Our Mission

Color of Language is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit company which develops educational materials for Deaf children and their families.  By doing so, we hope to promote early intervention, development of language and cognitive skills for infants to adults, and provide sign language instruction for family members to encourage communication.

Our Goals

In creating educational materials we seek to introduce families to a fun, effective, clear and complete language system that will:

1. Reduce frustration
2. Establish effective discipline
3. Enable meaningful bonding relationships
4. Promote healthy self-esteem
5. Develop cognitive skills
6. Result in age appropriate written skills.

We believe the grief process can be shortened through early intervention which will move parents from denial, anger, and grief to acceptance and action!

Factors Affecting Level of Competence and Success

* Onset of hearing loss
* Degree of loss
* Early intervention and access to effective communication and language
* Parental involvement and family support
* Motivational level

National statistics, which are rare and difficult to substantiate, indicate that 90% of deaf students graduate from high school with a 1st to 3rd grade reading level. 8%-10% graduate with fourth grade or above reading levels.

Many factors contribute to this travesty. To list just three:

1. Late discovery or late diagnosis of deafness
2. Lack of adequate early intervention (even when diagnosed early)
3. Family members faced with the overwhelming task of learning a new communication method to communicate with their deaf child.

All of the above add up to language deprivation in the most crucial language learning years 0-5 and increasing with each year that passes. Each year the language deprivation gap in deaf children increases as their hearing peers accelerate in reading and academic skills.

The state of California, as many other states, has passed a law requiring hearing testing for all newborns. As that is implemented, it will go a long way to eliminate the first factor listed above: late diagnosis. The purpose of Color of Language is to address the other two factors. Our goal is to provide materials that will aid families and early intervention programs in the difficult language learning process.

The key is to expose the child to as much language as possible as early as possible. The most visual, understandable and accessible communication mode is Sign Language. These materials will assist the family members in learning, accessing and using that communication system as easily as possible.

MATERIALS:

Three types of materials are envisioned:
1. Early intervention Vocabulary Builders materials
2. Sentence structure, patterned language series to enable practicing English Language syntax
3. Reading materials to accompany the above.

All materials will have the following:
1. Pictures of objects or concepts
2. Signs of those objects and concepts
3. Translation of the signs in English and Spanish words (or glosses)
4. Easy access

EXAMPLE OF VOCABULARY BUILDER MATERIALS:

Family Sign Language and Informational Video Series
American Sign Language for Families Book

El Lenguaje de Señas Para la Familia (Video)
El Lenguaje de Señas Para la Familia (Libro)

Yearly Sign Language Calendar
Vocabulary Building Poster Sets
Bingo Playing Cards

Curriculum