ABSTRACT
Picture book reading is a powerful tool for the acquisition of both spoken and written language. For the language development of a child, joint picture book reading offers many benefits. Parents of deaf children have to learn how to adjust their signing to fit the language capacities of the child and the child's mental ability. S. Gregory's research has shown that hearing parents of deaf children who communicate orally with their child often have difficulty with establishing and maintaining a pattern of interaction. According to A. J. Sorsby, M. Martlew, M. Wolfe and P. Dickinson, joint book reading may be an ideal activity for language learning, particularly for facilitating the development of representational skills. A primary activity in this process is establishing joint attention. The Dutch Foundation for the Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Child offers an intensive intervention program to families with a deaf child.
