I cannot begin to explain how excited I am about this!

Last night was the very first night, of the very first EVER class of it's kind. Cued Speech for parents of kids with DS. We also had a SLP there as well. The instructor, Shelli Burrows, president of the Cued Language Network
of America, flew in from Utah to teach the class.

OMG you guys! Everyone left last night totally in AWE of what this is going to mean for their kids. One mom came up at the end of class and said, "THIS needs to be in EVERY school system for EVERY kid with a language related
disability!"

Not only that, but the instructor is giving me the curriculum so I can get going teaching more and more and more families how to cue! She totally believes that parents need to be taught by another parent who can help
answer the questions specific to DS. (actually, I would love to just team teach with her. We work really well together!) She has also been in contact with the DS center in the UK, who has recently completed some studies about
language related things for kids with DS (my brain is fried and now I can't remember the details) but Cued English just falls right into all of it!!! Oh yeah, it has to do with reading. If our kids are reading sight words at age 3, they CONTINUE their language acquisition phase well into late childhood. Where typical kids are done with first language acquisition at age FIVE! But, throw CS in there, and now kids with DS will be able to DECODE words at age 3, and not be limited to sight words!!!! AGE THREEEEEE!!!! This goes back to the fact that our kids have a better visual memory than typical kids. Look at how they use Love and Learning, etc. basically the same principles using the visual memory are put into play. Now I'm working to develop a curriculum that combines some of those principles, along with learning Cued English as the same time.

I cannot WAIT to finish getting this curriculum developed. Honestly, I don't know when I'm ever gonna sleep again. I go to bed at night and my brain is doing flip flops trying to get all these ideas out!

This is IT guys! This really is the next thing that is going to help our kids get to the next level.

~Leah~

Wow that's really neat. You sound like you are walking on air. I love that. You'll have to let us know how it goes. It is really exciting to be on the ground floor of something you believe in.
I remember when something happend that pulled a lot of my work together and I felt like flying across my yard. All I could say was Yes!!!
Have fun with it. Let us know if you need any students.


[Edited by marci on 05-05-2005 at 03:38 PM]

That's great! My SIL is an SLP and works for BOCES, is there anything online I can show her about this?

I am hesitant to make a change from the Makaton that we are already using but I am open to being convinced. Is there someone in Australia I can talk to about cued speech.

We HAVE heard from the UK about using Cued Speech! I'll be seeing Shelli (the instructor and the pres of CLNA) tonight and can ask her who she's talked to there. She's been fielding some of those calls.

There is a CS system for the UK, and the DS organization leaders there have been very interested to see what's happening here with it's use for kids with DS.

Leah, Is there a web site where I can get some more information on this? Is this still effective program for children that are older?

We didn't start with Angela until last fall, she's 8!! The UK DS organization recently finished some research that says our kids continue to aquire language well into late childhood, early adulthood. Where typical kids stop aquiring their first language around age 5.

One thing that is soooo cool about CS is giving our kids a visual map to the phonemes needed for reading and writing too!

If you email me privately at downcues@comcast.net with your address, I can send you information. The stuff on the web is good, but it will eventually lead you to an informational video. The Cued Language Network of America has sent me tapes to distribute along with information as it pertains to DS.

National Cued Speech Association
http://www.cuedspeech.org/

Cued Langauge Network of Americahttp://www.cuedlanguage.org/

Leah, this is really neat! But I am not sure that I grasp the concept of CS versus ASL? Is there a difference?

I am going to go through the web site you listed. But am all ears (no pun intended) to hear about this.

There is a HUGE difference between ASL and Cued Speech. It's like comparing apples and oranges. It's very difficult to explain, but each phoneme in English has a corresponding handshape to go with it.

This is very difficult to explain, but ASL is a CONCEPTUAL language, and DOES NOT carry over to the written word! There are many variations to signs, so while you might teach your child a specific sign for "dog", they might go to school and have someone else teach them something different.

When they go to school, will they be able to fingerspell the words they don't know/have signs for? NO! What about their address and phone number? With CS they can cue the SOUNDS in those words. Suppose your child comes home and is trying to tell you about his new friend at school, and has trouble saying the name well enough for you to understand it? Can he fingerspell it with ASL? NO, but can he cue the sounds in the friend's name? YES!!!!

THAT is the difference....IT is ENGLISH. Whatever spoken language your family uses in the language your child is HEARING! We need to give them a visual/manual way for you/them to convey the language they ALREADY KNOW instead of adding a second language, ASL, that DOES NOT carry over to writing.

Does that make sense?

Leah,

I just got an e-mail from someone in the parent group we used to go to about your class. She wasn't able to go. I thought to myself, "I bet I know who taught that class!!!" Would you be interested in speaking to our Minnetonka group in the fall? Or maybe you can let me know the next time you'll be doing a presentation so I can come. I'm very interested in cued speech. Maybe I could get an idea of how it works and then see if our parent group would be interested in having a presentation.

I'm excited for you. It sounds like you have found your calling!

I can talk to the group even sooner than that, although I know most groups are winding down not and won't start up again until fall.

I'm running out the door to teach a class now, but I'll post again later tonight about the AWESOME meeting I had this morning! Are first priority is to get an information video produced so we don't have to travel the country side to give presentations, just to teach once people have decided they want to do this.

I am.....***SOOOOO EXCITED***....!!!! I don't sleep anymore!