SYRACUSE N.Y. (NCC News) – Deaf kids can learn more words than kids that can hear. American Sign Language is a language not many people understand, but one family is making an impact on their three year old deaf son. The Seamans family was not expecting for their son Brennan to be deaf, as the hospital told them he just had water in his ears.
After the hospital gave them recommendations on specialists to see about Brennan’s ears, they decided to visit an audiologist and the results where not what they expected.
The audiologist told Caitlin and her husband that Brennan was deaf and after seeing the diagnosis written on piece of paper she knew it was real.
She didn’t let this stop her though, as Caitlin knew that deafness runs in the family. She began teaching Brennan sign language and by the time he was one and a half he knew more than 100 signs, which is more than an average hearing child’s vocabulary at that age.
“He has been able to communicate with us so clearly, his wants, his needs, umm right from the beginning. I mean I dare say he signed his first sign at like two, between two and three months old,” Seamans said.
Seamans has pictures of different signs around their home, so their children and any visitors can look up around the dinning room or next to the bathroom mirror to learn American Sign Language and also communicate with Brennan. She has been bringing Brennan to Whole Me which is an organization that provides programs for deaf and hearing individuals.
The newest program, which started in September, allows children ages three to five to learn from deaf professionals how to sign.
“A deaf child is like any other child, they just need to be given the tools to succeed,” Seamans said.
Executive Director of Whole Me, Joelene Orlando has watched Brennan improve his skills since he started coming to their programs two years ago. She has witnessed not only Brennan’s success but others as well.
“A few are getting exposure to language acquisition, they will learn, their vocabulary will be greater than their hearing peers at that age before they’re speaking,” Orlando said.
Moreover, the Seamans are making sure all of their children learn sign language and are able to communicate with their deaf family members as well as within the deaf community. They want to make sure their children are well versed in American Sign Language and English so they can communicate with anyone they come in contact with.
If you would like more information on the Deaf Culture and/or American Sign Language you can visit the National Association of the Deaf .
