Sing and sign He’s Got the Whole World In His Hands for fun and learning.
A fun and enjoyable children’s song is called He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands. It is a traditional American spiritual. We are pleased to present this song with American Sign Language, ASL, which is a fun, musical action activity that allows children to move, learn, remember vocabulary, and enjoy a traditional song. If you have never signed before, or you want to see the ASL signs used in the song before presenting it to children they you can watch our easy-to-follow sign-by-sing instruction for He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands. Find this and other wonderful songs for children that feature American Sign Language, or actions on our We Play Along YouTube Channel.
Signing ASL wit all children supports many benefits. All of which are supported by a great deal of research showing why signing with all children will offer benefits such as fostering earlier acquisition and more articulate spoken English communication. Signing with children also supports a variety of components important to a child’s healthy development including emotional intelligence, an essential foundation for all learning, self-control, and empathy.
It is important to know how your child’s brain is developing can be helpful as you raise your child. How children remember, in fact how we all remember and recall things, is a fascinating subject. Understanding how children learn and how signing helps with learning will be beneficial to your child’s development.
One of the key connections on how and why signing works to enhance early learning is found in Howard Gardner’s theory of Multiple Intelligences.
Multiple Intelligences
In the 1960s a group of academics came together at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and formed Project Zero to research human cognitive development and the process of learning. Howard Gardner was one of the original members of this endeavor. He continues to be affiliated with Project Zero through his research and now serves as the head of its steering committee. Gardner’s famous theory of Multiple Intelligence’s was largely a result of his work with the Project Zero group.
When Gardner began his endeavors, his research goal was to discover how the mind works. He came to believe that the human mind has a set of independent computers, each assigned to a particular intelligence. In his earliest writings on the topic he named these intelligence’s:
- linguistic intelligence (verbal)—learning through speaking and listening
- logical mathematical intelligence—learning through logic and reason
- musical intelligence—learning through music, songs, rhythms, and melodies
- spatial intelligence (visual)—learning through seeing and reading
- bodily-kinesthetic intelligence (physical)—learning through movement
- interpersonal intelligence—learning with others
- intrapersonal intelligence—individual learning
By using ASL as part of language learning, as part of daily conversation as part of story time, or music time you are helping children to learn in many different ways. Everyone of the ways Gardner has listed for learning are part of children and adults and children participating together in signing activities.
Dr. Marilyn Daniels, in her book Dancing with Words, states that: “In an 1853 issue of American Annals of the Deaf, which happens to be the oldest academic journal published in the United States, Bartlett, recounting Gallaudet’s earlier assertion concerning the value of sign for hearing children, describes the principles on which he believes Gallaudet based his convictions: ‘The more varied the form under which language is presented to the mind through the various senses the more perfect will be the knowledge of it acquired, and the more permanently will it be retained.’” Pg. 126.
Even in the mid 1800’s signing was demonstrating itself to be a powerful way for children to learn and remember all manner of things from vocabulary to core concepts, like their ABCs, numbers, colors, animals, and more.
Now you can provide your children with a learning rich activity, that is also fun, playful and challenging. Watch and learn the song He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands or watch our step-by-step how-to instruction segment for He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands.
Visit our website 4parents and teachers.com to learn more about our Sign to Speak books for Babies, Toddlers and Phonics instruction.
