report Share Posted January 5, 2004 Thank you for the information. I am glad the singing worked for Will. Grace also has problems with the muscles in her face, probably causing the speech delay. Can your son drink from a cup yet? It seems nearly impossible for Grace, but she knows what to do. I think she gets frustrated when she cannot do things. She is always stealing her sisters cups, but she cannot swallow fast enough. She also cannot keep the fluid in her mouth. She also still drools pretty bad, especially if her attention is elsewhere. Dr. Cohen suggested using thick it, for her drinks but I think the bottle is OK for now. Does Will also have muscle related issues elsewhere? Thank you for any info you may wish to share. It is truly appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 5, 2004 Report Share Posted January 5, 2004 Thank you for the information. I am glad the singing worked for Will. Grace also has problems with the muscles in her face, probably causing the speech delay. Can your son drink from a cup yet? It seems nearly impossible for Grace, but she knows what to do. I think she gets frustrated when she cannot do things. She is always stealing her sisters cups, but she cannot swallow fast enough. She also cannot keep the fluid in her mouth. She also still drools pretty bad, especially if her attention is elsewhere. Dr. Cohen suggested using thick it, for her drinks but I think the bottle is OK for now. Does Will also have muscle related issues elsewhere? Thank you for any info you may wish to share. It is truly appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 5, 2004 Report Share Posted January 5, 2004 Thank you for the information. I am glad the singing worked for Will. Grace also has problems with the muscles in her face, probably causing the speech delay. Can your son drink from a cup yet? It seems nearly impossible for Grace, but she knows what to do. I think she gets frustrated when she cannot do things. She is always stealing her sisters cups, but she cannot swallow fast enough. She also cannot keep the fluid in her mouth. She also still drools pretty bad, especially if her attention is elsewhere. Dr. Cohen suggested using thick it, for her drinks but I think the bottle is OK for now. Does Will also have muscle related issues elsewhere? Thank you for any info you may wish to share. It is truly appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 5, 2004 Report Share Posted January 5, 2004 Hi, I've heard that it works really really well. Some of my friends have used it on their little ones and it has let them "speak" before they could. Also, we started teaching Asher some signs when he was having trouble with speech and he learned quite quickly and seemed to enjoy communicating (who wouldn't?). Asher has had a year of speech therapy and has gone from delayed to 6 months advanced. I hope they start speech for your little one soon. Anne R Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 5, 2004 Report Share Posted January 5, 2004 Hi, I've heard that it works really really well. Some of my friends have used it on their little ones and it has let them "speak" before they could. Also, we started teaching Asher some signs when he was having trouble with speech and he learned quite quickly and seemed to enjoy communicating (who wouldn't?). Asher has had a year of speech therapy and has gone from delayed to 6 months advanced. I hope they start speech for your little one soon. Anne R Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 5, 2004 Report Share Posted January 5, 2004 Hi, I've heard that it works really really well. Some of my friends have used it on their little ones and it has let them "speak" before they could. Also, we started teaching Asher some signs when he was having trouble with speech and he learned quite quickly and seemed to enjoy communicating (who wouldn't?). Asher has had a year of speech therapy and has gone from delayed to 6 months advanced. I hope they start speech for your little one soon. Anne R Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 5, 2004 Report Share Posted January 5, 2004 I am guessing that they are doing an early intervention evaluation and want to concentrate on using sign language. I concentrated my masters in early childhood special education and have used sign language a lot, I can tell you that it is a great tool to assist children in developing language. When son was a baby - way before the mito - he had frequent ear infections and was slightly delayed in language. I used basic signs like eat, drink, more, finished etc. and found it very helpful. Using pictures is also very helpful. You want to fully emerse her with language. Just a little, I am sure that there are others with much more experience on the list. Laurel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 5, 2004 Report Share Posted January 5, 2004 I taught my daughter sign language starting around nine months of age. It was fantastic. She never cried about anything. She would just tell me she needed to be changed or wanted to eat, etc. They use very simple signs with babies and they get the hang of it quickly. You don't need to teach them whole sentences just a few words here and there really help. They say it helps them develop and understand two way communication which helps them learn to speak. It also eases their frustration. Read: www.babysigns.com albregra@... wrote: Gracie was seen today by our counties MR/DD nurses. They were here to do a deeper study on her development. They are supposed to come back next week with a complete "report" on her development, but they gave me a quick summary. I guess she is developing pretty normally in most areas, but speech and self-help. I was told she is talking at about a 12month old ability, she is 19months. I completely agree, this has been a big issue lately. I know she is ready to talk, even tries to form words, but just cannot. Has anyone had these similar problems, good development except speech? They also suggested having a compete hearing eval. I am going to schedule this soon. Grace is also being referred to a specialist in "baby sign language." Has anyone heard of this? They told me it will be a help for everybody, she can get her point across with less frustration and we can understand her without being pulled around the house guessing. She is getting very good at showing us what she wants, its just hard being pulled around when you have three other kids. If anyone is familiar with this please let me know. I would like to know if it really works, with her so young. They also said it may help her speech, how can this be? At least I finally have someone agreeing that she definitely has speech delays. Her PCP would not even talk about my concerns until she turned 2. I guess she does not get finger cramps, from being pulled around. Thanks to everybody. Please contact mito-owner with any problems or questions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 5, 2004 Report Share Posted January 5, 2004 I taught my daughter sign language starting around nine months of age. It was fantastic. She never cried about anything. She would just tell me she needed to be changed or wanted to eat, etc. They use very simple signs with babies and they get the hang of it quickly. You don't need to teach them whole sentences just a few words here and there really help. They say it helps them develop and understand two way communication which helps them learn to speak. It also eases their frustration. Read: www.babysigns.com albregra@... wrote: Gracie was seen today by our counties MR/DD nurses. They were here to do a deeper study on her development. They are supposed to come back next week with a complete "report" on her development, but they gave me a quick summary. I guess she is developing pretty normally in most areas, but speech and self-help. I was told she is talking at about a 12month old ability, she is 19months. I completely agree, this has been a big issue lately. I know she is ready to talk, even tries to form words, but just cannot. Has anyone had these similar problems, good development except speech? They also suggested having a compete hearing eval. I am going to schedule this soon. Grace is also being referred to a specialist in "baby sign language." Has anyone heard of this? They told me it will be a help for everybody, she can get her point across with less frustration and we can understand her without being pulled around the house guessing. She is getting very good at showing us what she wants, its just hard being pulled around when you have three other kids. If anyone is familiar with this please let me know. I would like to know if it really works, with her so young. They also said it may help her speech, how can this be? At least I finally have someone agreeing that she definitely has speech delays. Her PCP would not even talk about my concerns until she turned 2. I guess she does not get finger cramps, from being pulled around. Thanks to everybody. Please contact mito-owner with any problems or questions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 5, 2004 Report Share Posted January 5, 2004 I taught my daughter sign language starting around nine months of age. It was fantastic. She never cried about anything. She would just tell me she needed to be changed or wanted to eat, etc. They use very simple signs with babies and they get the hang of it quickly. You don't need to teach them whole sentences just a few words here and there really help. They say it helps them develop and understand two way communication which helps them learn to speak. It also eases their frustration. Read: www.babysigns.com albregra@... wrote: Gracie was seen today by our counties MR/DD nurses. They were here to do a deeper study on her development. They are supposed to come back next week with a complete "report" on her development, but they gave me a quick summary. I guess she is developing pretty normally in most areas, but speech and self-help. I was told she is talking at about a 12month old ability, she is 19months. I completely agree, this has been a big issue lately. I know she is ready to talk, even tries to form words, but just cannot. Has anyone had these similar problems, good development except speech? They also suggested having a compete hearing eval. I am going to schedule this soon. Grace is also being referred to a specialist in "baby sign language." Has anyone heard of this? They told me it will be a help for everybody, she can get her point across with less frustration and we can understand her without being pulled around the house guessing. She is getting very good at showing us what she wants, its just hard being pulled around when you have three other kids. If anyone is familiar with this please let me know. I would like to know if it really works, with her so young. They also said it may help her speech, how can this be? At least I finally have someone agreeing that she definitely has speech delays. Her PCP would not even talk about my concerns until she turned 2. I guess she does not get finger cramps, from being pulled around. Thanks to everybody. Please contact mito-owner with any problems or questions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 5, 2004 Report Share Posted January 5, 2004 my sister in law is deaf impared and she just had a grand child and they tought her how to use sigh language... it is really cool and really easy i know it sounds bad but it is just like teaching a puppy to go out side to pee...lol... but any ways it is alot better for the baby so that the child dont get so upset on trying to make words and it might help in that matter to ... so yeah i would try it ... it just might work good luck to you dear and god bless you and yours, your friend shannon Leighs disease November 07, 2002 May 15, 2003 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 5, 2004 Report Share Posted January 5, 2004 my sister in law is deaf impared and she just had a grand child and they tought her how to use sigh language... it is really cool and really easy i know it sounds bad but it is just like teaching a puppy to go out side to pee...lol... but any ways it is alot better for the baby so that the child dont get so upset on trying to make words and it might help in that matter to ... so yeah i would try it ... it just might work good luck to you dear and god bless you and yours, your friend shannon Leighs disease November 07, 2002 May 15, 2003 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 5, 2004 Report Share Posted January 5, 2004 my sister in law is deaf impared and she just had a grand child and they tought her how to use sigh language... it is really cool and really easy i know it sounds bad but it is just like teaching a puppy to go out side to pee...lol... but any ways it is alot better for the baby so that the child dont get so upset on trying to make words and it might help in that matter to ... so yeah i would try it ... it just might work good luck to you dear and god bless you and yours, your friend shannon Leighs disease November 07, 2002 May 15, 2003 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 5, 2004 Report Share Posted January 5, 2004 , We have been using sign language with Will since about 10 months old. At around 14 months old he started independantly using the signs on his own and now at 28 months old he has about a 75 sign vocabulary (ones we know he can do and uses when he wants to). Sign has been wonderful for us. At Will's last eval he was at about a 6 - 9 month range for speech, so without it we would be in big trouble. The one thing I would encourage you to find out is if the sign they are going to teach you is ASL or the " baby sign " . We decided to teach Will ASL and SEE (signing exact english) instead of using the baby sign. This way as he gets older he will have a language that is understandable to others, even if his speech never develops well. We were told that the signing helps to take the pressure off of speaking so that it can develop while the child is still able to communicate. I know the other idea is that the child learns that words have power and will work harder at trying to be understood by others. So far neither has worked so hot for Will, but they are pretty sure that on top of a fairly serios speech disorder that he also is having a lot of problems with his mouth muscles so it makes it worse. If you would like I can send you some links for different sign language websites that we've used. We were also able to find some great books from the library. Hope that helps, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 5, 2004 Report Share Posted January 5, 2004 , We have been using sign language with Will since about 10 months old. At around 14 months old he started independantly using the signs on his own and now at 28 months old he has about a 75 sign vocabulary (ones we know he can do and uses when he wants to). Sign has been wonderful for us. At Will's last eval he was at about a 6 - 9 month range for speech, so without it we would be in big trouble. The one thing I would encourage you to find out is if the sign they are going to teach you is ASL or the " baby sign " . We decided to teach Will ASL and SEE (signing exact english) instead of using the baby sign. This way as he gets older he will have a language that is understandable to others, even if his speech never develops well. We were told that the signing helps to take the pressure off of speaking so that it can develop while the child is still able to communicate. I know the other idea is that the child learns that words have power and will work harder at trying to be understood by others. So far neither has worked so hot for Will, but they are pretty sure that on top of a fairly serios speech disorder that he also is having a lot of problems with his mouth muscles so it makes it worse. If you would like I can send you some links for different sign language websites that we've used. We were also able to find some great books from the library. Hope that helps, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 5, 2004 Report Share Posted January 5, 2004 Bliss learned it from about two months old when they started and we didn't end up needing it but she still does it from time to time...its really easy to learn...i still use it when we are at a meeting or in a place where I need to tell her to stop doing something and want to be discrete. She knows more than I do...Gaige and both picked it up well too...even with 's brain so messed up at the time. I think its easier than english to learn! be open to it and give it a try...you will be surprised and it might help... deb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 5, 2004 Report Share Posted January 5, 2004 , I know that has an expressive speech disorder and it frustrates her alot. We taught her a few words that really helped her when she was smaller...please, thank you, more, help, excuse me and then we made up our own and this was really a hit.My smallest really took to it too. You always say the word when you are signing, and eventually they start to repeat it too (hopefully). Good luck! Dawn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 5, 2004 Report Share Posted January 5, 2004 , I know that has an expressive speech disorder and it frustrates her alot. We taught her a few words that really helped her when she was smaller...please, thank you, more, help, excuse me and then we made up our own and this was really a hit.My smallest really took to it too. You always say the word when you are signing, and eventually they start to repeat it too (hopefully). Good luck! Dawn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 5, 2004 Report Share Posted January 5, 2004 , I know that has an expressive speech disorder and it frustrates her alot. We taught her a few words that really helped her when she was smaller...please, thank you, more, help, excuse me and then we made up our own and this was really a hit.My smallest really took to it too. You always say the word when you are signing, and eventually they start to repeat it too (hopefully). Good luck! Dawn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 5, 2004 Report Share Posted January 5, 2004 , Will does drink from a sippy cup and does ok with straws. We use thick-it in everything he drinks, because he aspirates without it. The biggest problem we have found using the thick-it is that we never know how much to use. Some days he's fine with a little others you have to make it almost like pudding. He actually never did well with bottles and gave them up on his own at 9 months. Will has general hypotonia and a lot of problems with his legs when he gets tired or sick. It seems that the muscles of his face and throat are the worst consistently. Will is definitely still a drooler especially when we try and take the pacifier away. We have to use bandanas around his neck on a fairly regular basis, because he hates when his shirt gets wet. Speech therapy is working on all these things, so hopefully it will improve. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 5, 2004 Report Share Posted January 5, 2004 , Try these sites: http://www.handspeak.com/ http://www.signingbaby.com/ http://www.sign2me.com/default6.htm http://deafness.about.com/cs/signlanguage/ http://www.hearingexchange.com You will probably really enjoy doing this with Gracie. Good Luck. Alice > Gracie was seen today by our counties MR/DD nurses. They were here to do a deeper study on her development. They are supposed to come back next week with a complete " report " on her development, but they gave me a quick summary. I guess she is developing pretty normally in most areas, but speech and self-help. I was told she is talking at about a 12month old ability, she is 19months. I completely agree, this has been a big issue lately. I know she is ready to talk, even tries to form words, but just cannot. Has anyone had these similar problems, good development except speech? They also suggested having a compete hearing eval. I am going to schedule this soon. Grace is also being referred to a specialist in " baby sign language. " Has anyone heard of this? > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 5, 2004 Report Share Posted January 5, 2004 ; I have taught "baby Sign language" as a teacher of the deaf. If you talk and use simple signs at the same time, you will find that Gracie has more incentive to communicate. Studies have proven that using sign language with babies (hearing or deaf) increases their ability to learn the language. This is because sign language uses the "motor" area of the brain, which may not have the same damage as the speech area. Try it with an open mind. Don't try to get too "fancy" too fast .... just use words rather than sentences ... until she starts to use sign back at you. Alice gave you the baby signing website .... there are books there that would be a good resource. You can even buy books with stories written and in sign. Children love them. Jean Shepherd albregra@... wrote: Gracie was seen today by our counties MR/DD nurses. They were here to do a deeper study on her development. They are supposed to come back next week with a complete "report" on her development, but they gave me a quick summary. I guess she is developing pretty normally in most areas, but speech and self-help. I was told she is talking at about a 12month old ability, she is 19months. I completely agree, this has been a big issue lately. I know she is ready to talk, even tries to form words, but just cannot. Has anyone had these similar problems, good development except speech? They also suggested having a compete hearing eval. I am going to schedule this soon. Grace is also being referred to a specialist in "baby sign language." Has anyone heard of this? They told me it will be a help for everybody, she can get her point across with less frustration and we can understand her without being pulled around the ho Please contact mito-owner with any problems or questions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 6, 2004 Report Share Posted January 6, 2004 , I am a pediatric speech/language pathologist, as well as the mom of two kids with mito problems. I use sign languge every signle day in teaching kids to communicate. I have found sign to be an outstanding way to help babies learn regardless of what their hearing status is. It really does help them to understand that words or gestures have meaning, and that those words give us the power to get things we want as well as tell other people things we want them to know. I would really recommend this as a good way to get her going with communicating. Good luck. ruth Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 6, 2004 Report Share Posted January 6, 2004 , I am a pediatric speech/language pathologist, as well as the mom of two kids with mito problems. I use sign languge every signle day in teaching kids to communicate. I have found sign to be an outstanding way to help babies learn regardless of what their hearing status is. It really does help them to understand that words or gestures have meaning, and that those words give us the power to get things we want as well as tell other people things we want them to know. I would really recommend this as a good way to get her going with communicating. Good luck. ruth Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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