Table des matières

Liminary

John D. Bonvillian et William Boone Bonvillian

Preface and Acknowledgments

• Postscript

1. Introduction

• Addressing Concerns about Sign-Communication Training and Teaching
• Concern 1: Learning to Sign Will Prevent Spoken Language Development
• Concern 2: Non-Oral Forms of Communication, such as Manual Signs and Gestures, Are Unnatural and Stigmatizing
• Concern 3: Learning Sign Language Will Require Too Great an Investment of Time on the Part of the Clinician, Teacher, or Caregiver
• Concern 4: Sign-Communication Programs Seem neither as Common nor as Firmly Established as Many Programs Promoting Spoken Language Development
• Special Populations
• Sign-Communication Training and Teaching
• The Simplified Sign System
• Pointing, Iconicity, Transparency, and Translucency
• Ease of Production or Formation
• Concept-Based Signs
• Standardization
• Core Vocabulary
• Goals, Clarifications, and Recommendations
• Other Potential Users of the Simplified Sign System
• Contents and Structure of the Two Volumes

2. Use of Manual Signs and Gestures by Hearing Persons

Historical Perspectives

• The Origins of Language
• Signs as a Natural and Universal Form of Communication
• Gestural and Sign Use Cross-Culturally
• Sign Communication in North America
• Europeans in the New World and their Communicative Interactions through Signs
• The Adventures of Cabeza de Vaca
• Other Early Contact Situations
• Early European Gestural Communication
• Use of Signs by Monastic Orders
• Concluding Remarks

3. Deaf Persons and Sign Languages

• Deaf Education and the Recognition of Sign Languages
• Sign Production
• Sign Formation and Meaning
• Different Sign Languages and Obstacles to Sign Communication Worldwide
• International Sign
• Unique Aspects of Sign Languages
• Iconic Signs
• Sign Language Acquisition
• Concluding Remarks

4. Sign Communication in Persons with an Intellectual Disability or with Cerebral Palsy

• An Early Study
• Intellectual Disability
• Down Syndrome
• Angelman Syndrome
• Complicating Factors
• Cerebral Palsy
• Recommendations for Enhancing the Sign-Learning Environment
• Selecting Signs

5. Childhood Autism and Sign Communication

• Childhood Autism
• Communication Interventions and Outcomes
• Sign-Communication Training and Teaching
• Dispelling Myths
• Teaching Generalization and Spontaneous Communication Skills
• Motor and Imitation Abilities
• Other Non-Oral Approaches
• Comparison Studies
• Evaluative Comments

6. Sign-Communication Intervention in Adults and Children with Aphasia

• Introduction to Aphasia and Apraxia
• Apraxia
• Sign-Communication Training Outcomes
• Amer-Ind
• Pantomime
• Predicting Sign Intervention Outcomes
• Sign Facilitation of Spoken Language
• Acquired Childhood Aphasia and Landau-Kleffner Syndrome
• Landau-Kleffner Syndrome
• Developmental Language Disorder and Childhood Apraxia of Speech
• Developmental Delays in Deaf Children’s Signing
• Childhood Apraxia of Speech
• Concluding Remarks

7. Use of Manual Signs and Gestures by Hearing Persons

Contemporary Perspectives

• Teaching Signs to Hearing Infants of Hearing Parents
• Evaluative Comments
• Socioeconomic Intervention Programs and Language
• Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in Academic Settings
• Using Manual Signs to Improve Reading Comprehension
• Facilitating Foreign Language Vocabulary Acquisition
• Learning to Sign May Positively Affect One’s Cognitive Abilities
• Intelligence Tests
• Spatial Memory
• Mental Rotation
• Facial Discrimination
• Discussion
• Concluding Remarks

8. Development of the Simplified Sign System

• Background Information
• Clarifications
• Overview
• Step One: Iconic Sign Selection
• Step Two: Sign Formation Modification
• Step Three: Testing of Simplified Signs with Undergraduate Students
• Step Four: Comparison Testing of Simplified Signs
• Simplified Sign System Signs and ASL Signs
• Simplified Sign System Signs and Amer-Ind Signs
• Step Five: Feedback from Users
• Step Six: Memory Aids
• Concluding Remarks

9. Application and Use of the Simplified Sign System with Persons with Disabilities

• Approaches to Teaching the Simplified Sign System
• Main User
• Communication Partners
• People in the Wider Environment
• Guidelines for Using the Simplified Sign System
• Ensure a Positive Signing Environment
• Establish Visual or Tactile Contact
• Use Key Word Signing
• Sign Correctly but Accept a User’s Imperfect Signs
• Reward the User for Progress
• Use Facial Expression
• Use Environmental Cues or Contextual Information
• Use the Sign for the Underlying Concept
• Adapt the Size, Rate, and Frequency of Signing
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Which Signs Should Be Taught First?
• What If the Simplified Sign System Does Not Provide a Sign for a Needed Concept?
• What If a Potential User Already Knows Some Signs, such as ASL Signs?
• When Are Name Signs Necessary and How Should They Be Developed?
• Why Is the Use of Manual Communication with Non-Speaking Hearing Individuals Relatively Recent?
• Why Do Simplified Signs Work?
• What If One Arm or Hand of a Potential User Is Fully or Partially Paralyzed (or Unable to Be Used)?
• Will Signing Keep My Child or Loved One from Learning to Speak or Regaining Speech Skills?
• How Long Will It Take Me to Become Skilled at Using the Simplified Sign System?
• Will It Be Difficult to Learn to Combine Gestures or Signs with Spoken Words?
• How Does One Know If a Person Is Making Reasonable Progress in the Use of the Simplified Sign System? What Can Be Expected?
• Concluding Remarks

Appendix A. Sign Language Dictionaries and Other Sources

Appendix B. Handshapes

Appendix C. Palm, Finger, and Knuckle Orientation

• Palm Orientation
• Finger/Knuckle Orientation

Glossary

References

Author Biographies

Name Index

Subject Index