sign language

[Anonymous]

Hi everyone! Sarah is 4.5 months old and I’ve been fascinated with the idea of teaching her sign language lately. Has anyone done this with their kiddos and had success?

Here’s my problem…now that I am back to work I don’t really want to read a bunch of books about it or watch videos, etc…is there a “short cut” version of how to teach 5 or 10 signs? What is the process for getting this started? Do you just start using them in association with the action and they catch on eventually or is there more to it?

Sorry if I sound ignorant about this…and maybe it’s silly of me to think there is an “easy” way to do it…I was just curious if anyone else has tried!

Have a wonderful weekend!
Amy

[Anonymous]

I used sign with the little boy that I used to take care of so I know many basic signs. I just use them in conjuction with the words and actions. So far Sebastian has not picked any up yet, he just laughs when I do it.

I am sure you can find books or flash cards for baby signs. Check on line or maybe in an education store. You really don’t need a lot of signs. The ones I use most are: Eat, More, All Done, Bottle, Play and Bed.

[Anonymous]

Here’s a great link:

https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=2966&a mp;KW=baby+signing

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the great link. I am going to start to try it with her. Do you know how soon before she will be able to respond with signs? 6 months? 1 year? I figured the earlier I started with her, the better.

Stacey, where do you live in Illinois? I live in southern Illinois currently but have lived several places around the state.

Amy

[Anonymous]

It took many months. I can’t remember for sure but I think by 10-12 months she was doing her first signs. We started a little later than you though so she might sign sooner. Have fun! We had a great time with doing signs. Hailey doesn’t sign much anymore but occationally she’ll do please. We still play the Baby Signing Time CD in her room during nap and bed. She loves it!

I’m in the Quad Cities area – right on the border of Illinois and Iowa.

[Anonymous]

I think that Kaelyn started signing back to me between 10 and 12 months. It was awesome — it really helped in the beginning when she didn’t have many words. It also helped later on when she was saying a lot of words, but we couldn’t always understand her.

[Anonymous]

I started signing with Ryann at around 6 months. I used milk and eat and more first since those are easy for baby to mimic and used often. She responded at around 9-10 months and now at 13 months she uses them on a regular basis. It really helps keep the frustrational level low, especially when you are dealing with a baby that has problems and needs some control. When we started, I used to say the word and do the sign a few times. Good luck!

[Anonymous]

There’s a great tv show on some PBS stations now called Signing Time. If you can get it in your area, it’s a fun way of learning sign language. They use music and cartoons to show different signs. Jonathan loves to watch it even though we haven’t really done much with follow-up teaching. He’s picked up a few things just from watching.

[Author]

Posts