Communicating with your baby

[signingbabes]

Hi there,

I'm fairly new to this site, but thought I'd just post a message about something which may be of some interest to you.

You may or may not have heard of a new concept about baby communication: using sign language with a hearing baby. In America, Joseph Garcia has researched the benefits of using signs with babies to bridge the gap between understanding and speech development. A baby is able to use simple movements and gestures long before the ability for speech develops and therefore is able to communicate certain needs before he or she is able to say them. For instance, for milk, when he/she wants to eat.

I am interested in hearing from anyone else who uses this method or would like to know more about using this method with their baby.

I have been signing with both my daughters since they were just 6 months old, so am well aware of its wonderful benefits.

I look forward to hearing from some of you soon and if you would like to e-mail me my address is as follows: [email protected]

[manky]

yes, we bought the package and used it with my son who is now 3. I can't remember exactly when we started using it with my son but he did grasp the idea fairly quickly. However I was also working full time so couldn't spend as much time on it as I would have liked. My son spoke early and is now an extremely fluent speaker. I now sign with my daughter (12 months) and she seems much more into. Not sure if this is because I have more time to spend with her, the fact she's female, second child etc.Anyway she picks up on new signs immediately. I really enjoy the signing and am convinced of its benefits. I know now our local nursery is now promoting the package.

[Chelle]

I heard about this when I was expecting No. 1 but could not find anything alse about it afterwards, then gave up trying a bit in the haze that follows the birth of a baby. I am now 25 weeks pg with No. 2 and am still interested in signing. To me it seemed a wonderful way for babies to communicate before they can actually speak and so do away with the frustration (for baby) of not getting the point across! Any information on this would be wonderful! I am not in the UK, though, but Australia.

[signingbabes]

I did try posting a message the other day, but it didn't work for some reason, so I'm hoping it will work today!

I am always pleased to hear from others who are using the baby signing method, and it's great to hear of your success with both your children, Manky. My eldest daughter also talks very fluently for a 2 and a half year old and I'm sure the signing helped develop her speech. What are your thoughts?

Chelle, congrats on your 2nd pregnancy!!! Have you checked out the official Sign2me site? Not sure if I can post the link here or not, but you can e-mail if you like.

As far as I am aware the Australian version (Auslan) is very similar to the British version so I think you can order the British pack, although there may well be an Australian version underway.

Good luck and if you need any help, feel free to e-mail me: [email protected]

[Cawthorne]

I used the sign language with my 2 year old and found it very useful. I didn't buy the whole pack (about £45) but just bought the book (£9.50 oon Amazon) its the US version but I didn't think ds would care what language I signed to him in.

It was lovely when my husband came home from work and my son signed horses and apples at him to tell him we'd gone to give the horses some food, the look of achievament on his face that he'd initiated a conversation was tremendous. I thought the fact that you could continue using it after they could speak quite interesting for example when they're potty trained and doing that 'I need the loo but am too engrossed in what I'm doing' dance you could call them and sign 'toilet' to them and not embarass them in from of their friends.
good luck if you decide to use it, it really helps when the get to the stage where they're trying to speak but everything sounds the same, it does cut down on a lot of frustration. also don't be shy of making up your own signs when you teach them a new word, it does make a very special bond with your child.

[JanZ]

My ds is now 16 months - I'd meant to get the Signing kit, but never got around to it. I'm now not sure whether it's worth it, as he spends 5 days a week (8 to 5.30) with a childminder, so she wouldn't be able to provide much back-up to what I was doing (she's more like a nursery, as her Mum and MIL do it with her and there are quite a few kids).

But ds is being quite slow to talk - at least in words we understand (except for "Kat!!!!" - although he has long and expressive conversations in his own wee language.

Is it still worth giving signing a go, even though we/he's only be able to use it in the evenings and at weekends? (Although I'm sure the childminder would pick up some of signs).

[manky]

janz, it's definitely work a go. My son was at nursery full-time and we still managed to do loads of signs. It does need perserverance but is worth it.

[signingbabes]

Janz,
It's definitely worth giving signing a go with your son. If you have the Joseph Garcia UK pack or even just a British Sign Language reference book (which you could borrow from the library) you can lend it to your son's carer's, if they are willing to sign to him too. Even the other kids your son spends time with could do it too! Especially if there are older children - they usually love signing and find it good fun. It could become a real family affair!!! LOL

Signing will definitely benefit you if your son is slow to talk and at his age he is likely to pick up the signs pretty quickly, which is also a bonus.
My daughter is now 19 months old and the signs really help to clarify her attempts at language! It really is a wonderful tool for communication and I would recommend it to every parent, if I could!!!

Anyway, if you need any more info, please feel free to e-mail me. I run workshops for parents and carers in my area (Devon).

Good luck and all the best!

[signingbabes]

Bron,

You mustn't feel guilty for not signing to your child. We all mean to do things with our kids and never get round to it!

Out of interest, you said you are a signer, have you taken a BSL course? I've been studying for my Stage 1 and I love it, it's such a beautiful, wonderful language!

Take care

[signingbabes]

Cawthorne,

What a lovely story you shared with us about your son signing apples and horses to your husband!!!

There have been so many times I have been surprised by a baby's ability to understand so much about the world as well as how much they actually remember. One morning, my daughter was able to communicate to me about seeing my husband's drums the night before via signs and I was amazed she had remembered (they were no longer where they had been). She pointed to the place where they had been previously and signed DRUM to me, basically initiating a conversation about seeing and playing the drums the night before. I would never have known this if she hadn't been able to sign it to me!