Baby Signing (The Fun of Teaching Your Baby to Sign)

What is baby signing?

Baby signing is using gestures or signs to communicate with your baby. Many moms use American or British Sign Language when teaching their babies to sign but it is perfectly okay to create your own signs. The purpose of baby signing is to communicate with your baby. Babies are able to use hand gestures much earlier than they can communicate with words. Not being able to communicate can be frustrating for baby and mom. Teaching your baby signs gives her the opportunity to communicate with you possibly months before she can actually talk.

Communicate with baby earlier: Babies who sign can communicate their needs sooner because they can communicate before they are capable of talking. This is particularly helpful for children who have speech and language delays. Some kids do not begin talking till they are two years old or older; therefore, baby signing gives them a way to communicate their needs.

Decreases baby's frustration and mom's: Some researchers believe that babies may cry, have tantrums or bite because they are frustrated and cannot communicate their needs. Have you ever been around a crying baby and just wanted to say "what do you want!" because you can't figure out what the problem is? Teaching your baby to communicate with signs or gestures will help her express her needs and hopefully lead to less frustration for mom and baby.

Helps your baby learn to talk: Many parents and skeptics are concerned that baby signing will delay talking or discourage a baby from using words to communicate. According to a long-term study conducted at the University of California and funded by the National Institute of Health, babies who use signing have an easier time learning to talk.

May help your child to communicate with the deaf community: If you choose to use American or British sign language, baby signing is a good introductory course for learning traditional sign language. Of course, baby signing is rudimentary and does not teach the sentence structure for American or British sign language but if you would like to pursue further studies in sign language this will certainly help.

Helps baby to communicate with siblings: Teaching your entire family to use baby signs will help siblings to bond and get along better. Big brothers or sisters usually like being involved with teaching their younger sibling to sign. It helps them feel connected and to communicate with each other.

Improves bond between mom and baby: Seeing your baby sign her first word is so exciting. Baby signing gives mom and baby a special way to talk to each other.
Its fun: Why not teach your baby to sign? Its fun!