Sign, Baby, Sign!
Read Sign, Baby, Sign! and check the IELTS Reading answers. Language is a powerful tool that humans use for a wide variety of purposes—from expressing emotions and sharing ideas to passing down cultural values and acquiring knowledge. It is not limited to spoken words; gestures, facial expressions,…
Passage preview
Language is a powerful tool that humans use for a wide variety of purposes—from expressing emotions and sharing ideas to passing down cultural values and acquiring knowledge. It is not limited to spoken words; gestures, facial expressions, and even posture all contribute to how we communicate. Language, whether signed or spoken, plays a vital role in how we engage with the world around us.
Vocabulary from this passage
8 words worth learning before you sit the test, each with the sentence it appears in.
- accelerate development verb phrase
To make something grow or progress faster than normal.
In the passage:
Early signing "may even accelerate speech development" (paragraph E): faster talking later.
Synonyms: speed up progress, boost growth
Opposites: slow down
- advocate for verb phrase
To publicly support a plan, policy or way of doing something.
In the passage:
"others advocate for immediate exposure to sign language" (paragraph G): the group that supports early signing.
Synonyms: argue for, champion
Opposites: oppose
- an outdated notion noun phrase
An idea that was once accepted but is no longer considered correct.
In the passage:
Q40 says "old-fashioned"; the passage says Daniels calls the idea "an outdated notion" (paragraph G).
Synonyms: old-fashioned, an obsolete belief
Opposites: a modern idea
- articulate verb
To say words or ideas clearly and in a way that can be understood.
In the passage:
Babies sign "long before they can articulate those words" (paragraph E): here it means to say them aloud, not "well-spoken".
Synonyms: pronounce, express clearly
- a wide variety of noun phrase
Many different kinds of things, people or purposes.
In the passage:
Q27 says "different things people use language for"; the passage says "a wide variety of purposes" (paragraph A).
Synonyms: different things, a broad range of
- foundational to adjective phrase
Forming the basic ideas or skills on which other things depend.
In the passage:
Symbolic representation and grammar are "foundational to literacy" (paragraph F), supporting the claim about reading skills.
Synonyms: essential to, fundamental to
- motor skills noun phrase
The ability to control and move parts of the body, such as the hands.
In the passage:
Q30 says "the ability... to use their hands"; the passage says babies "develop motor skills before verbal skills" (paragraph E).
Synonyms: use their hands, physical coordination
- there remains some debate verb phrase
Experts have not yet agreed about something.
In the passage:
"There remains some debate about the best approach to language instruction" (paragraph G): a disagreement, which leads into Q32.
Synonyms: opinions still differ, the issue is unresolved
Answers with explanations
- 27. A
**Different things people use language for** is the passage's **a wide variety of purposes**, then listed: expressing emotions, sharing ideas, passing down values and acquiring knowledge. Only the opening paragraph lists purposes.
- 28. B
**Future subject choices** matches students choosing **ASL as an academic subject** and the careers that early exposure may lead them to. The paragraph about social interaction is a different benefit, not about subjects or careers.
- 29. G
The key phrase is **right**. **An assertion** is the passage's **stresses that**, and **a right to be taught a sign language** is **a right to a full, accessible language from birth... often sign**. Only the last paragraph talks about rights.
- 30. E
**Small children** are the passage's **very young children** and babies as young as six months. The **ability to use their hands** is the **motor skills** and signing **with their hands**. This is the paragraph about early signing.
- 31. C
**Wider social interaction** is the passage's **broader social interaction**, and the **advantage for hearing children** is **One clear benefit of learning ASL for hearing children**. The explanation about deaf peers makes the match clear.
- 32. G
**Different views** is the passage's **Some educators argue... while others advocate**. **When deaf children should be taught to speak** is **speech and lip-reading should come first** against **immediate exposure to sign language**. The paragraph about the right to a language is the same paragraph, so the letter repeats.
- 33. F
**Reading ability** is **reading skills**, the children taught ASL are the ones **exposed to sign language**, and **primary-school-age** is **by the time they enter primary school**.
- 34. FALSE
The deciding words are **make up their own gestures**. **Invent their own signs** is the same idea, and the passage says there is **no need** for it. Daniels suggests ASL or another standardized system instead, so the statement is FALSE.
- 35. NOT GIVEN
The deciding words are **most widely used**. The passage mentions ASL only in connection with **American schools** and never compares how many people use it with other sign languages. To be TRUE or FALSE the text would need a comparison of sign languages, so the answer is NOT GIVEN.
- 36. TRUE
**For hearing children in America** is the passage's **American schools**, and **an equivalent option to learning a foreign language** is ASL as **a valid foreign language credit, just like Spanish or French**. The meaning is the same, so the statement is TRUE.
- 37. NOT GIVEN
The deciding words are **brain research** and **more easily learned**. The passage mentions **grammar** but never compares vocabulary and grammar or mentions the brain. The text would need to say which is learned more easily for TRUE or FALSE, so the answer is NOT GIVEN.
- 38. NOT GIVEN
Nothing in the passage says where languages are stored. Only the paragraph on reading skills mentions **cognitive advantages**, and it says nothing about the sides of the brain or about first and second languages. For TRUE or FALSE it would need a statement on this, so the answer is NOT GIVEN.
- 39. TRUE
**Less difficulty learning to make signs than sounds** is paraphrased by **develop motor skills before verbal skills**. The paragraph says babies sign **long before they can articulate** words. Signs come earlier and are easier, so the statement is TRUE.
- 40. TRUE
Look for **Dr. Daniels** and **lip-reading** in the last paragraph. **Old-fashioned** is the passage's **an outdated notion**, and she is the one who says it, so the statement is TRUE.