Even before your baby says his first words, he gets the gist of what everyone is saying, and by the time he's about 8 months old he should have the motor skills needed to learn basic sign language. Yes, we know, right now it seems he thinks his hands are best used for sticking in his mouth, or for dropping the sippy cup from the high chair, but think about when he waves bye-bye or points at different objects in the room. Baby sign language is within his reach and it can help him communicate with you now, before he starts talking. Signs can be super helpful when you want to know if your baby is hungry or if you want to get an early start on potty training. Researchers also say baby sign language can help strengthen the bond between parent and child, and reduce temper tantrums. Plus, studies suggest that babies who are exposed to signing early have bigger vocabularies earlier, and signing as an infant may lead to higher IQs. So what are you waiting for? Get started with ten common baby signs from BabySignLanguage.com.
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3 Responses to “Baby Sign Language Basics: 10 Starter Signs to Teach Your Infant”
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We taught our son ASL (Baby Sign) at 8 months… Nothing. We kept going with the signing, taking classes as a family. At 12 months, he had a few signs and we had several hundred. Now at 22 months, he has several hundred and I have to look up new signs to show him when he asks *what’s that*. My husband and I use it with each other at parties and in noisy places. We sign when our son is sleeping or looking the other way… (It is better than spelling out a word, which he is catching on to.) All I can say is stick with it. (And if your child gets really good, it counts as a foreign/secondary language for many collages.) Oh, and the best online site that we have found? ASLpro.com without a doubt. They have video dictionary that show you the signs. Brilliant!
is it possible to teach my 12 and a half mo old? or is it too late to start signing?
Baby Sign Language has been fantastic for our family too! Both of our children, now 5 and 21/2 used Baby Sign to help communicate to us, and now they both have such a tremendous vocabulary!!! There is this AWESOME book set by author, Mimi Brian Vance of Words by the Handful. http://www.amazon.com/Words-Handful-Sharing-Language-Communicating/dp/1933979720/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1291939343&sr=1-1
Also, this is her website: http://www.wordsbythehandful.com You may find some additional information on this site and you simply must check out her books! We STILL love reading her books, and my children are much older. Such an fun way to spend time with your baby, and building communication skills no less!