Imagine being told by your 8 month old that she’s hungry, or by your 10 month old that he’d like “more music.” What if your baby, hardly old enough to sit up alone, could say “I love you”?! And think about the ease in communicating- silently -from across the playground with your 5 year old, or 10 year old. Learn to sign together, and imagination becomes reality.
My own children were signing at 6 ½ months, and were using full sentences in American Sign Language before their first birthdays. Even though I had done my master’s thesis in this area, I was enthralled and amazed by their ability to communicate with me at such a young age. They were also relatively early talkers and while I often couldn’t understand their first words, they easily signed to me if I needed clarification.
Sign language provided my kids with a vast vocabulary and with a unique understanding of synonyms, abstract concepts, and body language. With music, they were engaged for longer periods of time and loved watching me sign.
It’s not easy to learn a new language as an adult, and especially when you’re distracted by lack of sleep and true love. But your baby is equipped to learn language, initially through gesturing. Sign language naturally comes first. There’s a common myth that children who sign won’t talk, or will talk late…again, it’s a MYTH. Fortunately, many children I’ve worked with who had significantly delayed speech due to low muscle tone and oral motor strength could sign – so they were able to make their needs known clearly even without speech.
Read more at https://mybabyfingers.com/staging/9114/our-story.