This article is from page 19 of the 2011-11-29 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 19 JPG
A KILLIMER woman is the brainchild behind a groundbreaking initiative that will see Ireland’s first illustrated book for baby sign language – a phenomenon that’s now taking off in Ireland.
Miriam Devitt, who has been granted aided to the tune of € 6,500 by the Clare Local Development Company, will launch her SuperHands book in Dublin on December 10.
Based on a concept that originated in the US in 1986 with Dr Joseph Garcia, baby sign language has become an international phenomenon allowing parents to communicate at a whole new level with their infants before they have learned to talk.
Ms Devitt launched her initiative in west Clare in 2009 and, since then, hundreds of parents and their babies have taken part in SuperHands classes, learning this new method of communicating with their babies.
“This is a very exciting time for infant communication in Ireland,” says Devitt. “The feedback from my classes in Clare and Limerick has been so great that I was keen to expand as quickly as possible.
“Now parents all over the country can experience the joys of signing with their babies.”
This board book introduces parents and their children to the first 40 signs they will need to communicate with each other. From food and drink to fun toy and animal signs, this book will get the mums and dads of Ireland communicating with their infants before they can even talk.
“Using simple gestures, babies and their parents embark on an entirely new journey of interaction with each other and, more importantly, have fun together,” says Ms Devitt.
“Thanks to SuperHands’ baby sign language dictionary, parents and babies can learn to sign with each other from the comfort of their own homes while using ISL, Irish Sign Language, the language of our local deaf community.
“Baby sign language can reduce a baby’s frustration, enhance confidence, increase the parent-child bond, accelerate speech and reduce temper tantrums. Above all, however, it’s about spending enjoyable, quality time with your baby,” she adds.
To find out more about Superhands, Miriam’s baby sign classes in Clare or where to find the book, visit www. superhands.ie or call Miriam directly on 086 8223165.