Using Infant Sign Language
to Boost Development
Teaching your infant sign language is an easy way to stimulate your baby's mind and broaden his ability to share
about the world around him. That communication translates into fewer tantrums and more smiles.
At 11-months-old, my youngest, Elena, was successfully ruining every family meal. Her screams and tantrums
were frustrating and disruptive to a normally enjoyable family tradition: dinner.
It was time for action. Time for teaching.
We had successfully used infant sign language with Lauren, but time had slipped away with us and we just hadn't
gotten around to teaching Elena. She was nearly one and didn't know how to "talk" except through screaming and pointing.
Just as before, we kept it simple. We started with five basic signs (All Done!, More, Please, Thank-you,
and Drink).
It worked like magic (as we knew it would!). Rather than screams, our empowered one-year-old was sharing her
desires, and getting them met.
Using infant sign language starts an important parenting precedent. In this family, screaming and
fits of rage don't get you things. Calmly, and politely asking (whether with lips or fingers) is how we share (and possibly
receive) our desires.
"Learning to Sign" Helps
in "Learning to Speak"
My Elena shares
she's "all done" 
My Elena says "please"
by rubbing her tummy
Just as crawling encourages your baby to walk by having her taste movement, signing encourages your baby to
talk by having her taste communication.
When dealing with motor skills, the large movements (crawling, grabbing), are developed before the
fine motor skills (tongue and lip movements). You baby's mind will be comprehending and understanding at a rate
that is too fast for his fine motor skills to catch up!
He can't coordinate the tongue and mouth muscles to say
he's thirsty, but he can coordinate his finger to poke inside his mouth to sign "Drink".
Susan Goodwyn, one of the original advocates of baby signing, claims that "when babies are using signs, they pay more attention to
what's going around them in terms of language. They're stimulating the language portion of the brain."
Goodwyn and her fellow signing-expert, Linda Acredolo, conducted a study in 1996 that found that babies taught to
sign at 11 months old tested 11 months ahead of other babies in terns of vocabulary and linguistic ability
by the age of three. The same study showed that at age 8, signing babies scored higher on IQ tests than
babies who were not taught to sign.
Even though this study is not without controversy, it does indicate there are benefits to closely interacting with your baby when
teaching signs. Just signing a few words can make a big difference.
My Elena is proof of that.
Infant Sign Language is So Easy...
Even a Caveman Can Do It
{For my Non-American Visitors: This is a tongue-in-cheek reference to a
popular American Geico Insurance commercial}
Teaching your infant sign language is as simple as repeating the word and the physical action consistently, until he
makes some effort to copy it. Rewarding and repeating the gestures and words reinforces concepts and gestures until it becomes
2nd nature.
What signs do you use? That's up to you! Most baby signing classes and resources use American Sign Language (ASL)
(see Resources below for help). However, you can also make up your own signs.
What specific signs you use really aren't important - as long as you and your baby both understand them. For example, we trained
both our children to sign "All Done" by raising both hands in the air. The correct ASL sign is to shake your
hands in front of you at the same time.
Elena and I aren't in a competition. There isn't a test at age 2 to determine if she's using the correct hand gestures.
The only goal is to communicate. If it's easiest for you to use established ASL signs, use those! If your baby
uses his own specific gesture for something, use that!
When Should You Start Signing?
Many parents start teaching sign language to their infants at around 6-8 months (although, like I mentioned above, we waited
until almost a year). Of course, you can start teaching infants as early as at birth!
The key is patience. If you're prone to impatience, wait until your baby is closer to a year old. You'll more likely to
see the fruit from your teaching sooner. You never want to show impatience or frustration with your baby if he isn't
"getting it". He will sense that frustration. Stay calm, stay persistant, and eventually he'll pick up on it.
Sign Language for Babies:
Resources to Help
Award Winning DVDs and Training Guides
If you've been thinking about teaching your baby to use sign language, now's a great time to get started. It's incredibly easy and just-so-useful.
Signing Time is the award-winning, Grammy-nominated program that I recommend.
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Helpful Signing Websites
Besides excellent DVDs that show you exactly how to teach your baby to sign, there are a few excellent websites that foster a community of
family-signers and articles that go way beyond the scope of this beginner's article! Here are my two favorite sites for baby signing:
Babies and Sign Language
Babies and Sign Language helps lessen frustration and tantrums by teaching your infant signs to clearly communicate
specific thoughts, wants, and needs before speaking. Enhance baby's language, cognitive development, and IQ. Site
features include: detailed baby signing information, tried-and-true tips, baby sign language articles, photos of babies using signs, and listings of baby sign language classes in your
local area. I found her baby signing dictionary and glossary particularly helpful.
San Diego Baby Sign
San Diego Baby Sign is an easy tie for "best baby signing site" in my opinion. It's incredibly user-friendly, with simple categories to flush out all
our questions. The "Learning Timetable" was particularly helpful, and something I've not seen on other signing sites. The ability to understand
what your baby is capable of signing, and what is too hard for her can save you some serious frustrations and headaches.
Both of these sites have a ton of good information, resources, and guides in your quest to help your baby communicate. You'll be so thrilled when
your baby stops screaming and actually tells you (with his hands of course) what he wants!
No matter which signs you use, the act of deliberating teaching your child specific words and actions will dramatically
boost his learning and language development by stimulating the thinking portions of his growing brain.
Help your baby learn to communicate using gestures and signs. Not only will it jump-start those cognitive
skills he needs for future speech, it will eliminate those scream-fests of frustration that fray the fabric of
a peaceful home.
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