Those little ears are listening!

At 15 months, Lilah has started signing SLEEP! Whenever she hears anyone talking about anything related to bed, sleep, etc she makes the sign for SLEEP by laying her head to the side on her flat hand. It shows me that she is hearing and understanding what is going on around her. Truly a window to her thoughts.

Meet the new guy!

My newest Baby Signer is now 13 months old and has 5 signs and 1 spoken word! She is consistently signing MORE, EAT, ELEPHANT, MONKEY and DOG and saying Mama. She is also pointing and using different images in books to communicate her thoughts. Teaching a baby to communicate visually opens the world to them in so many wonderful ways!

Can your 2-year-old do this?

I have several different kinds of friends in my world. Some have amazing talent for getting people to pay attention to their quests in life a little more than others. I want to thank my friend Ryan Commerson for always providing me with amazing inspiration in one form or another, most times he doesn't have a clue that he is doing it. He is just living his life with zest and purpose, not wasting any opportunity to get himself understood. I found this article through him, it is another example of a successful deaf child who has been able to shine because her parents took the time to get to know her, her needs and what is best for her. I hope to be such a good parent.

Start Your Engines

No matter what your background with using sign language, it doesn’t take much to get started. As you can imagine, babies can only handle a very small vocabulary to begin with, so you will have plenty of time to build your own vocabulary to teach your baby along the way. My personal choice is to use American Sign Language, a visual means of communication that uses hand movements, facial expressions and body placement to express language visually.

As you explore ASL, if you have not already, you will notice that many of the signs are difficult for little fingers with limited dexterity to maneuver. It is the decision of the parent if you want to use an alternate version of some of the signs, or consistently model the actual sign from ASL. Little fingers may come up with their own version regardless, so part of the parent’s job is acting as an interpreter of your baby’s gestures and signs. As they mature and their hand control improves, so will their ability to form signs correctly.

It’s a Bird, It’s an AIRPLANE

Everyday Tori seems more and more aware of her surroundings. It seems her environment is getting bigger and bigger in her eyes. Lately when we are at the park I see her looking up into the sky and pointing out the birds and airplanes. So, I took the opportunity to introduce the sign for AIRPLANE. She loved being able to talk about airplanes and every time she sees or hears one now she gets excited and makes the “OHH!!” face and signs AIRPLANE. If she hears an airplane from inside she freezes, makes the face and signs it. Sometimes she’s not sure if she hears an airplane or a train which makes for a very cute, inquisitive face looking at me and signing AIRPLANE as a question. It’s priceless every time and a very big step toward ASL language acquisition.

Baby Signs Gets Endorsed by the AAP

Baby sign language allows early communication between parents, caregivers and infants. It includes baby friendly signs from American Sign Language, and signs that babies and parents have also created.

The AAP has endorsed the use of baby sign language: “Infant sign language really does deliver on its promise of improved communication.”

If you have ever spent any time with a twelve month old, you realize how much they understand. When they have tantrums, it is often because they are trying to share some important information, but they do not have the words.

I find that most babies hit the “terrible twos” well before two. Between 15 and 21 months of age, babies are frustrated with their lack of words. Tantrums are often triggered by frustration. I always tell my parents that “they have lots to say, we just do not speak their language.”

Good news, sign language may bridge that gap. Babysigns is a great site for information about signing. Babycenter can also get you started on signing here.

Babies who sign have been shown to have advanced language skills, better gross motor development and less frustration.

Signing does not decrease the rate at which toddlers learn to speak. When words are used along with the sign, the infant and/or toddler will learn both. Babies who sign have been shown to have as much as a 3 month leadover playmates in language development.

Baby signing was first researched by Dr. Goodwyn and Dr. Acredolo. They have dedicated 30 years to the development of baby sign language.

“We know that signing with young children reduces a child’s frustration, brings parent and child closer together, and even helps children achieve significant developmental milestones earlier,” said Goodwyn. “Signing creates happy, secure, loving babies.”

To read more please visit the link provided.

It's raining, it's pouring!

Last night while my daughter was in the bath it started to rain so hard that we could hear the raindrops falling on the roof, the thunder and we could see the lightning. I could see the worried look on her face and decided to use the opportunity to teach her a new sign and try and take her mind off of her fear of the rain sounds. I flittered my fingers on the surface of the water and made my own rain sounds. Then while my fingers dripped water, I raised them up to show her the sign for rain. RAIN, RAIN, RAIN....the water fell from my fingers and helped make the sign fun! You could quickly see the fear of the rain disappearing and the wonderment beginning. We talked about rain through the whole bath, and when it was over we walked outside and held out our hands to touch the rain. My daughter's face lit up! I know she has heard and seen the rain before, but being able to talk about it somehow made it magical. Signing rain gave her just the distraction I needed to turn a fear into a curiosity. I know the lesson stuck because all day today she has been waiting for it to rain. She runs to the window and says, "Mommy, RAIN?" I felt bad having to tell her, "No, no rain yet." Now instead of feeling afraid of the sounds of rain, she can't wait to hear them again.

I need a few more arms Mommy!

My little signer is not only signing ASL more and more everyday, but creating her own signs as well. Today she waved her arms very seriously in each direction and then signed MORE. It didn't take me long to realize she wanted to watch her OCTOPUS movie again. Very clever!

LOVE

As I was kissing my little signing superstar goodnight as I do every night, she looked at me and signed LOVE with a big smile on her face. For her to not only understand what it means and then chose to sign it to me before we said goodnight was one of those mom moments that makes all of this even more amazing. Just when you think you've learned something new about love, your child surprised you and teaches you how much you still don't know.

Full Circle

We're pretty close to the 2 year mark and we have started to turn signs into spoken word! Signs that my daughter has been using since she started learning Baby Signs are now becoming spoken words. For example, over the last few days the sign for MORE has gone from just a sign, to a sign and spoken word, to just a spoken word. That's how it works! I did not force it, just waited for her to figure it out on her own, and she did.