Want to Do Sign with My Baby

Dear C.,
I'm also doing sign language with my twin girls. I signed up for a TV program called Baby First TV and they do new sign language words at least twice a day. That's what helps to remind me that I'm doing sign language with my girls. Plus I just google a bunch of sign language words to help me communicate with my girls any new thing they're learning.

I got myself a book of signs for babies. I already knew some simple things, but we basically stuck to:

more, food, milk, bottle, help, please, and thank you

I also entertain my kids by singing the alphabet and doing the signs. It is very funny to watch them try to make the letters sometimes.

I did not know any signs, but I didn't wany to pay for classes or buy videos either, although she did like some from the library, this site has hundreds of words and short video demonstration of each sign! Good luck...

http://www.mybabycantalk.com/content/dictionary/dictionar...

Youtube, internet...there's even a show on tv (can't recall the name!)where they sign children's stories while reading. I'll watch with my kids, learn it and teach them. There are a lot of good resources on the net that teach basic signs for free. Nice and easily accesible for those who don't have the extra money to spend or who may not be able to ge to a class regularly.

My favorite signlanguage website is http://www.babies-and-sign-language.com/glossary-photos.html . We did sign language with our daughter, and it went far in decreasing her frustration. Although she has over 100 verbal words now, she still will use her signs for emphasis.

I don't think you even need DVDs or a fancy class. If your baby is not hearing-impaired and will not be needing to sign with the deaf community, feel free to make up signs that work for you and are easy to remember. The important thing is helping your baby communicate, not getting the sign perfect. We've modified the sign for "Cat" and "dog" to make it easier for our daughter to sign.

The first/easiest signs to start with are more, all done, milk, sleep. The key is repetition. When baby is grunting, asking for more food, ask, "do you want more" while doing the sign over and over. Repeat "More" out loud and with sign. You'll be amazed how quickly they catch on! Baby's sign will probably not look like yours, so watch carefully for gestures baby makes.

Also it's never too early to start. Good luck!

Check out the Signing Times. Very good.

Whatever method you choose, the biggest thing is doing it over and over and having EVERYONE in the family that cares for him, sign also. We started when he was nursing at 6 weeks with the sign for milk, then added sign for food, more and water when he began eating meals. Now adding signs for 'help' and 'potty/diaper change' at 13 months. He is doing well with all of them mainly because we started early. Even if you don't think they are getting it, keep at it and one day it will just click that they can get something by signing. He loves watching me sign the ABC song.

Signing Time video series is the way to go. Classes are good, but watching the video daily really made the difference. It also taught my little one ABCs, colors, and a slew of other things all before the age of 2yrs.

I loved Joseph G.'s Sign W/ Your Baby set. http://tinyurl.com/mu9swr on Amazon. It comes w/ a book, DVD, and Quick Reference card for people other than yourself caring for your little ones who may not recognize that they're trying to communicate. This was a fabulous tool for the grandparents who had no clue what he was doing until they looked at the card. My son's vocabulary was in the 95th percentile by the time he was 20 mos, and I credit the sign language w/ giving him sentence skills b4 he could talk! He's now 5 and way ahead of his peers. 2-mo-old will be next!

GL!

I ditto the Sign With Your Baby by Joseph Garcia(http://www.sign2me.com/) and the Signing Time DVDs. Both are awesome. I also like First Signs by Baby Einstein.

When you start, don't get discouraged....you may have to sign a LONG time before your baby starts signing him/herself. Just keep doing it, and doing it A LOT! It'll be well worth it.

Yeah!!!! We've been signing with our nearly 2 year old for the past year and a half and plan to start earlier with our next. I feel like it's been a GREAT thing for our family! My daughter speaks A LOT (no seriously, A LOT!!), is pretty clear, and very clearly understands everything she hears. She tried to drop signs as she started speaking more, but we encouraged her to keep her signs and she has. So, all that being said, I really think signing is a great thing!

I would stay away from the baby einstein dvd's personally. We watched a couple, but didn't care for anything about them. For videos, we like "Signing Time" and you can check them out from the library. We also took a class through my husband's work which was fabulous! I'd recommend taking a class if only so you and your husband can learn a bit to help get the process started. Joseph Garcia's book "Sign with your baby" is another really great resource! We did a "sign and sing" class through Kindermusik too and it was fun, but more about the music and fun than about signs. It was a great experience, but not where we learned most of our signs. If you want more info or suggestions, please feel free to pm me.

When my son was diagnosed with Autism, the first thing we did was to find a good teaching video for signing. http://www.signingtime.com/ My kids loved these videos and we watched and practiced together. It really helped our family communicate. Good luck!!

Ditto most everyone else.

Just want to add:

http://www.ASLPro.com

and you can get GREAT deals on the Signing Times DVD's on Ebay (they have 'authorized' retailers). Also, if you sign up on their message board forum you will get emails about specials they're having, plus meet some great people who are using sign with their children.

I started with my daughter at birth. I used signs that were pertinent to what was happening. I kept it very simple and very consistent. I was the main one signing with her as I was/am a WAHM and hubby didn't have a basic knowledge of sign. I was teaching them both essentially. It took her about 10 months to start signing back to me, but she was receptive to it much earlier.

Now at 5.5 I can sign to her or my son across a park or crowded playdate and they know what I'm saying and it makes life so much easier not having to yell across a bunch of kids or adults.

My son (who is hard of hearing aka HoH) and my daughter both LOVE the Signing Times DVD's and they have a baby set and an older child set. I've never seen the baby ones as my kids were older when I discovered the series, but that may be a good place to start.

Hope that helps!
C.-Signing WAHM to 5 y/o virtual twins
Owner: http://www.BeHappierAtHome.com

I'd suggest Baby Signs by Acredolo and Goodwyn. And just take it very slowly. Add a sign consistently, and in a few days, add another. I started with my second baby around 5 months. "Up" was his first sign. He's now 7 months and can understand about 5ish signs. I haven't exactly followed the book, and we could be using more signs, but what we've got really helps!

It's easy to share sign language with a baby- and I'll give you several suggestions ( if you live in the North Seattle area- I'd be thrilled to meet with you- as I have used signs with babies, small children- - adults - for decades.
If NOT - try on-line sites ( just go to your search engine and type in ''sign langauge for babies''' - or just '''learning sign language'''--- it's a blast - also the library has great resources.

Blessings,
J.
aka- Old Mom

Hello,
Our first son has chronic kidney disease and is awaiting a kidney transplant. Due to his condition, he suffers a severe developmental delay in speech. We were told he will catch up once he is transplanted, but his inability to communicate his needs was proving to be very frustrating for him. He is 2.5 now.

I decided to try signing and started with the baby einstein DVD: My first signs. It was good, in that it introduced my son to signs and he did begin signing ball, daddy and sleep rather rapidly. But beyond that, it is pretty lacking.

He is now seeing a speech pathologist and she recommended the "Signing Times" series. It is a comprehensive series of DVD's from a TV series that used to be on PBS. What is great about these DVD's is that the mother/children on the DVD actually use ASL (american sign language) because her daughter is deaf.

I don't know how you feel about your children watching DVD's, but honestly, if you actively watch it with them and engage them in the signs, repeating the words and the signs as the show is doing them, it works wonders.

I am also one of the busiest people I know. With my son's severe health issues and the fact that we have a 1 year old, and both work from home, I don't have the time to read books. I don't have the time to attend classes on baby sign.

Since we began signing with Max, I've found that his speech is developing far more rapidly. Lately, I hear 3-4 new words a week AND sometimes while I am working with him on a sign over and over again, he will begin speaking it before he ever signs it. This was most recently true with "More". I have also found tht he has now started using his vocabulary functionally, rather than just saying words here and there in no context.

I like that Signing Times is ASL, and I feel as if I am helping my child to speak, as well as teaching him a valuable second language. We are doing this with our 1 year old, too.

The series is available at Amazon,com and there are something like 12 or 13 in the first season and there is a second season, as well. Right now, we have episodes 1-5 and are finding that is meeting our needs right now.

The only other advice I can give you is to sign and say the words religiously. Do this over and over again. Even if you don't use a video or a class, you can still teach them sign and they WILL pick it up if you just commit to working with them on this whenever you are talking to them or to someone else in their presence.

Good luck!

We used a large board book put out by Child's Play called My First Signs. Here is what it says on the back:

"All childeren naturally communicate with gestures, even before they develop the ability to speak. By teaching simple sign language to children from as young as eight months, we can help them to convey their emotions and their needs, as well as giving them a valuable head start in their social and intellectual development.

This first signing guide for hearing and deaf children contains signs for over forty key words. The signs are based on American Sign Language, which is in common use by teachers and parents who sign with their young, and recognized by the deaf community."

It has 42 useful signs in it that baby will learn over time. The pictures are very colorful and each one shows a small child doing the sign, gives an illustration of what the sign is and there are written instructions on how to do the sign. I liked using it because it got us reading early and it incorperates reading into baby's early months. Now my son will bring me books and insist that I read them to him and he also was very easy to communicate with because everyone in the house used the signs with him so he picked them up very easily. We got this particular one at Babies R Us three years ago.

Good luck. Have fun.

Hi! I'm a speech/language pathologist and a baby sign language teacher in Portland Oregon. I echo what everyone is saying about the Signing Time dvds, but would suggest that you start with more than 2-3 signs - actually don't hold back! As soon as you are comfortable with a sign, use it. If you are only using a handful of signs, it takes a long time for things to click. Think about it, we don't limit how much we speak around our children...

Also, be sure to use some really motivating signs too (like your family pet, or "music", etc). You might not like that your baby currently screams to tell you she wants "more" but it's effective! Signing for things she doesn't have a way to communicate already (like she's thinking about the "dog" or she thinks the "lights" are cool!) can make a huge difference in how quickly your baby will sign back.

The videos are great, but classes can be great also - especially in regards to learning strategies for signing effectively and successfully.

Hope that helps!

Signing Time is a show that was on OPB/PBS. It is great interactive and colorful and music. You can find it online. Good luck.

I got alot of good vocabulary from the Talking Hands video I found at the Multnomah County Library. The key, as you know, is to learn with your baby. My caregivers think its cool, and I have to remember to teach them the new words when we see them.

Just like many of the other moms, I HIGHLY recommend the "Signing Time" series. If you don't have the funds to order these online (Amazon.com, etc.) many libraries also carry them. You'll likely have to check for availability via the online library service or check at the library's front desk to see if you can do a hold - they are frequently out of stock because they are so popular. I have a 4.5 year old, and looking back at all of the things we bought or did for him - teaching him with these dvds has to be one of the most important/rewarding.

We have signed progressively more with each of our three girls, and I HIGHLY recommend it!! Our first only used "more" and got in her high chair when we signed it to her. Our second had a couple more signs that that. But right now with our 15 month old she is a signing machine, and it's SO HELPFUL for us!! She doesn't get nearly as frustrated as our other girls did because she can communicate with us as well as her big sisters.

We didn't go to any classes or use any DVD's, we just borrowed Joseph Garcia's materials from the library, and in a pinch we look online at the ASL site.

We started signing to Carmen around 4 months, by seven months she was signing eat, milk (our sign for nursing was mama and milk), drink, all done, yes, and more, and now as her speech has been taking off in the last few weeks she's still signing as if to emphasize her words, and of course, signs when she's crying.

Go for it and enjoy it! Having the older siblings sign too really helps (especially the babysitters!).

Highly recommend Signing Time. They have a baby version, but we went straight to the regular version. My baby loves it. For our little one it took several months before she got it and then of course her signs weren't perfect so I think she was actually signing before we realized it. I am a firm believer that it has but down on tantrums. Good luck.

just wondering the web address for sighn info. on sighn, how to get them to sighn back

I recommend starting at about 7 months and just teaching one or two signs at first. Show him/her over and over along with saying the word. Don't expect him/her to to understand for a while (a couple months) or to make their own signs for even longer. Once it kicks in though, it is very helpful in that period of time when they can understand and use language but not verbalize it all yet. It really helps divert frustration (on the kid and parents' part!) I didn't use any videos for my daughter and did get one from the library for my sons but I think the most important part was just me using the signs repetitively. I would recommend that at the very least, you do the signs for: more, eat, drink and pain. If you start with a few basics like that, eventually, you'll all see the benefit of it and learning other words will just take off! Also, "wait", (and even "stop" and "no") can be helpful even when the kids are older and you're on the phone and need to communicate but don't want to interrupt the conversation to speak to your kids. Good luck!

We love the baby signing time videos and so does our 14 month old. In addition to that I would just say (as in all things with kids) you just have to be consistent and very patient. I am so glad we did it though - it is amazing to watch our son learn new signs and how happy he is when he successfully communicates. Good luck!

We started signing with our now 26 month old when she was just months old. We have had great success with the siging time dvd series. She still uses her signs even though she knows the words for things. It relieved a lot of frustration in the beginning when she couldn't speak and now it is fun to continue to do.

I hope the signing is going well for you! I too love the signing time DVDs, but find they are geared more towards older kids. The Baby Signs Program has some great Baby sign Language Products and classes for babies, parents and caregivers. You can see their products here: http://www.pjtra.com/t/4-21755-27711-20538

And learn all about signing with your baby on my blog at http://www.babysignswithelizabeth.blogspot.com

E.

I hate all Baby Einstein products. For sign language, by far the best DVDs are the Signing Time ones. They are a little bit pricey, but you can also rent them from the library. Both of my kids loved them.

What made it the easiest for me was Signing Time. It used to be on TV every Sunday morning. I recorded like 10 episodes on DVDs and we watched those together. They are very engaging and fun. They also repeat the sign many times so if is super easy to memorize. As my kids got older, they liked to watch them without me too, and my older child was then able to learn (faster than me) and help teach the baby.

Signing made a huge HUGE difference with my son and made our lives sooo much easier. My only suggestion is that you start with one sign at a time. A lot of parents sign tons of things to their baby and baby is so overwhelmed with sorting out both spoken and signed language that they don't speak either one until well after a year. With my son, we only learned the signs he needed and added new ones as needed and he picked them up within a week and by a year was using 30 signs. For example, when he started screaming to get out of his high chair, I taught him all done. When he was old enough to ask for a bottle, I taught him milk. When ever he had the desire and knowledge to ask for something, I gave him the sign so he'd have the words too. This eliminated all the frustration lots of babies feel when parents can't understand them. Also, encourage baby to "show me" using hands and body when you don't have a sign to communicate. After a while, if the child wants to say something he doesn't have a sign for, he'll often make one up and expect you to understand it.