Understanding concepts in sign language and speech of deaf and hard-of-hearing children of elementary school age

Sign language is a natural means of expression for deaf children. While communicating with a deaf child one should use speech followed by gestures until the child learns the spoken word and understands its meaning. The deaf child learns how to pronounce a word and its meaning, i.e. the idea that the word denotes, simultaneously. The aim of the research was to examine the level of acquisition of the sign language and speech by deaf and hard-of- hearing children of the elementary-school age, and their understanding the notions within the lexical field family. The sample comprised 91 deaf and hard-of-hearing children of elementary-school age. A list of the stimulus words within the lexical field of family was used. The results show that age and the grade in Mother Tongue Language have impact on understanding the concepts. It is characteristic that junior pupils show only in sign language that they understand certain concepts. The deaf and hard-of-hearing children made specific errors both in reading and understanding certain concepts. To develop vocabulary of deaf and hard-of-hearing children and the formation of concepts it is necessary to perform lexical and semantic exercises both in sign and oral forms and their combination.