I have a 4 month old baby girl and i heard that baby sign language can help motor skills move along quicker.It will also cause less frustration to you and your baby because they can get their point across even if they cant talk.what are your thoughts and do you think its to early for me to start with my daughter?
.
Join the Conversation
Leave a comment
never to early, we start talking (communication) to them as soon as they come out, so sign language(communication) is the same thing. Also letting your child watch closed caption t.v. will boost their rading skills also
It’s useless because they cannot use it as a skill when they are older but, they do use grammar and speech, so you should start teaching your baby simple words that they can later use to create simple and properly formes sentences.
i have a 6 mo. old boy and i think that baby sign language is a great idea , everything u said is true it helps them along great, what you should do is check around your city and find classes and see what age they start at them sign up! good luck !
Had I known then what I know know I would have done it with my son. When he was a baby, has passed all the normal hearing screening, but then at age 4.5 he started to fail hearing screenings. He has no been diagnosed with moderate to severe bilateral (both ears) hearing loss, and has to wear hearing aids.
Now, I obviously wasn’t thinking about that when he was a baby, because he passed his hearing screenings, but had I done a sign language class, and kept up it, things would be much easier. So, I don’t believe that 4 months is too early, and I can see how it could improve motor skills. And it would prepare you and her, just in case. (knock on wood.)
I think that it rocks, I think you should start whenever you can really. They say babies use it and we doing even know it.
I think it’s great. I have a friend who uses it with her daughter. I don’t see why 4 months old would be too young to start. It’s good to start kids early, just don’t place your expectations too high. At 4 months, it’s more about exposure to the signs than them actually being able to do all of them.
As an aside, make sure you are saying the words right along side the signs because you want to be sure that your child develops the verbal skills to actually speak eventually instead of totally relying on signs all the time.
I am a speech therapist and use sign with the toddlers I work with. I used the same method with my son and he began signing at 9 months. I started signing with him at 6 months. I would show him the sign and then take his hands and go through the motion with him. The best signs to start with are more and all done. Repetition, repetition, repetition! That is the best way to teach it. Good luck!
it’s FABULOUS! and it’s not ‘useless’ as another idiot poster said. sign language IS a language and can be used later in life if they have deaf friends or family.
i have used it with ALL my kids. it’s so cool when I’m feeding my daughter and i ask her if she wants more, while doing the sign…she tells me “more” or “no” in sign language..or she uses her sign for “juice” if she wants something to drink.
we also use the signs for book, play,dog,brother,mom,dad,yes and hungry.
it’s very cool!
my daughter is 15 months old. my sons are 11 and 9…and they use the sign language w/her as well.
I’m currently pregnant..and i will continue to use sign language.
i DO stop using the sign language at 2 yrs of age and focus more on the verbal communication, otherwise they tend to prefer sign language to talking…but other than that, it’s a great communication tool to use w/your little one.
It’s wonderful! I have a 5 1/2 old baby girl and we love it!! Everytime I think of a word to incorporate, I look it up online on the ASL (american sign language) website. We’ve learned several words, that she can recognize, but she only signs “mommy” on her own so far. I am very excited for her to begin using it more.
Hi! Wow, your baby is very lucky to have you! Actually any age is a good age to start. Please see this page for detailed info on when to start signing with your infant:
http://www.babies-and-sign-language.com/baby-signs-when-start.html
A good typical age to start from is approximately 6 months old. This is because most babies take about 2 weeks – 2 months for their first sign. So if you start out ‘too young’, you may be a little frustrated not seeing signs as fast as you’d like and it can cause you to needlessly give up.
Always have patience! They are getting it! If you start now, you have a very good chance of her signing anywhere from the next 3-4 or so weeks. But it could also take her up to 8 months old. Babies sign when they are ready. The same as they crawl and walk when they are ready. They all develop at different individual pace.
Yes baby sign language decreases frustration and tantrums significantly. See here for details benefits (motor skills, increased reading skills, enhanced emotional awareness, etc) of babies using sign language:
http://www.babysignbenefits.com
You can use sign language for as long as you want. The longer you use it, the more benefits for your child. Sign Language interpreters can make LOTS of money!
The poster who advised you to stop at 2 years old may do that for her children, but it’s really a matter of choice. Some babies stop signing on their own after speech comes in, and some will continue building vocabulary in both aspects.
There is also sign language for toddlers:
http://www.babies-and-sign-language.com/toddler-sign-language.html
And sign language for pre-schoolers (excellent article!):
http://www.babies-and-sign-language.com/baby-sign-language-preschoolers.html
You simply need to begin with just a few signs right now. “Milk”, “More”, and “Finished”.
Everytime you feed her, use the sign for milk, which is at this page:
http://www.babies-and-sign-language.com/sign-milk.html
The other signs I mentioned are also accessible through this page.
Keep focussed on those three signs, until she starts signing them back, OR shows that she understands what you are signing/saying to her. Then when/if she has a favorite toy/animal/etc, show her the sign for that, too! I always like to use one ‘motivational’ sign in addition to the ‘necessary’ ones.
Hope this helps! Good luck, keep patience, and remember to praise her! 🙂
as a partially hearing impaired individual, i honestly plan to teach my baby sign language as soon as feasable. i babysit and have successfully taught the lil ones i sit for sign language.
to learn about it go to babysignlanguage.com
You’re right about the fact that the motor skills to sign start sooner than the vocal ability. You can start right now. There is an artical that I read about children of deaf parents and when the parents do “baby-babble” in sign language, the babies tend to do actual handmovements that represent sign language. It’s pretty neat. I would start with signs for milk, or more, bed, eat, food, drink, light, tree, and animal signs, something you could do with her on a daily basis. I woulndn’t worry about confusing her with too many signs, because it’s practice for you as well. When you use them every day, you’ll get used to using signs all of the time and also you will memorize the signs so you won’t have to think about it when you’re trying really hard to actually teach her…right now you’re just exposing her, and she will eventually catch on. It may be a few months before she actually uses a sign, but she will start to understand before she can use them.
do a google search for “baby signs” see if your library has the book. It’s not too early to start using signs like mommy, milk, goodnight, etc.