experience of sign language with a 1 yr-old?

[theoldlady]

Has anyone used sign language with a 1 yr old and found it worked/ didnt work? People are starting to mention it to me and I am wondering whether I should consider it or not...

[mazzystar]

I think its brilliant - it saved a lot of tears and frustration in our house.

I did signing with my Ds from about 6 months, he started to sign back to me from about 10 months, and still (at 22 months and nearly able to talk in sentences) uses the signs for "more", "please" and "milk" when tired or if he thinks we are ignoring him!

The classes we went to were fun (Tiny Talk) - we still go now because he enjoys the singing and the company - but you need to do the signs at home quite regularly for them to pick it up.

[theoldlady]

Thanks- i should find out where/when the classes are....

[liquidclocks]

We didn't use LOADS of it but things like 'no', 'more', 'where' were really helpful! My friend usedit more and I ave to say that her DD's communication at 15/16 months was fantastic and saved lots of frustration - it can go the other way too though, once she'd learned the sign for milk for example! They went to weely 'sing and sign' classes to which my friend thought were the key to making it so successful.

[poppiesinaline]

I have done baby signing with DS2 (started at 8 months) he started signing back at about 10/11 months). He is now 16 months and it is very handy I didnt attend classes. I just got a DVD from www.singandsign.com which was really good. DS2 loves to sit and watch it and it also enabled DS1 and DD to learn the signs as well.

Worth doing in my opinion.

[theoldlady]

Thanks. My DD has learned 'twinkle' from her toddler group and wants me to sing twinkle twinkle little star lots by doing the sign for it so i think i might investigate doing this. is it likely to hold up her verbal development though?

[BROWNY]

Hi, I taught my ds who is now 2years and 2 months, myself using the Sing and Sign DVDs available from : www.signandsign.com. I started teaching him from around 10 months old and he started to sign back to me before he was 1. I think the first word he signed to me was, 'milk', followed by 'more' and 'food'. Everyone was amazed by the way we could communicate and it definately helped avoid temper tantrums. His speach now is very good and he has started to say little sentences. If I were you, I'd buy the dvd's and teach him yourself from home, it's loads of fun!!!

[rarrie]

I did it with DD1, and it was an amazing experience. She was able to communicate things through sign that she would never have been able to communicate verbally. For example, as a baby (under two) she told us through sign that she wanted a light on... turns out she had (and still has) a thing about the dark. Previously, she had been waking in the night, but we couldn't work out why until she signed! She was a bit slower at talking initially, but once she did, she was leaps and bounds ahead of her supposed milestone. Signing is not supposed to hinder a child's speech, but actually enhance it because when you sign for your child, you slow down your language and you make your words more explicit to your child, so language as a whole becomes easier for them to pick up. Its also great for seeing the world through your child's eyes and I can honestly say that my child has never had a temper tantrum or frustration through lack of communication, other things yes, but she has always been able to find a way of communicating - whether verbally or through sign and for that alone it is worth its weight in gold. But don't feel as though you have to go to a class, personally, I think it is better just to buy yourselves a book and incorporate it into your everyday life.
HTH

[cowmad]

has any of you seen "meet the fockers?"
get it,watch it..you,ll all understand...(unless american!)gentle jipe dont kill me for it!!

[jasper]

did it with ds 3.
Had no idea there were proper signs. just made a few up - drink, food, breastmilk, tired,and a few others.

it was hilarious.

My older 2 who were 2 and 4 at the time found it a lot of fun too.

They still do some of the signs just for a laugh

[mogwai]

I'll get shot down for this but I just don't understand signing with NT children.

That's a lot of effort to go to; classes, DVDs, books.

Children will make excellent speech and language progress with the right verbal help. Signing is so useful in children who find learning langauge difficult, it's fab, but I don't think it's necessary in most cases.

Ok, I'm an SLT, but I don't do anything amazing with my daughter and I certainly don't do anything you can't read in a book. She's 13 months old and has an expressive vocab of roughly 50 words, some short phrases (come on, all done).

What would be the point of signing classes for her or for most other normally developing kids?

[Jimjams2]

I've signed with ds3 because I wasn't sure he was NT, and his risk of having a SALT disorder is obviously screamingly high. Anyway now he;s 19 months I know for sure he doesn't have a communicaiton disorder, jury's still out on speech problems (don't think so, but can't tell yet). Anyway I've found signing to be very useful for him, compared to my other NT child - ds2- who because he was a late talker had to jabber and point until 2 and a half. DS3 jabbers and points a lot, but has other means of communicating (eg today across a playground signing more at me when he wanted to go back into a playhouse).

Sign isn't used for SN reasons in our house- ds1 has never responded to sign in any shape or form- he's a PECS boy, but I have found it useful with ds1. If you had an NT child who spoke at 12 months then prob not much use, but I don't seem to produce children like that, and I would use it again with another child (although I'd die of shock first as dh has been snipped lol)

[Jimjams2]

sorry I have found it useful for ds3, hasn't been remotely useful for ds1 unfortunately. Also because ds2 was such a late talker (and was dxed with a speech disorder) I really regretted not teaching him sign. I've used it as a "just in case" but found it useful anyway if that makes sense

[mazzystar]

I think, Mogwai, that your daughter is considerably ahead of the generally accepted milestones for verbal development, though you will have a better knowledge of these than I.

I found the signs really useful before DS was able to speak, and the signs augmented his spoken language whilst his vocabulary grew.

We started to go to the classes because they were fun and sociable as much as anything else - the extent to which DS enjoyed being able to communicate surprised me and I continued in response to that.

[Jimjams2]

"Children will make excellent speech and language progress with the right verbal help."

Oh this is bollards Mogwai. They still have their own developmental pace going on. We do all the right things in this house- we know as much about early speech development as any SALT, but some children do not talk that early. You must know your dd is ahead of the game at 13 months with 50 words. Being a girl will help, having had good modelling, commenting and following her attention will also have helped, but a lot will be inbuilt. You know that speech is linked to motor control as well as language.

[Blandmum]

I so agree jj.

we did the same things for dd and ds. At 18 months dd was using (I kid you not) 7-8 word sentences. Ds was still using single words or 2 word 'sentences'.

Even now at 6 and 9 they are utterly different, she is a verbal leaner , he is numeracy and kinesthetic. Chalk and cheese, same environment, wildly different kids.

[Jimjams2]

ds3 is using huge sentences- they're just completely incomprehensible unkess you happen to be alien he has his moments though "shall I start with you?" said the chiropractor. "Go away" said ds3. Luckily we haven't taught him the sign for that

[Jimjams2]

god no. When ds3 started pointing we hallelujiahed and had a celebration. Pointing at 14 months is important (well pointing out things of interest by 18 months is), talking isn't.

[liquidclocks]

aviatrix - DS is 22 months now and verbal comms only really started to take over the signs at about 18-19 months. I wouldn't worry at all. Carry on with the signing as it will save you and him loads of frustration and the research evidence supports the view that signing actually helps advance verbal communication rather than limiting it - the liklihood is that if you didn't sign he'd be a the same stage or maybe even behind.

Btw mogwai both my brothers needed extra help with speech btw at ages 3-4 ish yet I could hold a basic conversation around 12 months so it's not all environmental!

[MrsFio]

mogwai, I am completely amazed that you 'dont understand' why NT children would be taught to sign. I think it would be a wonderful idea if NT children were taught basic makaton and basic BSL. Afterall we now live an inclusive society, where in children who are either deaf or have special needs access mainstream education. How useful would it be if all the other children in the class actually knew what Peter, with the communication disorder was on about. Despite the benefits of early signing for an NT child for their own use of communication.

My son (NT) knows alot of makaton, quite rightly because its his sister's main use of communication, but if he has a child in his class at school who uses it he will be able to communicate with them. What a fabulous thing!

[Jimjams2]

ds2 could use PECS before he could talk Fio ( and ds3-19 months- tried his first exchange this week - biscuit - ha no chance!)