Jessi's Secret Language

by Ann M. Martin

Book Overview

Jessi has learned sign language from the Baby-Sitters' newest charge, Matt. Baby Sitters Club #16.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0590442341
• ISBN13: 9780590442343
• Release Date: September 1988
• Publisher: Scholastic
• Length: 10 Pages
• Weight: 0.28 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 5.2" x 7.6"
• Age Range: 8 to 12 years
• Grade Range: Grades 3 to 7

Customer Reviews

great debut for jessi

this book shows jessi to be a passionate, caring and even talented protagonist/narrator of the story. She is very much into ballet and recently joined the babysitters club, so when she babysits for a deaf 7 year old boy who communicates in sign language, she befriends him and is interested in learning it and does so and also teaches it to the neighborhood kids and help matt make friends that way who were very understanding of his situation. Also, jessi had a great awareness of how the deaf and disabled are marginalized by society for their disability and invited a bunch of deaf kids to a ballet she is dancing in and got a translator to do sign language onstage to show what the plot of the story is like as they watch the beautiful dancing, and in turn empowers them and gives them the message that just cause they can't hear music doesn't mean they cannot appreciate the arts. Also because jessi experienced racism from neighbors after moving to stoneybrook from new jersey, she could probably relate to the pain of being marganlized. Great start for jessi I love this book!

Care for the deaf

A very touching and realistic story. It features a young boy named Matt who was born deaf and this family, the Braddocks, move into Stoneybrook. Putting Jessi as the main character in this Babysitter Club book is very interesting because the deaf cannot hear music and therefore, none of them had exactly went to watch a musical or a ballet concert. Jessi's a ballerina and she feels especially sympathetic towards the deaf in that very aspect. This story touches on the sensitive areas of a deaf person's life, about being ridiculed by others, looked down and thought of as weird. However, the babysitters were intrigued by Sign Language and the other kids int he neighbourhood begin to slowly accept Matt and were fascinated with sign language.We also find out more about the deaf in this book, we learn some sign language, we learn that it is crucial that the deaf are kept well away from busy roads as they cannot hear cars approaching. We also find out how some families are being inconsiderate in not bothering to take up sign language to communicate with their deaf family member and instead, expect him/her to lip-read instead. Lip reading is extremely difficult. The story has a happy ending and reveals what Jessi does to make the children in the school for the deaf happy. A must-read.

Although a bit dull, a good message

Although I felt this book lacked excitement, and seemed to drag on, it has a good message. It shows how people who are "different" are really just normal, everyday people. It shows you how people of different races are special and so are disabled people. Jessi breaks the communication barrier, and makes a new friend! I read this 10 years ago and I still remember it!

jessi learns a whole new language

jessi ramsey has a new client, a boy named matt. theres only one problem, hes deaf. jessi learns sign language and it takes the club and all the kids by storm. it was great and it made me go and learn sign language.

Brilliant Babysitter's Club Book

This book is the best I've read in The Babysitter's Club. It touched my heart in several ways. If you have a child aged 10-14 you MUST buy this book. It is a very heart warming book Ann. M. Martain is an excellent autor and she has a good sense of humour inside her books. I am 11 and I love this book. Jessi learns how to do sign language and sets up a ballet show for the deaf.