Story Time with Signs and Rhymes Event Guide

Updated on 23 January 2024

Rationale

Teach your infant or toddler to speak—before they can speak! Research shows that sign language is beneficial to many groups beyond hearing-impaired and deaf individuals. Signing is an exceptional communication tool for parents with infants and toddlers. And when started early, it improves literacy skills in hearing children down the road.

Use this event guide to help children and families gain a valuable skill and get hooked on signing—through activities, story time, and more fun based on our collection of Story Time with Signs & Rhymes books by Dawn Babb Prochovnic.

Objectives

  • American Sign Language development
  • early childhood education
  • literacy development
  • reading practice

Grade

Preschool - Grade 6

Lesson

This guide is based on the picture book series, Story Time with Signs & Rhymes, published by Magic Wagon, a division of ABDO. Story Time was written by Dawn Babb Prochovnic, an American Sign Language instructor who wanted to provide children’s books that incorporate signing into the story for learning fun. Her vision for events using our books and related resources was the impetus behind this guide.

One of the key ways to use this event guide is through library outreach to parents of infants and toddlers—who will love that the library has fun ways to build “talking” skills—as well as to serve hearing-impaired and deaf children and their families. Feel free to adapt, edit, copy, or use this guide as you see fit, however, it is not for resale. We’ve included lots of activity themes and ideas to help you use the books and guide as a springboard to your own event.

This free guide complements all Story Time with Signs and Rhymes titles available from Magic Wagon.

Handouts

Name Size Format
Activities Packet - Older Children 9.77 MB PDF
Activities Packet - Younger Children 11.7 MB PDF
ASL White Paper 2.93 MB PDF
Event Poster 3.73 MB PDF
Sample Press Release 80 KB DOCX
Set 1 Glossary 8.98 MB PDF
Set 2 Glossary 10.6 MB PDF

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