What The Research Says
The good news is that there are no real drawbacks to using signs with your young children. Many parents express concern that signing will delay the expression of verbal communication.
No studies have ever found that to be true, and there are some that suggest the exact opposite effect.
There are studies that suggest the use of sign language doesnt help infants and toddlers acquire verbal language earlier than usual, but even these studies dont show that signing delays the ability to talk.
Does Baby Signing Help Or Hinder
Most often, when something new is developed there will be skeptics.Research over the yearsbaby signershad more advanced verbal skillsInfants who learn to sign develop their communication skills at an advanced rate.
Over time, the use of Baby Sign Language has been widely used and adopted to solve a number of issues. Infant sign language is taught to babies as a form of early communication. It is also used to teach children who have developmental problems and unable to learn normal speech at a normal pace.
In addition, infants who have physical problems hindering speech development can communicate with sign language for babies. Finally, children with emotional problems and experiencing difficulty expressing themselves without rage can be taught infant sign language for positively stunning results. But most of the time, Baby Sign Language is taught to hearing babies so they can communicate their needs and feelings before able to verbally express themselves. Not to mention being able to communicate 1-2 years earlier
Are There Any Drawbacks
Many parents wonder if using baby sign language will make their little one a late talker, but the research indicates the opposite may be true.
Learning baby sign language definitely does not delay speech development, in fact, the research indicates that babies exposed to sign language speak earlier and have larger vocabularies, says Rebelo.
A seminal study by doctors Linda Acredolo and Susan Goodwyn, funded by the National Institute of Health, showed that 11-month old babies exposed to sign language had larger vocabularies and understood more words by age two than those in the non-signing group of the study.
So will your baby be signing even when she begins to talk?
Most babies will sign exclusively at first, and then they might overlap speech with the sign and then the sign falls away as speech takes off, says Rebelo. Some babies skip the overlapping stage of signing and talking and will drop signing abruptly as their speech develops, which happens rapidly from about 18 months on for typically developing children.
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Baby Sign Language For Animals And Items
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Tap your thigh and then make a snapping motion with your fingers indicating that you are signaling to a dog.;; |
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Join your index finger and thumb and slide them across your upper lip as if to show whiskers. It is up to you to use one hand for this sign or both. |
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Tuck your thumb in betweenyour middle and index finger and turn your hands into fists. Now start twisting your fists to indicate the sign of toy. ;; |
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Book;; |
Place one of your palms over the other and then move it in a way as if you are opening a book. It is better to hand the child a book when showing this gesture. |
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More Signs |
;; To show scared sign, you must repeatedly tap your chest. ;; To show rabbit sign, you must hold two of your fingers over your head and wrinkle your nose. ;; To show car sign, you must mimic the act of steering a wheel. |
After reading through the above;baby sign language charts, the following video shows clearly instruction on common sign language to teach to your kid:
Simple Signs To Start
All done! This is one of the most popular ASL baby signs. To do it, hold both hands up, palms facing toward your chest, fingers spread out. Then, in one quick motion, turn your hands so that the palms are facing out away from you.
More.;touch the tips of your four fingers and thumb together on both your right and left hand . Then touch the fingertips of your right hand to your left, as if you are making a pecking/kissing motion with your hands.
Hungry.;Make a C shape with one hand, with your palm facing your chest. Then start with your hand at your neck and move it down to your belly button in one motion.
Sign language allows babies to communicate with caregivers and parents long before they can speak verbally. Also, sign language accelerates babies verbal skills and strengthens emotional bonds. If you are able to consistently use the signs at home, it will make mealtimes harmonious and fun.
With patience and persistence sign language can become a highly beneficial part of your relationship with your childduring mealtimes and at all other times!
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Earlier Communication Helps Reduce Tantrums:
Once a child can communicate their wants and needs, their frustration decreases. Babies and toddlers will get to a point where they know exactly what they want but dont know how to communicate their wants and needs.
;This can sometimes result in a meltdown. ;If they are given early communication tools, such as baby signs, this greatly decreases tantrums and meltdowns.
Baby Sign Language: Why When And How To Start
If youre a parent of a baby or toddler, youve probably heard the term baby signs or baby sign language and wondered what its all about. ;Is it only for deaf children or can hearing children benefit as well?
How and when do I start teaching signs? If my child learns baby signs, will that keep her from talking? As a speech therapist who worked in early intervention for several years, I can answer all of these questions!
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How To Teach Baby Sign Language
If your baby is about 8 to 9 months old, youve probably seen him wave goodbye or point to something he wants. Hes learned these gestures simply by watching and mimicking the adults in his life .
Teaching your baby sign language is as easy as repeating a gesture and saying the corresponding word when you have your babys attention. Once he starts to catch that he can use gestures to communicate with you, he may surprise you with how quickly he learns baby sign language.
If youd like to start using baby signs, speech pathologists recommend keeping these tips in mind:
Does This Mean That Abstract Non
Thats a reasonable question, given that baby signing programs feature signs that are non-iconic. Could the difficulty of learning such signs be a roadblock?;
Studies havent found that babies trained to use signs suffer any disadvantages.
So if you and your baby enjoy learning and using signs, you shouldnt worry that youre putting your baby at risk for a speech delay.;In essence, youre just teaching your baby extra vocabulary vocabulary borrowed from a second language.;
Still, its helpful to remember that;iconic gestures are easier for your baby to figure out.
For example, in one experimental study,;15-month-old toddlers;were relatively quick to learn the name of a new object when the adults gestured in an illustrative, pantomime-like way.
The toddlers;were less likely to learn the name for an object when the spoken word was paired with an arbitrary gesture .;
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Baby Sign Language Basics
In terms of which signs to teach baby first, select words you and your family use all the time in your day-to-day . Some baby sign language basics? Words and phrases like please, more, milk, all done, play, thank you, sleep and sorry all make for great first signs, Fujimoto says.
Read on to learn how to useand teach baby to usethese common words in baby sign language:
Baby sign language: Food. The food sign is done by flattening your fingers on top of your thumb and then bringing your fingertips to your mouth.
Baby sign language: Hungry. Make the sign for hungry by cupping your hand around your neck to make a C shape, then move your hand down from your neck to your stomach.
Baby sign language: Drink. To sign drink, make a C shape with your hand, as if you were holding a cup, then move it to your mouth as if you were drinking from it.
Baby sign language: Milk. To sign milk, make two fists, then extend your fingers and bring them back into fists.
Baby sign language: Water. The sign for water is made by spreading out the three middle fingers on one hand and then tapping your index finger on your chin.
Baby sign language: More. Make the sign for more by pinching your thumbs and fingers together, creating two O shapes, then tap your fingertips together a few times.
Baby sign language: Please. To sign please, extend your fingers and thumb out, then rub your flatten your palm against your chest in circles.
When To Start Signing With Your Baby
Four to six months is the ideal time to begin signing with your baby. At some point between six and 12 months, usually around the nine-month point, infants hit a developmental period for gestures.
This is the point when you will likely see your baby sign for the first time if you have introduced baby signs a couple of months preceding.
It is completely fine to start signing later when your baby is already gesturing. Regardless of when you begin, be ready to sign consistently for some time before your baby picks it up.
There is no harm in beginning earlier than four months. You can start as early as you’d like. Some parents find that signing from the start helps them develop the habit. This is important because both consistency and patience are key in teaching your baby to sign.
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So Should You Teach Your Baby Signs What Are The Benefits Of Baby Sign Language
Teaching a baby to communicate using gestures can be exciting and fun. Its an opportunity to watch your baby think and learn.
The process might encourage you to pay closer attention to your babys attempts to communicate. It might help you appreciate the challenges your baby faces when trying to decipher language.
These are good things, and for some parents, they are reason enough to try baby signing.
But what about other reasons developmental reasons?
Some advocates claim that baby signing programs have long-term cognitive benefits.
They claim that babies taught to sign will amass larger spoken vocabularies, and even develop higher IQs.
Others have claimed that signing has important emotional benefits.
According to this argument, babies learn signs more easily than they learn words. As a result, they communicate more effectively at an earlier age. Their parents understand them better, reducing frustration and stress.
Does the research support these claims?
Not really. But it depends on what you mean by baby-signing.
If by baby signing you mean teaching babies signs derived from ASL or other languages, then theres no compelling evidence of long-term advantages.
But if youre thinking of the more spontaneous, pantomime use of gesture, thats a different story. There is good evidence suggesting that easy-to-decipher, iconic gesturing can help babies learn.
To see what I mean, lets take a closer look at the research.
Mealtime Baby Sign Language
Baby sign language is particularly helpful around mealtimes. Basic signs like hungry, thirsty, more, and all done can help eliminate frustration and encourage positive interactions around the dinner table!
Babies are extremely bright and yearn to communicate with their caregivers in any way that works. They tend to use movements and actions that are easiest for them. For example, babies who feel full or do not want a certain food may spit, throw food, or knock bowls off the table. If they are hungry, they may cry or reach for another childs food.
Sign language removes this barrier of communication. If a baby can tell you that he or she is hungry or full, that he or she does not want something or wants more of some food item, they will hopefully not resort to crying or food throwing.
Mealtimes are an integral part of every parents and babys life. In fact, children spend at least 9 hours of their week eating. Learning and teaching your baby sign languagespecifically, meal-related sign languagecan help promote an unhurried, stress-free mealtime experience for both parent and baby, and reduce friction based on miscommunication.
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How Signing Helps Parent
Why this is beneficial? Peterson says,;This allows parents and caregivers to be able to understand what a child wants and needs early on in life, reducing some of the frustrations felt by both.;
In essence, by teaching your child sign language, youre giving them a head start on learning to communicate.
Helping babies communicate more effectively is key to development.; Dr. Patricia Garcia, a pediatrician at Connecticut Childrens tells Parentology, The idea behind introducing sign language to infants/toddlers started with this understanding of their natural development they can use their hands long before they can use their voice.;
Children who learn;baby sign language;also gain psychological benefits, such as improved confidence and self-esteem. Once a child can communicate their wants and needs, their frustration levels decrease, as do tantrums. This helps improve child-parent bonding.;
Parents who sign with their children say they feel closer and more tuned-in to their babies. Ana Narajian, mother of three tells Parentology, Signing with my daughters helped me cross the bridge from meltdowns to giggles. I finally felt able to meet my daughters needs. We were able to spend more time laughing and bonding and almost completely eliminated daily tantrums.
Teaching A Baby Sign Language Will Delay Speech
For some reason, some parents assume that by learning sign language their child will not need to learn how to talk to communicate. This is wrong as signing is always accompanied with the associated word.
If anything, sign language will accelerate their ability to speak as theyre exposed to more speech than non-signing babies. Recent studies have shown that sign language can accelerate a babys ability to speak.
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Families Can Communicate Quite Successfully Without Using Formal Baby Signs
For example, consider this snapshot of a baby making the sign for more, borrowed from ASL.
Its a perfectly useful sign, and many babies have learned it.;But what happens if you dont teach your baby this sign?
Will your baby be incapable of letting you know that he wants more applesauce? Will your baby somehow fail to get across the message that she wants to play another round of peek-a-boo?
When parents pay attention to their babies and engage them in conversation, one-on-one they learn to read their babies cues.
A baby might pat the table when he wants more applesauce. A baby might reach out and smile when she wants to play with you. They arent signs borrowed from a language like ASL, but, in context, their meaning is clear.
When we respond appropriately to these spontaneous gestures, we are engaged in successful communication, and we are helping our babies build the social skills they need to master language.
That doesnt mean there is no reason to teach formal signs. You might find that some signs are helpful that they allow for communication that is otherwise difficult for your baby.
But its wrong to think of formal signs as the only gestures that matter. From the very beginnings of humanity, parents and babies have communicated by gesture. And research suggests that gestures matter. A lot!
Teaching Baby Sign Language: A Guide For New Parents
Baby sign language can help your child communicate without saying a word. Learn when and how to teach your infant to sign, plus the benefits of this new form of baby talk.
How many times have you looked at your baby especially when he was wailing and desperately wondered what he wanted? Like most parents, you probably resigned yourself to living with the mystery: After all, it’ll be months before your child can say that he’s thirsty or tired, or that he wishes you’d read him a story.
But what if there was a way the two of you could communicate much sooner?
That’s the idea behind Baby Sign Language, a collection of simple gestures that children can begin learning and using well before their first birthday. It’s easy to teach and its seriously catching on.
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The reason? Using sign language with your baby gives you a peek into his thoughts, which helps cement your bond, says Michelle Macias, M.D., chair of the section on developmental and behavioral pediatrics for the American Academy of Pediatrics. Signing may also cut down on the frustration caused by your child’s inability to convey his needs. And it might even make your kid smarter. Studies have found that babies who were taught to sign had a larger vocabulary at 12 months than those who weren’t.
Ready to give it a go? Heres everything you need to know about teaching baby sign language.
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Uncle Goose American Sign Language Blocks
Little ones will strengthen their fine motor skills while developing a love of learning to sign the alphabet with these beautifully crafted Uncle Goose American Sign Language Blocks. The high quality, wooden building blocks feature the letters of the alphabet with the corresponding sign to strengthen fingerspelling skills. The blocks are made with sustainable wood with non-toxic inks making them safe for your babe.
6 of 6 Image Credits: Amazon