baby sign language

bridetobe9132013

Anyone doing baby signs? If so, when did you start and does your baby do any yet?

flockofmoosen3

Yes! I use ASL for a lot of things. She hasn't figured out how to do signs herself yet. The one I'm really trying to drill right now is the sign for milk. I tell her it's both boobie and milk just for ease, but I use other signs correctly. i will be so excited when she finally signs for the first time.

kendy20

I started using "hungry" a few months ago and now when I do it my DD just grabs my hand and tries to eat it....so not sure if she gets it yet. I've been slacking on using it lately but really want to continue to try.

bridetobe9132013

I was also thinking for now ill do more common things.

bridetobe9132013

This probably sounds really dumb but I kinda worry that she wont be motivated to talk when she is older because she will just use the signs

fussybunch

My IL's are really pushing this right now. I'm blowing them off. Does this work successfully for LOs?

Junebug060609

Start now. Seriously. My son is three and non-verbal. I'm kicking myself for not signing with him as an infant. I'm already throwing in "milk" whenever I can with DD.

For those worried about them signing rather than talking: You're supposed to say the word when you sign it to encourage verbal communication. I can tell you as a parent of a non-talker though that I'd be 100% a-ok with it if DS just wanted to sign with me...if it meant he were able to communicate to me even the most basic of things...like that he wants food or is hurting.

THD7580

bridetobe9132013 said:

This probably sounds really dumb but I kinda worry that she wont be motivated to talk when she is older because she will just use the signs

I started about 2 weeks ago with DS with hungry as well. My sister has a friend who's 2 yr old still signs and doesn't have an interest in talking. It worries me a little so I think we may just stick to a couple and see how it goes.

usernewname

bridetobe9132013 said:

This probably sounds really dumb but I kinda worry that she wont be motivated to talk when she is older because she will just use the signs

I personally think if they have the capacity to talk then you shouldn't use sign language. If there is hearing or speech difficulties then absolutely it can be introduced.

IMO it can be a hard habit to break down the road.

I won't be teaching my son signs ... unless needed otherwise.

Katzalia

We've done just a few (milk, eat, done) but the only one that has really stuck is 'done'. I do the sign and say 'All done!' every time after she finishes swallowing her zantac (which she hates). She grins at me when I sign/say this, even if she's been crying or protesting the second before. I know she understands that it means the yucky medicine is all done (at least for now).

But we're not really focusing on signing much here. We're not a fully bilingual family here, but DD gets some words/songs in two languages besides English.

Junebug060609

Speaking from experience here: If you wait to introduce it until there is a known issue, you'll have a super fun (said with incredible sarcasm since I've BTDT) stint of toddler level tantrums with potentially no more ability to communicate wants/needs than your babies have right now. My sons "stint" has lasted 1.5 YEARS. So far.

Basic signs like milk, food, and drink are so easy to incorporate now. Much easier than adding it to the overwhelming amount of info you face if your DC gets a diagnosis.

flockofmoosen3

I really don't think that using sign language prevents a kid from talking if they need to. I know that there is evidence out there that supports that. If the child insists on using sign language when they should know how to speak and the parents want them to use words, the parents just have to ignore the signing. This doesn't mean that signing was a waste of time, just that the child needs to learn when it's appropriate to use and when it's not. It's the same as a child who learns two spoken languages at the same time. If you want them to speak English, you only respond to the English words.

A "delay in speech" also appears to happen when parents have a tendency to "speak" for their children: "Do you want to eat an apple?" versus "What do you want to eat?" even if they are pointing right at the apple. You have to make the kid say it if they know the word.

I find that being able to communicate with a child who isn't speaking yet is insanely awesome and useful. If baby girl learns to sign before she can talk, she can use use this common language to express to me what she needs instead of becoming frustrated because I can't understand her babbling. 

(I'm passionate about this. Can you tell?)

Nikkipal82

I think toddlers get really frustrated when they want to communicate but can't do it yet. Signing can be useful in this case nc it allows them to communicate their needs. As a FTM, this is all just projection for now, but I'd like to give it a try and see how it goes. Does anyone have any good books/videos/website recs for baby sign language?

FlemDance

Former deaf ed. major. Babies can sign before they speak, so signing increases communication and language acquisition.

spinsoffresonance

We did just a few signs with DD1. Didn't start until she was 8 months old. Took 2 days for her to learn the sign for "more", a little longer for "eat" and "all done" came way later. She never got the sign for "drink." Even with just those 3 signs she could express herself very well and make it very clear to us what it is she wanted. It's really awesome having your baby be able to sign for what they want rather then get frustrated and throw tantrums because they can't express themselves. She's 2 now, speaks more and more each they but still always signs when she asks for "more" in addition to saying it. Will definitely teach DD2 a few signs as well.

flockofmoosen3

Nikkipal82 said:

I think toddlers get really frustrated when they want to communicate but can't do it yet. Signing can be useful in this case nc it allows them to communicate their needs. As a FTM, this is all just projection for now, but I'd like to give it a try and see how it goes. Does anyone have any good books/videos/website recs for baby sign language?

I did a quick google search and found this: https://www.babysignlanguage.com/

It looks like there is a lot of good information available on that website! I have a couple different dictionaries at home if I need to look something up.

apinkpelican

We do the sign for milk and have been for a few weeks. I swear DD's eyes lit up this morning for the first time like she got it and was excited for her bottle. Can't imagine her doing the sign on her own for quite sometime but think she might be understanding it.

bossyferg

I did this with my DD, started around 8 months. She did well with it and it did not delay from talking but it was certainly helpful during that time when she was difficult to understand. She quit on her own around 2 years old and I could ubderatand her verbal communication. I plan to do the same with DS.

spinsoffresonance

Also keep in mind that kids that favor signing over speaking could have had speech delays anyways even if they didn't sign, there's just no way of knowing that. At least if they sign they can communicate.

BKD1386

I started around 4 months with the sign for milk (I usually say milk or boobie), he hasn't started signing it back yet, but I'm pretty sure he knows what it means based on his reaction to it.  I'm planning on adding in some other basics soon.