First Words Ceremony

The name of the First Words Ceremony is a misnomer on two counts. It takes place when a siren child has learned to control their spoken voice, and is therefore allowed to verbally communicate with non-sirens. Until this point siren children use Siren Sign Language around anyone who is not another siren. Technically the ceremony should be titled First Verbal Public Words, as the siren has spoken verbally with other sirens, and SiSL--like any language, verbal or non-verbal--contains words. Therefore it is neither their first verbal words, nor their first public words.
This milestone is one of the most important in a siren's life--beyond the simple ability to verbally communicate with anyone; it represents a greater achievement of self-control. Some siren children struggle for years to achieve this, and a speech therapist may be hired in extreme cases. The more difficult the journey, the greater the achievement; First Word Ceremonies for children long past the average age tend to be extremely emotional for them and their families.
The components and execution of the First Words Ceremony depend on the child in question. It's not uncommon for siren children to be very self-conscious about speaking verbally to non-sirens for the first time, especially if they don't live in communities with other sirens and therefore have little experience verbally communicating outside their own family. In these cases, a huge party is deemed inappropriate, as it puts undue pressure on the child to speak before they are comfortable doing so; small private gatherings with only non-siren guests the child is comfortable around are more appropriate.
There are a few cases of a siren reaching adulthood without having mastered control of their spoken voice, though these are extremely rare, and usually lack of support from family is the key factor. In some documented cases, the siren in question used sign language (not necessarily SiSL) to communicate with everyone; and either never learned to, or elected never to, speak at all.