Sign language for baby

SamanthaBo · February 2013

Is anyone planning to use sign language with their baby to speed up communication? If so, what are some good resources for learning?

AZMagnini14 · February 2013

We plan to. My brother and SIL used them with our nephew from an early age and it was great to communicate with him about simple things before he could talk. Yes. No. More. Milk. Please. Etc. I am not sure though where they got it their resources from. I plan to look into in soon.

Jasmineeelizabeth · February 2013

Youtube!

I dated someone who was deaf in high school and I learned asl almost entirely off of youtube, they have baby specific videos and it's a lot easier than trying to learn them our of a book.

BrianaSimons · February 2013

I am teaching my son sign language for the simple fact that I just like the language. Im fluent and I would love for my son to fluent by the age of 5. I started in high school and our school had us use aslpro.com I love it and I still use it till this day.

You can start with the basics...milk, eat, hungry, thirsty, light, on and off. I started my DS on those and he picked them up fairly quickly.

Good luck!

RissNRuss · February 2013

We plan to do a bit of sign- I used to work in daycare so I know some basics- I've also seen a cheat sheet of a few on Pinterest.... click me! That's one I've seen.

shelbell1028 · February 2013

We taught DD basic signs - more, milk, eat, drink. I picked up a book and started using the signs and eventually she picked up on them.

JaimeCH · February 2013

My daycare does it and it is really helpful with basic needs like milk, all done, more, etc. I didn't start DD in this particular daycare until she was 10 months and she caught on really quickly.

BelhurstBride · February 2013

We started with more, all done, milk (for nursing), eat, and drink when DD was around 6 months old. I just looked them up online.

Once she picked those up and got more into it we introduced a ton more signs and looked them up as we needed them.

DH wasn't exactly sold with the idea until we were into it... even then not even until he was around non verbal toddlers who didn't sign. Now he sings the praises of signing to everyone with children. His friends probably think I've created a monster.

kcox123 · February 2013

Our daycare does this in the infant room and it is awesome!

Soleil3 · February 2013

We did with both ours, and will with the next one. I swear by it, it cuts down frustration tantrums to a minimum.

LauraLovesJon · February 2013

My kids really love the signing time series. We taught them the basics around 8 months.

Wedding on the Beach 2008 · February 2013

We stared with " more" and " all done" when we started giving boo solid food. Once she got that we did " please" and "thank you" . I am definitely going to do it again. Giving them a way to communicate makes meals less stressful for everyone.

afrochick09 · February 2013

I plan to. I worked in a daycare 1-2 year old room and we used it with our kids there. It was amazing how much they would communicate with us through it. Just small easy ones like more, please, thank you, etc.

mrsf123 · February 2013

We took DD to a sing and sign class and she enjoyed it. We taught her more and all done, but she didn't use them very much. I really don't think it helped her communicate but she enjoyed it. We'll probably do the same thing again...

Kitten80 · February 2013

We will - I have used to to some degree with each of my kids and I used it when I worked (SLP) with a lot of success.

Baby signing time is a good series - a lot of libraries carry some of the videos or book materials so you can try it out and either just learn what you want or test it out before buying it.

Education stores often have books/flashcards.

I think you tube has some videos that show common signs.

I will have to look and see if I still have my old resource list - there were some kid sign websites I really liked because it showed how the signs were done which was helpful.

Some areas offer a baby sign class - you could check your park district/hospital/library and see if there is one in your area.

ladybugpjb · February 2013

I used it out of necessity with DS to prevent him from throwing tantrums. I stopped teaching him signs when he started saying words, but wouldn't attempt the ones he knew the signs for. I never read anything, just learned a few signs from being around people with kids.

Specifically, I taught him please (to ask us to read books), milk, food/hungry (not sure which exactly it is), all done, and more.

RussianMommy · February 2013

no, I cannot be bothered

but if you have a rec center or some thing they may have classes

MrsAery-to-be · February 2013

We did basics with DS1 and will with DS2 as well. We focused mostly on please, thank you, more, milk, all done, sit down. His daycare also used simple signs. It greatly helped thought the day for him to be able to communicate at least somewhat. He is over 2 and still uses please and thank you along with the spoken words.

shainatay4 · February 2013

So my friends did this for there children and they could sign before they could speak. Its an amazing way to communicate and understand their needs. I actually sent an email today to figure out what she did.

ElleStamenov · February 2013

My sister is deaf and she used both speech and SL! It's amazing how much they pick up! You can actually buy infant SL books, that teaches you how to say things like cat, dog etc! My mum had them when my sister was younger! I'm sure if you googled it you could find some. I plan on teaching mine SL also

vintageutopia · March 2013

We didn't with our first, but taught the very basics to our 2nd. He had chronic ear infections/tubes and it proved to be a lifesaver. Now, he won't shut up.

We will probably do it again with this one.

Cheryls24 · March 2013

I am not going to have a choice. My husband and I both work fulltime and will be using daycare. Every single day care we looked at is teaching sign language in the infant room. I am more concerned about being consistent at home, as baby will be going to daycare 3 days a week and to grandma/grandpa 2 days a week, and home with us in the evenings/weekends.

BlueJewelM · March 2013

We did not with DS and will not with this baby

I know some babies really benefit from it though. DS has always been very easy and good at getting his needs across tantrum free. Knock on wood, he's 18 months now and starting to talk. And most weeks are tantrum free.

My bffs toddler really benefitted from signing. He was what I would call a "high maintenance baby" and would get very upset if he felt he wasn't getting his needs and wants meant. Signing helped him communicate those needs and wants more effectively. Our local library offers free mommy and me signing classes on the weekends. So check your library for resources too.

ktbear9512 · March 2013

To be honest, I never really understood signing with babies until my friend did it with her DD. They started at 6 months and did basics like more, milk, please, all done. I think the only resource they used was her cousin who has hearing loss and taught them the signs, so I'm not really helpful on that front.

I am now thinking of doing this too. I was amazed how quickly she caught on, even that young, and was able to communicate with us much earlier than other children. She also picked up English much earlier than I expected, based on my limited experience with small children.

ktbear9512 · March 2013

ktbear9512:
To be honest, I never really understood signing with babies until my friend did it with her DD. They started at 6 months and did basics like more, milk, please, all done. I think the only resource they used was her cousin who has hearing loss and taught them the signs, so I'm not really helpful on that front.
I am now thinking of doing this too. I was amazed how quickly she caught on, even that young, and was able to communicate with us much earlier than other children. She also picked up English much earlier than I expected, based on my limited experience with small children.

It won't let me edit, but by English I meant Speech. Sorry!

shaymosier92 · March 2013

I am deaf so my baby will be learning ASL as soon as possible. There are MANY online videos, there are classes, also youtube. I learned when i was 13.

katiebenes · March 2013

We may or may not. my SIL had some trouble getting DD1 to start talking becuase she would only sign.

Mommy2CB · March 2013

Someone lent us Baby Signing Time DVD.. We loved it and DS1 caught on so fast!

Sign language for baby

Re: Sign language for baby

Choose Another Board

Search Boards