Parents who sign with their babies are often asked, “what is baby sign language?”, “why are you signing with your baby if he is not deaf?”, “aren’t you going to delay your child’s verbal development by teaching her sign language?” You will find the answers to these questions below. You may in fact find that using baby sign language can empower infants and toddlers with the gift of communication.
So, what is baby sign language?
Put simply, baby sign language is a means of early communication with your child. Most frequently, it is based on ASL (American Sign Language). Because babies rely on their caregivers to meet their every need, they are somewhat powerless until they can communicate those needs. Caregivers are charged with the task of trying to determine what those needs are and get them met before frustration begins to mount. Baby sign language offers children a way to communicate and thereby get their needs met before they have developed speech. As babies grow into toddlers and begin to develop speech, sign language can then be used as multisensory teaching tool to assist your child with other language development skills such as reading and vocabulary building.
Why would you want to sign with your hearing baby?
The information above should have given you at least one compelling reason to sign with your preverbal infant. However, there are many benefits of using sign language with your child, some of which are listed below.
Some benefits of baby sign language include:
*Signing with your child is FUN!
*Signing helps Reduce frustration (and tantrums) for both children and caregivers.
*Signing allows children to clearly communicate their thoughts, needs and desires.
*Signing increases confidence and self esteem.
*Signing helps form stronger bonds between baby and caregiver.
*Signing may accelerate verbal language development.
*Signing babies have larger vocabularies.
*Older children that were signing babies often score higher on IQ tests.
*Signing children tend to be more interested in books.
*Signing provides a way to talk to your children discreetly in public when they get older or when the situation may be embarrassing.
*Signing provides a multisensory teaching tool to assist your child with other cognitive and language development skills such as reading and vocabulary building.
Won’t signing with my baby delay her speech?
Many parents shy away from using sign language because they believe that signing will delay their child’s speech. The truth is research shows that signing may actually accelerate verbal language development. In studies that were independent from one another, Dr. Joseph Garcia and Drs. Linda Acredolo and Susan Goodwyn found that signing caused no delay in a child’s speech development. In fact, most children who were baby signers had larger vocabularies and began to speak in full sentences earlier than children who had not signed as babies.
If you still feel uncomfortable about using baby sign language, it is recommended that you read up on the research. Baby sign language can be wonderful way to bond with your children and you will be surprised how fast they will begin to communicate with you.
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