sign language

lelekay

I know that a few of you use sign language with your little ones.  I'd like to start using a few signs with Henry, but don't know where to begin.  Can you recommend a book or DVD that would have some good info/signs as a starting point?

Married2MrWright

I have a book called The Baby Signing Book by Sara Bingham but I've also found the video clips on this YouTube Channel very helpful:

https://www.youtube.com/user/SmartHandsCA

We've been signing to Libby since she was 5 weeks old but the only sign she sorta gives us is "all done." She's pretty verbal though, so perhaps she doesn't feel she needs to sign? I don't know. I do know she understands a lot of what we say and has started saying single words back to us.

 

mrspresley

Baby Signing Time is very popular and if you are ok w/him watching TV, would be entertaining/educational for him.  but you could also just watch it yourself to learn the signs.

i basically just googled each word i wanted to learn, i.e. i'd google "milk ASL," "more ASL" etc and youtube has good videos too

i've been signing to her since she was about 3 months old.  I can't remember when it was, but maybe around 4-5 months when she started to recognize the sign "milk" and whenever i'd do it she'd get all excited and smile at 6 months she finally started to sign "milk" back to me! it was great b/c she was always able to tell me when she was hungry.

at 10 months she was signing "water" and "more"....at 11 months "all done"... and just recently at 14 months she now signs "eat."  that's the extent of her sign language vocabulary but it's all the important words milk was really the only one she was able to do before she was able to say the words.  all the others she started signing right around the same time she was able to say them.... so, she'd do the sign and say the word simultaneously

i've heard that babies that learn sign language develop verbal skills sooner than babies that don't... and having only raised one baby, I have no basis of comparison, but i have to say that I am constantly amazed by her budding vocabulary. she learns a new word almost every day! what is even more amazing to me is that she is bilingual

oh and I also wanted to mention...you can get BST from the library and see if you like it before buying it... or you could just keep checking it out occasionally it is also sometimes on babysteals

lelekay

Thanks.  I had looked at Baby Signing Time, but I'm not ready for him to start watching TV yet.  Besides, I just thought it would be nice to know a few important words like milk, all done, more, etc., and I get the impression BST gets much more in depth than that.

I never thought of checking youtube.....thanks for the recs! 

 

mrspresley

lelekay:

Thanks.  I had looked at Baby Signing Time, but I'm not ready for him to start watching TV yet.  Besides, I just thought it would be nice to know a few important words like milk, all done, more, etc., and I get the impression BST gets much more in depth than that.

I never thought of checking youtube.....thanks for the recs! 

 

yeah we don't let her watch TV either.  i've found the youtube videos to be the easiest way for me to learn the signs.  have fun!

MauiWedding08

I got this one Baby Signing 1-2-3

at a garage sale last year for like $1.  I like it, but didn't really do much research on "best book out there" because this just happened to catch my eye when I was out and about (although I now see that it is well rated on amazon).  The pictures are easy to understand and it's organized really well - signs are often placed by topic (i.e. meal time)

 

 

kinibruin

my sister and i know ASL already and for her kids we did what jaime did. we just signed a couple simple words that we knew to the boys while they were growing up. we also included "please" and "thank you." we would sign to them then use their hands/fingers to mimic us, then sign again and give them what they wanted.

not sure if that is how the baby books teach? i never thought to look up ASL on youtube though. i think i can use it as a refresher! fun times!

mrspresley

kinibruin:

we also included "please" and "thank you."

oh good idea! we just recently started trying to get her to say please and thank you....she'll say "peez" now (so cute!) but i think getting her to sign those words would be great!