Sign Language With Sammi Signs app review: walking kids through the signs

Introduction

If you want to be able to teach a child how to use sign language you obviously need to do so in a way that is appealing. The Sign Language With Sammi Signs app is meant to give kids the basics of signing in a fun and interactive way. Even if you don't need to use sign language this is still a wonderful skill to teach children.

The best iPhone apps for learning sign language

Teaching Kids the Basics

While this app isn't meant to be a full sign language tutorial and class it does teach kids basic words they can use such as tree, bird, play, and more. The app can be used by kids of all ages and thanks to its fun approach and graphics even young kids will enjoy learning.

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This relatively new app takes the approach that learning sign language should be a fun experience rather than a stressful one with a lot of pressure. This is obvious from the moment you launch the app and are greeted by upbeat music and a fun menu. The app shows three locations which are the park, zoo, and school. Right now only the park is available. The other two sections are marked as "coming soon."

When kids are ready to begin they can tap on Park and enter this area. From here they can learn or take the quiz if they have already learned the words.

Keeping Kids Focused

I think the app does a great job of keeping kids engaged and entertained so they are able to learn a variety of signs. There is narration that goes along with each word as Sammi does the sign for it. If kids want to repeat the word/sign all they have to do is tap on the word to see it again. If the music is too distracting, as it continues even during the lesson, you can turn it off. While I think the music is extremely cute it’s just a little too much happening during the learning segments so I do suggest turning it off.

Kids can work their way through all the words one-by-one or tap on the main menu and tap on any word on the list. If you want to learn each word just swipe the screen to advance. I like that while the app is narrating a brief blurb about the word you can also read that same blurb on the screen.

Pros and Cons

Pros

• Simple to use
• Teaches kids basic sign language words
• Engaging and entertaining
• Review the word as many times as you like
• There is a learning and quiz section
• Graphics are fun and cute

Cons

• Not all the sections are open on the app
• The list of words that you can learn isn’t very long

Final Thoughts

The Sign Language With Sammi app feels more like a preview of what this app can offer. I really like how it is set up, how easy it is to use, and how much it appeals to kids. Unfortunately the list of words is very short so it would be great to see more added.