Family Signs 家族のサイン

Family Signs ファミリーのサイン

おすすめ　TOLO Dolls

Look these up in the Signing Time Dictionary online or Signing Savvy

Family　家族
Father　お父さん
Mother　お母さん
Baby　赤ちゃん
Sister　お姉さん、妹さん
Brother　お兄さん、弟さん
Grandma　お祖母さん
Grandpa　 お祖父さん
Great Grandma　ひいお祖父さん
Great Grandpa　ひいお祖母さん
Aunt 　 伯母さん
Uncle　伯父さん
Cousin いとこ

Songs with family signs:

Mom Has a Mom

~ Baby Signing Time Vol. 1 Mom Has A Mom ~

In a House

~ Signing Time Series 1 Vol. 4 Family, Feelings, Fun ~

家族のサイン練習にぴったりの絵本　Books for Practicing Family Signs

Kotoba & Sign Amazon.co.jp Store

Spot's Snowy Day

Week At Grandma's

The Berenstain Bear's Family Reunion

Reading with Your Little One

Reading and books play an important role in the development of our children.  
Here are some ideas to get you started with reading: 

プレママに Before Birth
Even before they are babies can recognize a mother's voice and hear when a book is read aloud to them.  Some studies show that after reading the same book repeatedly before birth it is recognized by a newborn after birth. Look for books which have an interesting rhythm. Dr. Seuss works great!
While it may seem strange to start signing with your baby at this stage it is a good time to learn signs at a relaxed pace and start getting into the habit of signing, particularly when reading a book
Suggested books:  
One Fish, Two Fish
Hop on Pop
Green Eggs and Ham

新生児 Newborn
As newborns wake up to the world they are very interested in many things but are limited by the development of their bodies.  During the first few months black/white patterns are particularly interesting as their vision improves.  They also are great listeners so talk, sing and read to them.  This is a great time to start signing the words you know when you come across them in a book.
Suggested books:
Books to look at - Black & White
Songs that are books - Classic Books With Holes - Wheels on the Bus

赤ちゃん Infants
Around 6 months old a child's vision becomes clear enough to enjoy various pictures.  It is a good time to introduce books with photographs.  To avoid overwhelming the baby choose a book which has just one clear picture on each page. 
As a baby nears 1 year old there is a time of interest in textures.  During this time touchy-feely books can be great fun.  
Babies at this stage also benefit from seeing signing while being read to .  It will help them to learn new signs, their meaning and when to use the signs.
Suggested books:
Baby Signing Time Board Books
Global Babies
Touch and Feel set

乳幼児 Toddlers
As babies begin walking and become toddlers their areas of interest increase greatly.  They become more aware of seasons, day/night, weather etc.  Through books we can introduce and explain many of these ideas.  They also strive for independence so it is good to have books which a toddlers can "read" (look at) alone in a place the toddler can reach. 
Suggested Books
Baby Signing Time Board Books
Down by the Station
Maisy's Wonderful Weather Book

幼稚園生 Preschooler
Reading with a preschooler can be a great way to answer some of their never-ending questions.  At this age they are often interested in a wide variety of books.  Reading together, pointing out the words as you read, can help to develop an understanding on phonics and phonemics which is a key part to learning to read independently.
Suggested books:
Cat in the Hat Learning Library
Chika Chika Boom Boom

読み始まったら　Beginner Readers
During this time many children begin to read on their own.  While there are many ways to encourage reading and each child will go at a different pace there are a few key things you can do for any child and with any system:
 - Have easy books available. Children need something to practice with that is at their level.  The "I Can Read" and BOB Books series are popular the US.
 - At this stage a child's comprehension of words usually exceeds his ability to read. Developing good listening skills is also a part of reading. This is a good time to introduce short chapter books read by an adult.
Suggested books
Biscuit
BOB Books
Little House in the Big Woods

一人で読めるようになったら　Reading +
Once kids have started reading a bit on their own it is important to continue making time to practice.  Some families have the kids read to mom while she makes supper. Others set aside some family reading time before bedtime.  Make reading a daily activity and keep it interesting by having great books on hand!
Suggestions:
Caldecott Medal Books
Newbery Medal Books
Reading Rainbow Books 

For more reading: 
Benefits of reading before birth
http://news.sciencemag.org/brain-behavior/2013/08/babies-learn-recognize-words-womb
http://www.livestrong.com/article/217722-benefits-of-reading-to-an-unborn-baby/
Children's vision development: http://www.childrensvision.com/development.htm

On the Book Shelf...

During our summer vacation trip to my parent's house I came across this book on the bookshelf. It is a reminder that American Sign Language is a normal part of life, something which can also be a very helpful part of life, for many families.

This book shows the ASL alphabet with a picture of an animal whose name begins with the letter being signed. It is another great resource for interactive reading and a fun way to learn the sounds letters make!

Handsigns: A Sign Language Alphabet by Kathleen Fain http://amzn.com/0811811964

 

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Signing at the Aquarium 水族館でサインと英語

今週葛西臨海水族館の遠足に行って来ました。色んな海の生き物を見るチャンスでした。海と色の英語とサインを皆で学びました。本当に楽しかったです。
Earlier this week we had our parent/child field trip to the Tokyo Sea Life Park aquarium. It was a great chance to see various sea creatures up close and learn to say and sign their names! The colorful fish and and nominees also gave us a chance to practice color signs.

Here are some of the things we saw:

こんな生き物を見た:

Fish さかな

Starfish ヒトデ

Seahorse シーホース

Crab カニ

Penguin ペンギン

Shark サメ

We also read this book. この本も読んだ.

In preparing for this field trip I came across some helpful pages and printouts. My kids love the printables on the Sea World page.

準備をしていた間にいろんなページとプリントを見つけた。私の子どもたちはSea World のプリントを気に入れました。

遠足のページにおすすめ本やリンクあります。

On the field trip page there are links to other resources and books.

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Support a good cause!

Part of my summer "homeschool" for my kids includes picking it a few DVDs on topics we're studying. However, it can be hard to find something with enough educational value to have it add to their learning. In our situation especially it is important for them to hear about the study topic in English from a native speaker other than me.

For years we have enjoyed the Signing Time DVDs and not too long ago when Rachel and the Treeschoolers came out we all got really excited! Treeschoolers comes with activities you can do beyond watching the DVD and covers a large amount of material in 30 minutes.

 

Two Little Hands, the company which makes Rachel and the Treeschoolers, has been looking to get the show picked up by a TV network but they've been repeatedly told that the show is too educational for TV. Does that make sense? It is entertaining, fun and educational. If you are going to let your kids watch TV why not watch something useful?

 

To try and bring the rest of the Treeschoolers episodes to market they have started a Kickstarter fundraising campaign. Basically this allows us, the consumers, to have a direct hand in the creating of a wonderful educational series. Lending your support through pledging is risk-free. If you make a pledge and they don't raise enough money to support the current project then your money is not collected. If they do raise enough money your pledge is accepted and you will receive a return gift of your choosing.... Such as a copy of the new DVDs.

 

Why not hop on over to Kickstarter and take a look?

Rachel and the Treeschoolers campaign

 

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