[BlueMommy]

Are any of you familiar with using baby sign language with hearing child? I have recently heard that it works well with babies who are way too young to verbalize.

Any thoughts, experiences or resources you can share would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Robyn

[redhedded]

Robyn, I have many friends who have used it and use it with their young children; they all swear by it. Plus, many large cities have conferences or support groups of parents who are huge advocates of the teaching, if you decide to pursue. While each child is different, I, personally, believe that it can delay speech and the interest in verbal expression.

[saj]

I have used sign language with young children who were not yet able to verbalize their needs. Just a few words though like: sit, stop, more, no, now, yes, hurt, sick, my name, their name, daddy's name etc., bathroom, juice and I love you. You can pick up any number of books on American sign language at most any book store or library. But actually, you could make up your own signs if you wanted to. You just have to be consistent with the same signs and and always make sure you reinforce immediately when baby gives you the correct response.

[HappyTwinsMom]

We used signs on a limited basis with our twins before they were able to verbalize. Mostly, we used the signs for "more" - "eat" - "drink" - "all done" - etc... I found it really empowered the girls. They didn't have to cry to get what they wanted, so they were happy (and Daddy and Mommy were happy, too...LOL!).

[MrsSmith]

Hi -

We had friends who absolutely swore by it for their kids (who are 2 and 3 years older than our kiddo) and who are now doing it with their respective new babies, and our neighbors across the street did it with their two daughters, one of whom was adopted from China, so English was not her first language. In all four kids' cases, each child is well spoken now and didn't suffer any delays in verbal development. I had been concerned about the possibility that it could, in fact, delay verbal development, but after reading up on it, that didn't seem like as much of an issue, and at least in our case, Em sure started talking pretty early. After speaking with our friends and then doing some research on it myself, I decided it was worth a shot and bought the Baby Signs book when Emma was around 8 months old. DH wasn't as into it as I was and didn't really do much in terms of trying to use the signs with her. She did pick up a few signs pretty quickly, but she was verbal pretty early and once she started talking, she didn't really want to use the signs anymore. I think they said in the book that this happens with some kids. I kind of gave up on the whole thing by the time Em was around a year old, as she had a vocabulary of over 30 words by then (she's over 100 words now at 21 months - the kid just won't stop talking LOL) but I think that it definitely has its uses.

My two tips if you are going to look into doing baby sign language are: check one of the books out of your library first before spending $$ on a book if you wind up deciding it isn't for you, and it seems to work the best if everyone in the household is doing the signs, in terms of learning and reinforcement. (grumble grumble, DH! )

Cheers!
Heather

[icunurse]

I did some research into it and have found only positive things can come out of trying to teach your child sign language. Allegedly, because children have a limited abaility to verbalize for a while, it helps to decrease the "terrible two's" in that many younger children have the capability to sign more words than they can speak. Also, because you are saying the words to them in addition to the signs, you are also prompting them to speak the words. There are studies out there that you can find on the web. We have the "Signing Times" DVD's (which are the only things we let DS watch. He LOVES them, but we try to limit his addiction to TV ). I also have the Baby Signs book. The difference between the two methods is that ST teaches ASL signs, while Baby Signs encourages you to use follow DC's cue (ie. child can make-up their own sign for something if it works for them).

[L-A-J-C-R-C]

I used sign language with an almost 3 year old that was non-verbal. My then 1 and 2 year old learned right along with him and the 2 year old would actually help him out if he forgot what a sign was. Like others, we only used words for him to let us know what he wanted/needed. I wasn't trying to teach him to use it on a permanent basis but, the last I heard from his family, he still does use it at home for some words and he's been home for over a year (he's still non-verbal).

Michelle

[kllee4]

I have a child in my daycare who uses signs and language to communicate. I was initially concerned when evaluating her I found that she was not on target with her verbal language. Then I was told that the person who cared for her for the first 2 years of her life, grandma, is hearing impaired. Both mom and dad work very long hours so she spent most of her days with grandma. Her parents wanted me to encourage her to use her signs but they also wanted her verbal skills to increase. In four months, her verbal skills have dramatically increased and she rarely wants to sign. She seems shy signing around the other children and will use it with me when all the other children have gone (she is the last one to be picked up). I began to teach new signs to everyone and now she is openly teaching everyone sign, so this is a plus!

I think that just as exposing a child to another language, teaching sign language early can be beneficial to small children. ANYTHING positive that they can learn early will always be a plus, since those little neurons in the brain will benefit being fired up and you never know what they will retain that may be useful later (a second language or signing may make it easier for them if they decide to pick it up later or study it formally in school). For those frustrating toddlers who have difficulty letting us know what they need or want, this may be the key to less tantrums and peace of mind for parents.

As an Early Childhood Educator, I remember one of my professors telling us a story about a girl who was exposed to sign language by her mother when she was really young (she didn't remember it). By the time she was 3, she was using it less and less and stopped using signs altogether by the time she entered kindergarten. Fast forward to her teen years when she decided to take it up at a community college in her senior year of high school after volunteering with special needs children. She quickly breezed through classes and had mastered signing within a year! Not sure if she was gifted or if the early signing helped but she was thankful that she had been exposed early!

[BlueMommy]

Thank you all for your insights. It is nice to have an open forum to ask questions.

[amom4life]

Blue Mommy~
I plan to teach both of our boys to sign. I'm getting a bit of a late start with Elijah at 13 mos, but he does sign "all done" now which is so much better than him throwing his bowl or unwanted food onto the floor.

Right now I'm trying to decide which book to get. I heard with "Baby Signs" forget the author, but it's a woman that basically you make up your own signs. I know I'd rather go with true ASL so I may even get a more comprehensive book and just choose the signs out of it that we need for now. I do intend on continuing to teach them signing as another language even after they are verbal.

I can see the benefits of signing before they can speak and so far everything I've read says that it enhances their verbal speach rather than taking away from it.
Judy

[Mommy2amiracle]

Hi!

I used Baby Signs with my son. We mostly did: please, more, drink, eat, thank you. He is 28 months old and is very verbal. At his 2yr check-up, the ped commented that he had never heard a 2yo boy talk so well It did alleviate a lot of tantruming as I new basically what he wanted instead of grunting. He still occasionally makes the sign when speaking the word.

Good Luck!

[MrsSmith]

Originally Posted by amom4life

Right now I'm trying to decide which book to get. I heard with "Baby Signs" forget the author, but it's a woman that basically you make up your own signs. I know I'd rather go with true ASL so I may even get a more comprehensive book and just choose the signs out of it that we need for now. I do intend on continuing to teach them signing as another language even after they are verbal. Judy

Hi Judy - Just so you know, the Baby Signs book does include quite a few actual ASL signs, which are designated in the book by an asterix (at least in the dictionary/glossary part, from what I remember). Apparently even the "made-up" signs are similar enough to ASL that if one wants to learn ASL later, the Baby Signs are supposed to be a good starting point.

Take that last bit for what it is worth, as it comes straight from the words of the Baby Signs authors... But I do know that there are many actual ASL signs included in the book.

HTH!

Cheers!
Heather

[79nic]

We are doing Baby Signs with Elise (now 13 months old). Everything I've read says that signs actually HELP verbal language development (not hinder it).

Elise does signs for "hungry" and "happy" and "hello." That's it so far I think... we don't push a lot of them at her at once. Working now on "banana" (one of her favortie foods), "diaper," "more," and "book."

[skootinalong2]

Robyn ~ My DD and I used this with our boys. We taught them the sign for please, thank you, more, eat, all done and drink. It provided them with a way to communicate their needs without whining, screeching, etc.... They loved it. (My grandson and my son are 11 days apart)

Teralyn

[texasmom-to-be]

At what age do you start teaching them to sign? Do the books/videos explain how to teach it to them?