Baby Sign Language
February 25, 2019 9:19 PM Subscribe
My nephew is here! And my sister has another question.
She's interested in infant sign language. She's asked me to look into videos and books and what have you for learning / teaching.
I don't know even the first thing about this, so I'm not really sure what I'm looking for or what to ask.
How young can this be learned? I've seen preverbal toddlers communicate this way quite effectively (even I could understand) but I have very little (and two decades outdated) experience with babies.
As far as cognitive development, this can only be good, right?
Those are my concerns, but my main goal is to support my sister. So what are your learning system recommendations for infant sign language?
I don't know even the first thing about this, so I'm not really sure what I'm looking for or what to ask.
How young can this be learned? I've seen preverbal toddlers communicate this way quite effectively (even I could understand) but I have very little (and two decades outdated) experience with babies.
As far as cognitive development, this can only be good, right?
Those are my concerns, but my main goal is to support my sister. So what are your learning system recommendations for infant sign language?
I signed to my child from 4 months old. His first sign was 11 months and then he signed absolutely everything from 13 to 23 months then quickly spoke in full sentences. Most other children in our class signed and spoke a bit earlier and most spoke earlier than those I know who didn't sign. So overall I don't think it helps or hinders speech development, but it certainly massively helped me know what my toddler wanted before he spoke.
In the UK our professional body of speech therapists agrees with that as a summary.
I didn't use a book so can't recommend one, but the key is persistence and consistency - sign the word every single time you say it (And never sign without saying). Choose a small set of signs to start with (probably milk more mummy daddy eat drink) then add more. Choose everyday words and also fun baby words (my child's second sign was hat because he put everything on his head).
posted by kadia_a at 11:43 PM on February 25, 2019 [3 favorites]
In the UK our professional body of speech therapists agrees with that as a summary.
I didn't use a book so can't recommend one, but the key is persistence and consistency - sign the word every single time you say it (And never sign without saying). Choose a small set of signs to start with (probably milk more mummy daddy eat drink) then add more. Choose everyday words and also fun baby words (my child's second sign was hat because he put everything on his head).
posted by kadia_a at 11:43 PM on February 25, 2019 [3 favorites]
We loved signing with our kids - we used “Baby Signing Time” and “signing time with Alex and Leah” to help teach us the signs and to teach Toddler Kitty. Baby Signing Time. Toddler Kitty started signing regularly around 12-16 months. He could ask for more, water, milk, all done earlier but got more specific and could ask for more strawberries or that he was all done with his dinner. Now he is 3 and still likes to pair words with signs (mostly animals).
It is hugely helpful to teach them signs before they can talk - especially things like “where does it hurt?” Since they aren’t good at communicating that other than crying and upset when they are that young.
I should note that a lot of the signing time DVDs are also on YouTube.
posted by Suffocating Kitty at 12:14 AM on February 26, 2019 [4 favorites]
It is hugely helpful to teach them signs before they can talk - especially things like “where does it hurt?” Since they aren’t good at communicating that other than crying and upset when they are that young.
I should note that a lot of the signing time DVDs are also on YouTube.
posted by Suffocating Kitty at 12:14 AM on February 26, 2019 [4 favorites]
More, milk, please, thank you, those were the days. Persistence and 11-13 months was when it really kicked in. Anecdotally no verbal development issues, in fact the opposite, the given gift of gab.
posted by furtive at 3:04 AM on February 26, 2019
posted by furtive at 3:04 AM on February 26, 2019
We also used Baby Signing Time and it was great. My kids retain none of it now, but both were able to communicate with me before they could talk and for a while we were all fluent enough to have very simple conversations with a distant relative who is Deaf. I think it's a great resource and time well spent.
posted by peanut_mcgillicuty at 5:04 AM on February 26, 2019
posted by peanut_mcgillicuty at 5:04 AM on February 26, 2019
I agree with others who say books/videos are not necessary. Just look on YouTube. The ones I find most useful are milk, more, all done, water, eat, diaper. It's not like you need to watch a video with the baby - just keep using the sign every time you say the word. Mine signed Milk at 6 months and More around a year, but started saying other words verbally so the sign became unnecessary.
posted by beyond_pink at 5:44 AM on February 26, 2019
posted by beyond_pink at 5:44 AM on February 26, 2019
+1 for Baby Signing Time. They've got songs in them that help parents remember the signs and they're earworms so you can sing them to the baby. I still get "put your fingertips together for more more more" stuck in my head regularly, and my son is eight.
posted by rabbitrabbit at 7:13 AM on February 26, 2019
posted by rabbitrabbit at 7:13 AM on February 26, 2019
We also looked up the signs we wanted on YouTube. When my son was around five months old, we started with three or four signs (more, eat, change) and signed them consistently when appropriate. We had to do it for AWHILE, like, several months before he caught on. I'd say he was closer to a year old before he started using the signs. But language begets language, so as soon as he had one sign, he picked up another, and another.
My son is three now and probably doesn't consciously remember any signs but when he really wants something, his hands start signing "more." (He used the "more" sign to indicated that he wanted something. He'd sign more and then point to what he wanted.) It's like the sign language goes down to the brain stem. It's awesome. Stick with it consistently and they will eventually pick it up.
posted by Aquifer at 7:15 AM on February 26, 2019
My son is three now and probably doesn't consciously remember any signs but when he really wants something, his hands start signing "more." (He used the "more" sign to indicated that he wanted something. He'd sign more and then point to what he wanted.) It's like the sign language goes down to the brain stem. It's awesome. Stick with it consistently and they will eventually pick it up.
posted by Aquifer at 7:15 AM on February 26, 2019
We don't have kids, but I'll own that when our pals said they were going to do baby sign with our goddaughter, we kinda rolled our eyes internally about it -- and then were 100% flipped, because it really is a thing that really does work. We were amazed.
posted by uberchet at 7:47 AM on February 26, 2019
posted by uberchet at 7:47 AM on February 26, 2019
Signing Time with Alex and Lea! They have tons of books and videos.
posted by The_Vegetables at 8:56 AM on February 26, 2019
posted by The_Vegetables at 8:56 AM on February 26, 2019
I was dead set on doing baby sign, but it ultimately didn't work out. I don't say this to discourage your sister, as I know quite a few families that use it, and it seems to work well for them, and every family is different, and every baby is different, etc. Here's what I would do differently if there was going to be a "next time":
Read up in advance, and have my partner and any other major caregivers all get on the same page. The number one reason we never clicked with baby sign is that we were into the idea of doing it, but we never really coordinated a plan of attack. This includes stuff like what sign language to use (I was big on using actual ASL because deaf people are real and otherwise it seemed vaguely culturally appropriation-ish to me), which signs to focus on, being on the same page about consistency of use, etc. We also switched primary caregivers right in the window of when you need to get on board with using the signs consistently, which didn't help.
Consistency is key! You have to use the signs every time, the same way that speaking people use language all the time. You probably say "milk" (or bottle or boobies or whatever word your family prefers), "more", "all done", "mama", etc a zillion times a day. If you sign twice a day (guilty as charged!), that's just not going to be enough input for the signs to take. You should also start as early as possible for this reason, even though babies don't really communicate or show signs that they're receptive to language for quite a few months.
Expect it to take a long time to pay off. We had dropped our efforts at sign language long before the stage where our son was reliably using non-verbal communication with us. That happened around 9-12 months and included pointing, clapping, and other gestures.
One thing that turned out to be way harder to anticipate, and was a big part of the reason we didn't stick with sign: you need two hands to do a lot of the signs. Babies also want to be held a lot, and even if you don't have a grade A clinger on your hands, during a lot of things where signing would be helpful (mealtimes, diaper changes, bath etc), at least one of your hands is likely to be occupied. I don't think this is a serious impediment (again, sign works for lots of families), but you may want to plan ahead with this in mind. I'd practice the signs with all the youtube videos and cute songs and everything, and then the time would come to use the sign and I'd realize I couldn't actually do it because my hands were full. Duh.
posted by the milkman, the paper boy at 9:52 AM on February 26, 2019
Read up in advance, and have my partner and any other major caregivers all get on the same page. The number one reason we never clicked with baby sign is that we were into the idea of doing it, but we never really coordinated a plan of attack. This includes stuff like what sign language to use (I was big on using actual ASL because deaf people are real and otherwise it seemed vaguely culturally appropriation-ish to me), which signs to focus on, being on the same page about consistency of use, etc. We also switched primary caregivers right in the window of when you need to get on board with using the signs consistently, which didn't help.
Consistency is key! You have to use the signs every time, the same way that speaking people use language all the time. You probably say "milk" (or bottle or boobies or whatever word your family prefers), "more", "all done", "mama", etc a zillion times a day. If you sign twice a day (guilty as charged!), that's just not going to be enough input for the signs to take. You should also start as early as possible for this reason, even though babies don't really communicate or show signs that they're receptive to language for quite a few months.
Expect it to take a long time to pay off. We had dropped our efforts at sign language long before the stage where our son was reliably using non-verbal communication with us. That happened around 9-12 months and included pointing, clapping, and other gestures.
One thing that turned out to be way harder to anticipate, and was a big part of the reason we didn't stick with sign: you need two hands to do a lot of the signs. Babies also want to be held a lot, and even if you don't have a grade A clinger on your hands, during a lot of things where signing would be helpful (mealtimes, diaper changes, bath etc), at least one of your hands is likely to be occupied. I don't think this is a serious impediment (again, sign works for lots of families), but you may want to plan ahead with this in mind. I'd practice the signs with all the youtube videos and cute songs and everything, and then the time would come to use the sign and I'd realize I couldn't actually do it because my hands were full. Duh.
posted by the milkman, the paper boy at 9:52 AM on February 26, 2019
very little kids are a bit like people who once could speak and now cannot. they're cognitively aware and have things they want to express, but they do not have the tools to do so
signs are much easier for kids to make than complex vocalizations, and can express the things the kids want and need clearly. so it's a win for them, because they get agency, and it's a win for parents, because there's less miscommunication and frustration on the kid's part.
the basic signs "all done" and "more" were big favorites with the toddler in my life.
(kid now talks my ear off. it's like having the narrator from "stranger than fiction")
posted by zippy at 12:02 PM on February 26, 2019 [1 favorite]
signs are much easier for kids to make than complex vocalizations, and can express the things the kids want and need clearly. so it's a win for them, because they get agency, and it's a win for parents, because there's less miscommunication and frustration on the kid's part.
the basic signs "all done" and "more" were big favorites with the toddler in my life.
(kid now talks my ear off. it's like having the narrator from "stranger than fiction")
posted by zippy at 12:02 PM on February 26, 2019 [1 favorite]
I asked my sister (who isn't on Metafilter but successfully taught her kid babysign):
"Answering her questions - much better to find a local class, than books or videos. 9-10 months is a good. You can start earlier, but they really only start responding back at about 9-10 months when they have the motor skills to make signs."
posted by divabat at 1:12 PM on February 26, 2019
"Answering her questions - much better to find a local class, than books or videos. 9-10 months is a good. You can start earlier, but they really only start responding back at about 9-10 months when they have the motor skills to make signs."
posted by divabat at 1:12 PM on February 26, 2019
So, I'm coming at this from a slightly weird angle. I have borderline-conversational ASL, share an office with a fluent (hearing) signer, am pregnant, but will not be primary caregiver for Debet-let.
The resources we've been using are ASL Nook, which has videos made by Actual Deaf People with their kids, and Signing Savvy (for weird/random vocab that comes up in our particular lives. Most people don't need "lemon" as a common word, but that changes when you have a lemon tree in the back yard).
Start immediately. Like, before the kid's eyes can focus. It's more likely to become a habit, and the kid takes stuff in sooner than you'd think. As far as harms, the only real downside I've seen is kids who have a system that works at home, but isn't understood by anyone other than primary caregivers, so you end up increasing communication problems and frustration. That's one of my big arguments for using Actual Signs, not made-up home-signs. But, ultimately, it's unlikely to be worse than normal toddler spoken jargon (what's a boo-bo? No one at school has any idea, but this kid badly wants it)
Any time you say a word on your target list, sign it, too. If you only have one hand free, do your best approximation. If you get enough repetition, precision each time is less important (and kids are gonna approximate anyway).
Your target list should be what you can anticipate a little kid having a meltdown over wanting/experiencing and not being able to communicate. If you want to memail me, I'm happy to give you our core list and logic for choices. However, in the interest of full disclosure, I will 100% end up signing more words than that list because of my background.
Hope that helps.
posted by DebetEsse at 1:14 PM on February 26, 2019 [2 favorites]
The resources we've been using are ASL Nook, which has videos made by Actual Deaf People with their kids, and Signing Savvy (for weird/random vocab that comes up in our particular lives. Most people don't need "lemon" as a common word, but that changes when you have a lemon tree in the back yard).
Start immediately. Like, before the kid's eyes can focus. It's more likely to become a habit, and the kid takes stuff in sooner than you'd think. As far as harms, the only real downside I've seen is kids who have a system that works at home, but isn't understood by anyone other than primary caregivers, so you end up increasing communication problems and frustration. That's one of my big arguments for using Actual Signs, not made-up home-signs. But, ultimately, it's unlikely to be worse than normal toddler spoken jargon (what's a boo-bo? No one at school has any idea, but this kid badly wants it)
Any time you say a word on your target list, sign it, too. If you only have one hand free, do your best approximation. If you get enough repetition, precision each time is less important (and kids are gonna approximate anyway).
Your target list should be what you can anticipate a little kid having a meltdown over wanting/experiencing and not being able to communicate. If you want to memail me, I'm happy to give you our core list and logic for choices. However, in the interest of full disclosure, I will 100% end up signing more words than that list because of my background.
Hope that helps.
posted by DebetEsse at 1:14 PM on February 26, 2019 [2 favorites]
Whatever you do, please find baby sign books that use actual ASL signs (or BSL etc.), not made up signs. Our baby could do his first sign at 5 months - and it made things a lot easier.
posted by Toddles at 10:28 PM on February 26, 2019 [1 favorite]
posted by Toddles at 10:28 PM on February 26, 2019 [1 favorite]
Our kid's daycare is big on baby sign language and gave us a few xeroxed pages from "Simple signing with young children: a guide for infant, toddler, and preschool teachers." I ended up checking the book out of the library but, honestly, the pages the school gave us were more than enough. More, milk, eat, all done, please, and thank you pretty much bridged the gap before kiddo started talking.
We had no plans to do baby signing, but in retrospect I'm really glad we did. Definitely lessened frustration.
(Bonus: When Mr. Disaster and I are at a social gathering and I am stuck in a conversation I would like to be rescued from, I can sign an subtle "All done" to him from across the room.)
posted by ann_disaster at 8:37 AM on February 27, 2019 [2 favorites]
We had no plans to do baby signing, but in retrospect I'm really glad we did. Definitely lessened frustration.
(Bonus: When Mr. Disaster and I are at a social gathering and I am stuck in a conversation I would like to be rescued from, I can sign an subtle "All done" to him from across the room.)
posted by ann_disaster at 8:37 AM on February 27, 2019 [2 favorites]
Response by poster: Thank you again from me and the family! My sister is excited to have a good starting point. I'll be learning with them for when I visit.
posted by MuChao at 8:43 AM on March 1, 2019
posted by MuChao at 8:43 AM on March 1, 2019
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