One of the things we have decided we really want to try with Little Ryan is Baby Sign Language. I’ve read a number of great first hand accounts and I’m really excited. Beyond the suggestions that family’s who’ve adopted baby sign language see a reduction in temper tantrums, I’m excited that I’ll have at least a few extra months and, maybe, even a years worth of solid communication with my son.
For those that are interested, the link above to My Baby Can Talk provides a great starting point with a dictionary of videos, Getting-Started lessons, etc. All of the signs in the My Baby Can Talk series are ASL (American Sign Language) signs which means you are on your way to teaching your child a new language. More and more universities are recognizing ASL as a legitimate foreign language, so why not keep going.
At the same time that we are learning ASL with Little Ryan, I’m diving back into high school Spanish (Latin American style this time)! As with most, I blew off my foreign language in high school, but I’ve always regretted it. How cool would it be to strike up a conversation with someone in another language. Not to mention being able to understand when an overworked waiter starts ripping you for being those guys at lunch.
A while back I ran across the Rosetta Stone web site and I tried out one of their demos. They use a technique call Dynamic Immersion™ that is absolutely awesome. Why educators feel it’s effective (or maybe the better word is efficient) to memorize the <Your-Language-Here> to English dictionary is beyond me. Instead, Rosetta Stone completely ignores your primary languages and uses a mix of visual, audio, and written scenes in the target language to make you decipher your way to competence. This is what we all did as children and, with the exception of our beloved President, it worked out pretty well.
I’ve only recently received the CD’s and spent a little time, but as I move along I will try to post my thoughts.