Tag: SEN

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In Makaton, less is more

My last post was all about the core vocabulary that contains the Makaton signs you will use most frequently. In my latest video you can see core vocabulary signs (look, where, see, cat), plus the special ones for Halloween.

People learning Makaton often worry they don’t know all the signs for what they wish to say. But we use Makaton to support the key meaning of what we are saying, not to translate every word into signs.

It is better to use one sign that supports the main message than no signs at all. For example, if we ask ‘do you want a drink?’, the only sign we need is ‘drink’. Signing every word in that question risks losing the message.

You can also use your signs flexibly. In the video below I say ‘trick or treat’ and use the signs for ‘bad/naughty’ and ‘good’. They support the meaning without translating word-for-word.

Enjoy the video, with Flora in the role of ‘witch’ and Charlie in charge of props…

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Makaton sign of the week

Every Monday the Makaton Charity promotes a new sign of the week. This year they are choosing frequently used signs from their ‘core vocabulary’. The core vocabulary consists of 450 basic concepts that have been chosen because we are likely to use them most often.

If you are new to Makaton it’s a great way to learn some useful signs. The video resources on wetalkmakaton.org are great for use in classrooms to get everyone signing together.

It’s important for us to know how our signs look to the person we are communicating with and to check we are clear and accurate – if we ‘mumble’ our signs they are less effective. Try filming yourself or practising in the mirror.

I’ll be joining in by making a Sign of the Week video every week (with a little help from the kids) so watch this space.