Fun and informative from cover to cover, Nita's Food Signs: An Interactive ASL Board Book is an ideal interactive board book introduction to American Sign Language and unreservedly recommended for family, daycare center, preschool, and community library Board Book collections for children ages 1-3.
Midwest Book Review

In MacMillan's recent Nita tale, readers join Nita as she enjoys various meals and snacks with her dad. As Nita and her dad mention different foods, there are slide-out pages that show children how to sign the word. The story teaches readers to sign 10 different words in American Sign Language. For example, words such as 'eat,' 'banana,' 'bread,' and 'apple' are introduced. The signing instructions are very clear and easy for children to understand. Each page contains vibrant colors and engaging illustrations that children will enjoy. This book would make a great addition to any preschool classroom and household seeking to promote diversity. Children will learn that there are different ways to communicate, such as through visual language, and not everyone communicates with spoken words. This story can also aid ASL comprehension and would be a great starting point for learning simple food signs. ASL is useful for young children who have not yet begun speaking, giving them another tool to express themselves. Therefore, this book is highly recommended.
Children's Literature

Kathy MacMillan has done it again! Literacy for all children is foundational! Reading for young children should involve many senses to help scaffold early literacy for Deaf and nonDeaf children. In the series about Nita and her family, the author not only fosters engagement with the book through written print, stimulating art, and kinesthetic participation cultivating learning printed English, but also supporting literacy via American Sign Language (ASL). Research has shown that children that are taught and/or exposed to ASL at a young age (both hearing and Deaf children) have higher reading and writing scores at an older age as well as having fewer tantrums, boosting vocabulary, and more. Littles who learn some ASL do not have to fully be fluent in Sign Language to reap the benefits of higher reading scores.