[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":3,"doc-seo-580596-105":59,"doc-detail-580596-en":130},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"success",[7,13,18,23,28,33,38,43,48,51,55],{"id":8,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":10,"show_sort_weight":11,"slug":12},1,"Document","Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":14,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":15,"show_sort_weight":16,"slug":17},2,"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":19,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":20,"show_sort_weight":21,"slug":22},4,"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":24,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":25,"show_sort_weight":26,"slug":27},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":29,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":30,"show_sort_weight":31,"slug":32},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":34,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":35,"show_sort_weight":36,"slug":37},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":39,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":40,"show_sort_weight":41,"slug":42},8,"Research & Report",30,"research-report",{"id":44,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":45,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":47},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":46,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":49,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":50},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":52,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":53,"show_sort_weight":52,"slug":54},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":56,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":57,"show_sort_weight":24,"slug":58},19,"General","general",{"code":4,"msg":60,"data":61},"ok",{"site_id":62,"language":63,"slug":64,"title":65,"keywords":66,"description":67,"schema_data":68,"social_meta":123,"head_meta":125,"extra_data":127,"updated_unix":129},105,"en","odyssey-language-and-literacy-rich-environments-strategies-for-young-deaf-children","ODYSSEY - Language-and Literacy - Rich Environments: Strategies for Young Deaf Children","","The article explains how language exposure in rich, sign-language environments supports language acquisition for deaf and hard of hearing children. It contrasts natural language learning with approaches focused on explicit grammar study, emphasizing incidental and direct exposure to visual language. It highlights how robust early language skills support social-emotional, academic, and relationship development across home, school, and community, and identifies language deprivation risks when signers are unavailable. Practical home strategies for parents and professionals are provided, especially for families learning signs after birth.",{"@graph":69,"@context":122},[70,84,105],{"@type":71,"itemListElement":72},"BreadcrumbList",[73,77,79,82],{"item":74,"name":75,"@type":76,"position":8},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":78,"name":9,"@type":76,"position":14},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/",{"item":80,"name":35,"@type":76,"position":81},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/healthcare/",3,{"item":83,"name":65,"@type":76,"position":19},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/odyssey-language-and-literacy-rich-environments-strategies-for-young-deaf-children/580596/",{"url":83,"name":65,"@type":85,"image":86,"author":91,"headline":65,"publisher":94,"fileFormat":97,"inLanguage":63,"description":67,"dateModified":98,"datePublished":99,"encodingFormat":97,"isAccessibleForFree":100,"interactionStatistic":101},"DigitalDocument",{"url":87,"@type":88,"width":89,"height":90},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/odyssey-language-and-literacy-rich-environments-strategies-for-young-deaf-children/580596.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":92,"@type":93},"Miles","Person",{"url":74,"name":95,"@type":96},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-10-22","2026-10-15",true,{"@type":102,"interactionType":103,"userInteractionCount":8},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":104},"ViewAction",{"@type":106,"mainEntity":107},"FAQPage",[108,114,118],{"name":109,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":111},"Why do young deaf children need exposure to language instead of studying grammar rules?","Question",{"text":112,"@type":113},"Young children develop language naturally through exposure. They acquire language as they see it directed at them, observe interactions around them, and learn from adult and peer language use.","Answer",{"name":115,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":116},"What risks arise when deaf children are not surrounded by other signers?",{"text":117,"@type":113},"Limited sign exposure can lead to severe language deprivation, affecting cognitive, linguistic, behavioral, and social development.",{"name":119,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":120},"Which practical strategies does the article recommend to increase sign use at home?",{"text":121,"@type":113},"It recommends strategies such as modeling, exposing the child to frequent linguistic stimuli with authentic engagement, and narration/self-narration by describing actions and adding thoughts or feelings during daily routines.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":83,"og:type":124,"og:title":65,"og:site_name":95,"og:description":67},"article",{"robots":126,"canonical":83},"index,follow",{"doc_id":128,"site_id":62},580596,1792660340,{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":131},{"doc_id":128,"user_id":132,"nickname":92,"user_avatar":133,"doc_module":4,"category_id":34,"category_name":35,"doc_title":65,"doc_description":67,"doc_content":134,"file_id":135,"file_url":136,"file_type":137,"file_size":138,"view_count":8,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":8,"is_downloadable":8,"audit_status":8,"page_count":19,"language":139,"language_code":63,"site_id":62,"html_lang":63,"table_of_contents":140,"faqs":141,"seo_title":142,"seo_description":67,"update_tm":143,"read_time":52},13056703019404,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_29158cc5080c5b710cf443261637dec0","Kristen Secora, PhD, CCC-SLP, is assistant professor of communication disorders at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. She has been a speechlanguage pathologist working with deaf children and children with other communication needs since 2016. Her research focuses on supporting children’s language acquisition and perspective-taking skills.  \nMarissa Ramos, MA, CCC-SLP, is an ASL/English bilingual speech-language pathologist with“superior” ranked ASL fluency on the Sign Language Proficiency Interview. She has worked at residential schools for the deaf, public schools, and early intervention. Ramos owns a business, Rise & Sign Therapies, through which she provides speech therapy services to Louisiana residents and consultative services throughout the United States.  \nODYSSEY  \nLanguage-and LiteracyRich Environments:  \nStrategies for Young Deaf Children  \nBy Kristen Secora, Marissa Ramos, Brittany Lee, and Cheryl L. Shahan  \nYoung children do not develop language skills by studying grammar and rules for forming sentences. Children’s brains are wired to acquire language naturally; all they need is exposure (Petitto, 2000). This exposure occurs in many forms. Children learn as they see language directed at them. They learn as they see language that flows around them in their environment. They learn as they observe adults interacting through language with each other, adults interacting with other children, and children interacting with each other. Many opportunities for language learning are lost to deaf children if they are not surrounded by other signers (Hauser et al., 2010) . In fact, the loss can be so severe that deaf and hard of hearing children can be at risk for language deprivation (Hall et al., 2019), a neurodevelopmental disorder that negatively impacts cognitive, linguistic, behavioral, and social development.  \nJust as exposure to a spoken language supports language development for hearing children, exposure to sign language—incidentally as well as directly—supports language development for deaf and hard of hearing children. With exposure to a visual language, deaf and hard of hearing children acquire language naturally, meet appropriate language milestones, and develop strong language skills. In turn, strong language skills are important for social-emotional and academic development as well as for establishing healthy relationships within the home, school, and community.  \nTo promote environments that are rich in language for deaf and hard of hearing children, our team of American Sign Language (ASL)/English bilingual researchers, university professors, and speech-language pathologists from institutions in different parts of the country present some  \nPhotos courtesy of Marissa Ramos  \n2024  \npractical strategies. These strategies can help parents, especially those who did not learn signs as their first language, to communicate more frequently with their young deaf or hard of hearing children and help ensure the development of their strong early language skills.  \nStrategies to Increase Use of Signs in the Home  \nFor families who learn sign language after the birth of their deaf or hard of hearing child, signing may not be natural or easy at first. Infact, it may require planning and conscious implementation. However, it is essential. When a child’s family and all members of the educational team know sign—and foster sign language-rich interactions with children—the result is robust exposure to various language models and development of strong early language skills.  \nHere are some strategies that may help parents, caregivers, and educational professionals to increase their use of signs inside and outside of the home, enriching the language environment for deaf and hard of hearing children:  \n• Modeling—Modeling is the act of exposing the child to a variety of linguistic stimuli (e.g., individual signs and sentences with  \nAbove: A speech-language pathologist models the sign again as a young child copies it.  \ntwo ","cbCaif6DJSDnf4cF","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaif6DJSDnf4cF","pdf",357316,"English","# Language-and Literacy: Rich Environments\n## Strategies to Increase Use of Signs in the Home\n## Modeling\n## Narration","[{\"question\":\"Why do young deaf children need exposure to language instead of studying grammar rules?\",\"answer\":\"Young children develop language naturally through exposure. They acquire language as they see it directed at them, observe interactions around them, and learn from adult and peer language use.\"},{\"question\":\"What risks arise when deaf children are not surrounded by other signers?\",\"answer\":\"Limited sign exposure can lead to severe language deprivation, affecting cognitive, linguistic, behavioral, and social development.\"},{\"question\":\"Which practical strategies does the article recommend to increase sign use at home?\",\"answer\":\"It recommends strategies such as modeling, exposing the child to frequent linguistic stimuli with authentic engagement, and narration/self-narration by describing actions and adding thoughts or feelings during daily routines.\"}]","ODYSSEY - Language-and Literacy - Rich Environments: Strategies for Young Deaf Children | PDF",1792037919]