Baby sign language utilizes modified gestures from American Sign Language. I was keenly interested in learning some signs because I had heard how beneficial it was in communicating with babies. Baby sign language may prevent much frustration from 8 months to two years in empowering them with a way to communicate despite a lack of verbal skills. Here’s some tips I’ve found useful:
- Set realistic expectations. Signing can be started as early as birth, but most people start at about 6 months, and the baby won’t be able to communicate themselves until at least 8 months.
- Keep signs simple. Start with signs to describe routine requests, activities and objects. Choose signs that are of most interest to your child.
- Make it interactive. Try holding your baby on your lap, with his or her back to your stomach. Guide your baby’s arms and hands to make signs. Or carry your baby and make the sign on his or her body. Alternate talking and not talking while signing.
- Give signs context. Try signing while bathing, diapering, feeding or reading to your baby.
- Acknowledge. Encourage your child when he or she uses gestures or signs to communicate.
- Repeat regularly.
- Involve other caregivers. There was a study referenced in Nurtureshock that when a new word is verbally introduced at 9 months by at least 3 different people, the child can pick it up almost instantly. I imagine a similar effect could be produced with multiple people teaching one sign.
images courtesy of babysignlanguage.com
When I was pregnant, my husband noticed there was a class offered at the hospital and suggested we attend, but I brushed it aside saying I could learn it all online. I started at 6 months with this selection of first words, but since then I haven’t really made much of an effort to learn any more. Shame on me. Now I see the value in taking a class to hold my hand and make me do it. I’m really wanting to make a better personal effort to learn more baby sign language on an ongoing basis, and I thought I’d share what I’m learning with the hive. So fingers crossed, each week I will try to get a a sign, or two or three, under my belt.
I’ve really only been consistent with more and poop, although when I sign poop, I repeat it over and over again which actually translates into diarrhea. I should really be showing constipation (oh the joys of solids), shown with a difficulty removing my right hand from my left. I wish I would have used the sign for change instead of diaper because it’s impossible for my little one to see me touching my hips flat on her back up on her changing table.
At nine months, I haven’t noticed my little one being able to sign back, but I think she might almost be there with “more.” I think I need to try guiding her hands to do the signs. Have you had luck with signing with your babies and toddlers?
Baby sign language part 4 of 9
1. Sign Language for Babies by parenting2. Signing with Your Baby by Mrs. Pen
3. I'm a Believer: Baby Sign Language by Mrs. Hopscotch
4. Baby Sign Language: week one by Mrs. Chipmunk
5. Baby sign language: first foods by Mrs. Chipmunk
6. Baby Sign Language: Bedtime Rituals by Mrs. Chipmunk
7. Baby Sign Language: Songs and Animals by Mrs. Chipmunk
8. Expanding the mealtime vocabulary by Mrs. Chipmunk
9. Baby sign language: More Animals by Mrs. Chipmunk
cantaloupe / 6669 posts
I want to do sign language with my LO! She is 6 months so I think we might start with “eat,” “more,” and “all done” since we are in the midst of introducing solids.
olive / 64 posts
I focused on eat, drink, milk, more and all done around 6 months, basically when he started solids. He started signing milk inconsistently around 11 months and “all done” around 12 months. He could say “more” before he signed it but now signs while saying “more” when he really really wants more lol (23 months now). The most useful sign for us has been “all done” it has stopped soooooo many tantrums. When the bubble time is over at library storytime he will beg for more but we sign “all done” and he agrees! Amazing! Good luck! Communication with a little one is so rewarding. I’m excited for you.
pear / 1696 posts
Since 6 months I’ve been doing all done, more, milk, eat, water, dog and cat. My LO is almost 11 month now and he hasn’t repeat any signs yet. I hope he does soon!
blogger / nectarine / 2600 posts
In another life I trained to be a sign language interpreter. ASL is such a visually beautiful language. Sadly Im awful at teaching my kids any signs. I taught Drake more but almost none to Juliet yet I really need to start again thanks for the reminder
blogger / persimmon / 1398 posts
Sign language has been immensely helpful for both our boys who switched languages at young ages… once your little one starts signing back to you, it’s a whole new world!!
pear / 1698 posts
Our daycare uses baby sign language in the infant and toddler rooms. It wasn’t until 12 months that LO started using the signs though. She does More and Please a lot. It’s so cute!
guest
Thanks for sharing, this is great, I’ve heard about using sign language for babies, but never thought much about it. I’ll print out the image and hopefully my little one(2 months) will pick it up when she gets to 6 months.
guest
We started sign when my daughter was 4 months, at 21 months we still sign and it’s very helpful still to comminicate, learn colors, discipline and play. She most often signs “help” or “sad” when she’s hurt or crying. We used the “my baby can sign” video series, renting them on Amazon prime for a week at a time.
grapefruit / 4584 posts
We started using food-related signs when we started my daughter on solids (around 4-5 months). She started using “more” and “all done” pretty young – I don’t remember exactly when, maybe around 9 months? Those are the only ones that ever caught on though – she never used things like milk, eat, or diaper change, in spite of being shown them. Now at 22 months she’s very verbal but will still desperately sign “more” while saying “More , mommy! Please! Please!” It’s very cute to see her revert to instinct when she gets excited.
blogger / pomegranate / 3491 posts
Sign never really worked for us until C started talking. He would speak and sign at the same time, but at that point, it was moot since he could just speak the words.
blogger / nectarine / 2687 posts
when CB came home at 15 months, we did the signs for more, please, thank you, and help — they worked wonderfully and were so helpful!
blogger / nectarine / 2010 posts
I tried formal signing for a while, but eventually kind of came up with signs that mimicked signs that M could do since the ones in our DVD were a little too difficult for him. He turned out to have a speech delay and holy cow did our little language of signs come in handy. I never felt like I couldn’t understand him, which is more than I can say now that his vocab is finally expanding!
guest
Our little girl is 16 months old and she uses just over 20 signs regularly. It really helps and is such a fun way for us to interact and communicate. Her language skills are really taking off too.
pomelo / 5132 posts
We are going to do baby signs too!
coffee bean / 25 posts
I just started teaching my LO milk, and eat! After 2 weeks she’s starting to react when I do the milk sign right before feeding! It’s such a great feeling to feel I am able to communicate to her somehow!
guest
We did “MORE” and my made up hand gesture for “all done” (which was surprisingly close to the real sign!) Weird though, it is pulling teeth to get her to say the actual word MORE, she just signs it… We are on to baby #2 now so I think we will do a few more signs with this one, and while we motion the word, I think I will try to be clearer on saying the word as well! Good Luck Momma’s!
guest
I would like to start signs with my b/g twins now – they are 12 months. Does it make sense to do it so late? Any experience?
guest
I started with just a couple signs when N was 2 days old. I gradually added in a few more over the next 6 months til we had about 20. At 6 months she started signing. Her 1st, if I remember correctly, was fan. Then a new word about every week or two; more, milk, dog, all done. At about 9 months she started picking up faster; about 1/ week. And at 10-11 months it was like 1/ day. At 12 months, we were keeping count, she had 80 signs and a dozen spoken words. We stopped counting but she still picks up a new sign every couple days, so I’m just guessing but I’d say she has around 150 signs and 32 spoken. We’ve switched to counting her spoken words she uses now. Daycare said her language / communication, cognitive and emotional development were in the 3 year range when they scored her at 1 yr old. I credit the ASL. We used Baby Signing Time. I’d watch a video with her here and there (about 30 minutes). We stuck to the 1st video pretty much exclusively until she started signing. Maybe we watched the other 3 once or twice. From 6-9 months we started watching them more often. About 1 a day. We also started her with flash cards, we’d go through and find some she liked or that were relevant around 6 months. At about 9-10 months she started getting them out and playing with them herself. Same with the books. Now those 4 books are her favorites. And she knows almost every word in the books. She still has a few words in the videos she hasn’t picked up as well as the flash cards. But we don’t push it. We let her choose what and which ones. She ALWAYS gets so excited when she OR WE make the connection. She lights up like “Yes!” She tells us like 10 things before we even get her out of bed in the morning. Lol. I have nothing but praise for ASL and Baby Signing Time.