Showing posts with label sign language for babies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label sign language for babies. Show all posts

Tuesday, September 5, 2023

Enhancing Communication and Safety

Celebrating National Baby Safety Month with the Baby Signs® Program

Welcoming a new baby into your life is an exhilarating experience, accompanied by immense joy and a strong desire to keep your little one safe. As parents and caregivers, ensuring the safety and well-being of your baby becomes a top priority. This National Baby Safety Month, let's explore an innovative way to enhance communication and safety for your baby: Baby Signs®.

The Importance of Baby Safety

September is celebrated as National Baby Safety Month, a time when parents, caregivers, and communities come together to raise awareness about the safety measures necessary for infants and young children. From creating safe sleep environments and securing furniture to practicing car seat safety, this month encourages everyone to take proactive steps to protect the youngest members of our society.

Baby Signs®: A Gateway to Effective Communication

In the journey of parenting, communication takes on an entirely new dimension with the arrival of a baby. While babies may not be able to verbally express themselves, they are incredibly receptive to communication cues. This is where the Baby Signs® Program comes into play. Baby Signs® is a program that teaches babies and toddlers simple sign language to help them communicate their needs, feelings, and thoughts well before they can speak.

How Baby Signs® Work

The Baby Signs® Program utilizes basic American Sign Language (ASL) that are tailored to suit the motor skills of pre-verbal infants and toddlers. Parents and caregivers are encouraged to use these signs in conjunction with verbal language to create a comprehensive mode of communication. The benefits of Baby Signs® extend beyond enhancing communication – they can also play a significant role in promoting safety.



"I Know What To Do" music from the If You're Happy & You Know It album and the MORE Sign, Say & Play™ Safety Class"

Baby Signs® and Safety

Expressing Needs: Babies often have a difficult time conveying their needs, leading to frustration. By teaching them signs for essentials like "eat," "milk," "diaper," and "sleep," parents can respond more effectively to their baby's needs, reducing instances of discomfort and distress.

Emergency Signs: Teach your baby signs that relate to safety, such as "help," "hurt," or "hot." In the event of an unforeseen situation, the baby's ability to use these signs could potentially alert caregivers to any issues they may be experiencing.

Identifying Allergies or Discomfort: Signs like "hurt" or "hot" can empower babies to indicate when something is wrong. This could be especially valuable in cases where a baby is too young to verbally express discomfort, such as experiencing an allergic reaction.

Instructional Signs: As babies grow into toddlers and begin to explore their surroundings, teaching signs like "stop," "dirty," and "wait" can contribute to their safety by helping them understand boundaries and potential hazards.

National Baby Safety Month and Baby Signs®: A Perfect Pair

As we celebrate National Baby Safety Month, incorporating infant sign language into your parenting toolkit can be a wonderful way to enhance both communication and safety. By giving your baby the means to express themselves and enabling them to understand important safety-related signs, you're taking proactive steps to ensure their well-being.

Incorporating the Baby Signs® Program into your daily routine doesn't require extensive effort. There are resources available online, including videos, books, music, and classes, that can guide you through the process. By dedicating time to learn and practice these signs, you're investing in your baby's development and safety.

National Baby Safety Month serves as a powerful reminder of the responsibility we have to protect and nurture our youngest family members. This September, consider the incredible potential of Baby Signs® in enhancing communication and safety for your baby. By embracing this innovative approach, you're not only providing a means for your baby to express themselves, but you're also empowering them to participate actively in their own safety and well-being journey.



Teach your baby safety signs like Afraid, All Done, Dirty, Fast/Slow, Gentle, Hot, Hot/Cold, Hurt, Listen, Mask, Quiet, Sit Down, Stop, Up/Down, Wait and Wash. Order the Safety Signs Printable Poster Pack!

Resources and additional safety tips:

https://www.jpma.org/page/baby_safety_month
https://www.safekids.org/blog/5-tips-new-parents-during-baby-safety-month
https://www.cpsc.gov/Safety-Education/Safety-Guides/Cribs-Kids-and-Babies/Baby-Safety-Month


#BabySigns #babysignlanguage #BabySafetyMonth #EarlyCommunication #ParentingTips #SignLanguageForBabies

Friday, September 17, 2021

How My Baby Signs® Journey Began

How My Baby Signs® Journey Began

"When I started the Baby Signs® program, I was in a dysfunctional marriage with three children under the age of 3 and a full-time in-home childcare provider.
 My son was 2 years and 7 months, and my twin daughters were 11 months. My son was going through his “terrible two’s” with some significant tantrums. I was overwhelmed with no self-esteem, no confidence, and no support system. I was desperate for anything to help. Parenting was a job I couldn’t fail. I couldn’t fail my childcare children.

I saw the Baby Signs® program on TV. I ordered the parent kit. I thought I’ve blown money on worse things, and it shouldn’t hurt anything so was worth a try. My expectations were VERY low as it seemed too good to be true. If the program did work, I doubted my ability to teach sign language when I had never signed before.

When the parent kit came, I did not start right away. It took a week or so for me to build up to it. I thought about the things we do every day. I started with signing eat, drink, bath, etc. Help and sorry were also among the first signs, I introduced.

When I started learning and teaching sign language, I realized how busy I was. Introducing sign language made me stop, make eye contact, and then say and sign. I didn’t realize how much I was talking at my children instead of talking to them. By taking that time to talk to them while signing, I actually saved time and energy as it was more effective.  That was one of my many light bulb moments.

I figured my two-year-old son would be my interpreter. He picked up on the signs immediately. He started effectively communicating his needs through sign language decreasing tantrums by over 50% in the first few days. When he saw how I understood the signs, he looked for other ways to communicate his needs if he did not know the sign. No tantrums!! It was AMAZING!! He then started “teaching” his sisters and our childcare children. When he communicated with other children, they responded in a different way than they did to me. I will never forget the first time I saw him walk up to a childcare child (approximately a year younger than him) and start signing to her. She was not only receptive to him, but she also started signing back. I stood there just watching them. I could have watched that all day.

One of my daughters picked up on signing within a few days. I remember her calling for me, I turned and looked at her. She signed to me, and I understood her. I do not remember what she signed, but I will never forget her light bulb moment when it just clicked. She was unstoppable after that. Watching her and her brother communicate and understand each other was another AMAZING moment. She also started communicating with our childcare children.

My other daughter seemed to understand the signs but hadn’t started signing back. I was rocking with her one day when she spontaneously signed “dad”. I asked her if she wanted to talk to her dad. She just looked at me and it was clear that was her light bulb moment. We called her dad and she got to hear his voice. After that, she was signing all the time. Seeing her and her siblings communicate effectively with each other through sign language was awe-inspiring. She also started communicating with our childcare children.

I had enjoyed doing in-home childcare before but adding sign language put it on a completely different level! I was learning so much from just observing them! I tried numerous times over the years to get pictures or video of what I was seeing. Every time they saw the camera, they stopped. I quit trying to get pictures or video as I didn’t ever want them to stop.

Shortly after we started signing, my husband moved out. Shortly after that, I noticed one of my daughters started having “spells”. The first one that definitively stuck out was when she was 12 months old. She was sitting at the table eating a cherry tomato. Cherry tomatoes were like candy to her. She had just put one in her mouth when her bottom jaw fell open and the tomato dropped out. Her reaction after that was what concerned me. She started crying and it was obvious she was scared. As her “spells” progressed, I needed more information as her pediatrician was not getting what I was saying. I am medically challenged but knew something wasn’t right. I knew I needed more information.

I started working with her through sign language. I trusted her and needed her to give me as much information as she could. She started signing “help” during her “spells”. That let me know when I needed to start documenting what she was doing and how she was acting. Her “spells” resembled tantrums at times. I knew they weren’t tantrums as she was telling me differently.

I learned quickly how easy it was for medical professionals to dismiss her signing “help” during her “spells”. They did not understand the power of a hearing child signing. At 19 months, she was finally seen by a pediatric neurologist. He was very skeptical at first but listened. He was very thorough questioning me for 45 minutes about what she was doing. Because she was able to sign when she was having “spells”, I had the answers I needed. My answers were consistent with her tests. She was diagnosed with Childhood Epilepsy having Complex Partial seizures. Her pediatric neurologist said that it is very rare that a child having Complex Partial seizures is seen at 19 months. Typically, they are in kindergarten or older with developmental and/or learning delays.

She was put on medication to control her seizures. She had regressed to the point where she had would spend most of her day in her exersaucer crying or just there. She stopped running, playing, walking unless it was necessary, etc. She rarely smiled or laughed.

As time went on before she was diagnosed, I spent a lot of time with her documenting and making sure she was okay. Signing gave me the tools to explain to my children and our childcare children what was going on. When they could see she was having issues, they played together and left us alone unless it was something that could not wait. Their level of understanding was far more than I ever expected.

There was one night that my daughter had a “spell” and appeared to stop breathing more than once. I was emotionally drained; I knew I wouldn’t be able to do CPR if needed. I believe that God doesn’t give you any more than you can handle. I prayed a lot before, but this time it was different. I didn’t want her to suffer anymore and if it was her time to go, I prayed to take her peacefully and show us how to get through. It was at that moment that I completely trusted God’s plan. God did not take her home that night and I am grateful for every moment since.

After her seizures were under control, she needed to relearn a lot of things. I sat down with my son and other daughter and explained to them that we needed to help her relearn. While I worked with her, she understood on a different level when her brother and sister worked with her. When her brother went to preschool, her sister would work with her, and encourage her. She didn’t get discouraged or frustrated, just kept encouraging her and working with her. The age and the level of understanding that was shown completely blew my mind! She quickly started to relearn and was active again. Her smile and laugh came back.

Five months after being put on medication, I was tucking her in bed. She looked different like something wasn’t right. She signed “help” and pointed to her throat. I asked her if it was hard to swallow. She nodded. Her throat was swelling shut. She had developed an allergic reaction to her medication. Because she was able to communicate what was happening, I was able to give her something to quickly reverse the allergic reaction. We avoided an ER visit among other things. She has been medication-free and seizure-free since.

She relearned everything and continued to progress. After 4-year-old preschool, there was a slight question by her teachers if she should go to Kindergarten Prep instead of kindergarten. I did not have any concerns as I saw how far she had come. I was confident that all of us working together, would be to get her where she needed to be to start kindergarten. She is now a junior in high school. To date, she has never had developmental or learning delays. She goes out for whatever sport she chooses.

My son is a freshman in college and my daughters are now juniors in high school and have received academic honors throughout their middle school and high school years. They work well with a variety of people and can communicate effectively. They are great teachers. The bond they have with each other is by far one of the best benefits! I could go on and on.

When I started using the Baby Signs® Program, I had no idea what it would do for me. My confidence and self-esteem kept building. The bond with my son and daughters continued to get stronger. I realized I didn’t have to have all the answers. They knew I was trying so they kept trying. I didn’t have to be perfect. My approach to parenting changed. When I didn’t know, I asked them for help. If they didn’t like what I was doing, we talked about it. I explained my side and they explained theirs. I asked them for a better solution. They didn’t always have one, but the power struggle was avoided. We worked together.

As a single parent, my children were with me almost all the time. Effective communication through sign language gave us the tools we needed to be able to go to the grocery store, Kmart, and occasionally to a restaurant. I needed everyone to be on the same page. I was typically pushing a cart with children and pulling a cart with our merchandise. We had very few incidences. We were able to attend different classes that were offered in our area and travel to see our relatives who lived hours away. We had options. Being able to go out with my children helped me cope with day-to-day life, but also start to heal with everything that had happened.

Things haven’t been perfect, but we’ve had the tools we needed to work through whatever came up. Our world has been shaken numerous times, but the foundation that was created is still there. We are there for each other.

The support I received from other instructors when my daughter was having issues still brings tears to my eyes. They understood the power of a hearing child signing and gave me much-needed encouragement. I can never repay them for that, but I can pay it forward.

Today, I have confidence, self-esteem and am grateful for a blessed life. Through our greatest struggles came our greatest blessings. I don’t even want to think how different our lives could have been if I hadn’t seen the Baby Signs® ad or ordered the Parent Kit. I will never underestimate the power of effective communication, spoken or signed."

~Heather Casey
Baby Signs® Independent Certified Instructor  

Download a free poster with the ASL sign for HELP. 






Watch this video and learn the ASL sign for HELP:


© 2008 Baby Signs Partnership. (www.BabySigns.com) 

Wednesday, April 3, 2019

The Benefits of the Baby Signs® Program for Military Families

The Benefits of the Baby Signs® Program for Military Families

by Linda Acredolo, Ph.D.Co-Founder, the Baby Signs® Program


Although every family with very young children faces challenges, those faced by military families are particularly daunting. Here are just a few of the special situations that make their lives so stressful.
  • Deployment: The issue of “separation anxiety”—the emotional reaction young children have to a parent leaving them (even for a short time)—is magnified tenfold when a parent is deployed. Infants and toddlers have a hard time understanding why the separation is necessary and when it might end.
  • Increased Stress Levels: Military families are plagued by a wide variety of uncertainties—from wondering when the next move will be necessary to worrying about what might be happening to a deployed parent. These uncertainties give rise to high levels of stress for parents that make dealing with the demands of very young children especially challenging. The children, too, feel the stress, making them more likely to sleep poorly, act out, and cling to the remaining parent.
  • Reunification: Whenever a parent returns from being away for an extended period of time, adjustments are necessary on everyone’s part. Tempers can flare as routines are disrupted, wariness on the part of infants and toddlers toward the returning parent can be disappointing, and young children can feel resentful when the returning parent dominates the stay-at-home parent’s attention.
  • Injured Family Members: The painful truth is that not all parents return home as healthy (mentally or physically) as they were when they left. Dealing with such situations when there are very young children in the family poses special challenges. Of course, none of this comes as news to those of you living with these challenges! The good news is that the Baby Signs® Program, while not a perfect remedy, can make things a bit easier for those of you dealing with infants or toddlers. That’s why the Department of Defense continues to encourage our work with child care centers on military bases around the world.

How can signing with babies and toddlers before they can talk make life easier for military
families? First, let’s consider the proven benefits of the Baby Signs® Program as they apply to
any family. Signing with babies. . .


  • Reduces tears, tantrums, and frustration: Because they can use signs to communicate what they need, what they see, and even what they feel well before they have words, babies and toddlers are less likely to become upset or angry. Parents, of course, feel less frustrated, too! 
  • Builds trust between parent and baby: Because signing enables parents to meet their baby’s or toddler’s needs more quickly and effectively, children feel more secure and trusting.
  • Enables babies to share their worlds: Children of any age love being able to let parents know what they are excited about in the world around them—like butterflies, kittens, or airplanes overhead—and are pleased when parents respond with enthusiasm. Signs enable babies and toddlers to do so before they can use words. 
  • Helps babies express emotions constructively. Signs for emotions--like SAD, AFRAID, and ANGRY—help babies share with their parents (more precisely than crying does) what they are feeling, thereby enabling parents to be more effective in the comfort they provide. 
  • Strengthens the parent/infant bond: Quite simply, when people understand us, we feel connected to them. Babies and toddlers are the same. By helping them communicate with their parents before they can talk, signing helps babies and parents grow closer and more loving. 

So, how do these general benefits help military families cope with the specific challenges they
face? Let’s take those challenges one by one:

Deployment: These days, with Skype making communication from far away places easier than ever, signs enable babies to stay in touch with the absent parent in more rewarding ways than would be possible otherwise. Just think how much more connected a baby will feel to a parent who understands when the baby uses a sign and how thrilled the absent parent will be to enjoy a window into his/her baby’s mind despite the miles in between.

Increased Stress Levels: Look at the list of benefits again and you’ll see that there isn’t one among them that wouldn’t help make life easier and more pleasant—thereby lowering tension in the home. Babies and toddlers who sign cry less, are easier to please, feel better about themselves, and feel  more loving and secure. Quite simply, signs make life more fun for everyone.

Reunification: The irony is that having a parent away isn’t the only thing that causes stress; having him or her come home does so as well! For that reason, all the benefits listed above also help military families deal with reunification. In addition, the fact that the baby has been able to “talk” with the absent parent using signs while the parent was away (via Skype)—and that the parent already understands the baby’s “language”—increases the chance that the baby will feel connected to and trusting of the returning parent, thereby making adjustments easier.

Injured Parent: Obviously, dealing with an injured parent raises stress levels even higher. In situations like this, the fact that signs make the normal routines of daily life flow more smoothly is especially helpful. Signs also help substitute caregivers—who may be necessary if the injured parent is hospitalized—interpret the baby or toddler’s needs more easily. And finally, the feeling signs (SAD, AFRAID, and SCARED) can help parents explain the situation to the very young child in simple terms as well as giving the child a way to let parents know how she or he is feeling.

These are just some of the ways that signing can ease the burden of caring for infants and toddlers as military families struggle with the added challenges they face. It’s no wonder, then, in the words of Barbara Thompson, the Director of the Office of Family Policy/Children and Youth within the Office of the Secretary of Defense, that the DoD has “enthusiastically embraced the Baby Signs® Program.” Here at Baby Signs, we are trying hard to make it easy for you to do the same.
 
Visit www.babysigns.com for more information about Baby Signs® resources to help you and your baby enjoy all the benefits that signing can bring.   

© 2008 Baby Signs Partnership. (www.babysignstoo.com) 


Thursday, September 21, 2017

Helping Children Cope with Disaster


HELPING CHILDREN COPE WITH DISASTER

Linda Acredolo, Ph.D.
It seems whenever one turns on the TV these days there’s news of another disaster, whether hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, floods, forest fires—or foreclosures and unemployment. Given how sensitive children are to the emotional atmosphere at their home, it’s very important for parents to be aware of the impact these traumatic occurrences can have on their little ones and to understand what they can do to mitigate the emotional consequences.

One of the blessings of the Internet age is that help for many problems is at one’s fingertips, and that includes advice on how to help children deal with disasters.  In culling through a number of the sources, many of the tips rang true based on our own knowledge of development.  We’ve listed these below and then, at the end, included addresses for a few specific websites that might be useful. 

How anxiety manifests itself: 
  • Increased separation anxiety
  • Reluctance to go to sleep
  • Nightmares
  • Reluctance to go to school/babysitter
  • Regression to less mature behavior
  • Acting out (e.g., sibling spats; tantrums)
  • Physical symptoms (e.g., tummy aches, head aches, etc)
  • Inability to concentrate
  • Withdrawn behavior and sad countenance

Helping children coping with disasters
  • Children detect parental anxiety, so admit your concerns while stressing your confidence in being able to cope with the problem.
  •  Emphasize the sources of support the family has received during the disaster, is currently receiving, and can count on down the line (e.g., extended family, friends, community resources, etc.). The goal is to help the child feel taken care of. 
  • Encourage your child to talk about the situation and his/her feelings
  • Treat expressed fears with respect rather trying to reduce them by being dismissive.
  • Reassure them over and over that they are safe.
  • Provide information about any ways you will try to avoid such traumas in the future if possible.
  • Congratulate them on any behaviors that were helpful during the crisis or helpful in its aftermath.
  • Understand that it’s natural for children to focus on how the disaster affected THEM (e.g., lost toys) rather than understanding the magnitude of the problems the adults face. 
  • Answer questions honestly, including admitting “I don’t know.”  In age-appropriate detail, describe the steps being taken to deal with any losses.
  • Re-establish routines as soon as possible, even if they have to vary from those in place before the disaster.  Children are comforted by being able to predict events.
  • TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF. Children can detect parental distress, so finding ways to make yourself feel better will pay off in dealing with your children—including helping you be patient with them.
  • Find some fun things to do—movies, play-dates, trips to the park.  Such occasions will not only distract your child from his/her anxiety and fear, but also provide evidence that life goes on and can still be joyful.
  • Avoid exposure to newscasts or printed materials that show frightening images.
  • Keep promises.
  • Find ways to help others who have experienced losses.  Helping others reinforces the idea that people help each other, thereby increasing a child’s sense of security. 

For more information, check out these websites.


  • FEMA: https://www.ready.gov/kids/parents/coping

Happy signing (and don't forget to follow us on Facebook)! 

Linda
Linda Acredolo, Ph.D. 
Co-founder, the Baby Signs® Program 
and
Professor Emeritus, UC Davis



Monday, January 6, 2014

Sign and Rhyme for Winter




Children of all ages love songs and rhymes that include “finger play.” Why else would “Itsy Bitsy Spider” have maintained its popularity for generation after generation of children? The nice thing is that finger play rhymes have the added advantage of helping teach babies, toddlers, and preschoolers useful signs that can enable them to communicate well beyond the context of the rhyme. Here’s a simple one that includes popular wintertime signs which, given the frigid temperatures so common this week, seems especially timely!

Winter
(To the tune of “Itsy Bitsy Spider”)

Winter brings the SNOW
Falling from the SKY,
Covering the TREES
And even YOU and I.

Winter brings the COLD
That chills us through and through.
So, let’s have tea and COOKIES
To warm up ME and YOU.

SNOW: Slowly wiggle fingers downward and to the side like falling, drifting snow.
SKY: With palm facing out, move right hand in an arc from left to right above the forehead.
TREE: Rest elbow on back of left had. Spread right fingers and rotate left several times.
COLD: “Shiver” both fists at shoulder level.
COOKIE: Place fingertips of right hand on left palm and twist as if cutting with a cookie cutter.
PRONOUNS: Point to relevant person

Happy Signing (and don’t forget to follow us on Facebook)!

Linda

Linda Acredolo, Ph.D.
Co-Founder, the Baby Signs® Program
and
Professor Emeritus, UC Davis

Sunday, December 22, 2013

Christmas: A Great Time for Signing






We here at Baby Signs love holidays! One reason is that holidays seem inevitably to bring fun stories from parents about how their preverbal kids have used signs to share observations, memories, or requests with the big people around them. Here are two such stories about Christmas.

Elf on the Shelf. 3-year-old Natalie’s parents had introduced her to the Christmas elf right after Thanksgiving but had assumed that Natalie’s 15-month-old brother, Henry, was too young to care much about it. Just in case, though, they taught him the sign for “elf” (using thumb and forefinger to trace a pointed left ear). And it only took 4 mornings of rushing around the house with Natalie looking for the elf for Henry to get with the game. From then on, as soon as anyone walked into his bedroom to get him up in the morning, he would greet them excitedly with the sign combination WHERE + ELF and run to find Natalie to start the hunt. Thanks to the Baby Signs Program, Natalie and Henry’s parents were treated to a glimpse of sibling cooperation in place of sibling rivalry!

Santa Claus. 15-month-old Maddy had been pretty leery of the bearded man in the bright red suit inviting her to sit on his lap in the department store and had cried until her mother sat with her. From then on, whenever she saw a picture of Santa Claus she would rapidly make the sign for “afraid” and then move her open hands up and down her chest (her sign for “clothes”). Why “clothes?” Maddy’s mom quickly figured it out: “Clothes” was as close to “Claus” as Maddy could get!

These are just two of the many heartwarming signing stories in our archives. Beyond symbolizing the Yule Tide spirit, they also provide examples of the marvelous way that signs enable babies to share their worlds—whether it’s excitement, fear, or fascination.

It’s because we know how the signing experience can enrich parent child relationships that we are trying to raise funds to enable us to bring the magic of signing to low income, teen, and foster families, as well as families in the military. Please help us with a holiday gift of your own by visiting our Baby Signs Scholarship page. And if you can’t help monetarily at this time, you can still help by telling your family and friends about this worthwhile project.

Happy Signing (and don’t forget to follow us on Facebook)!

Linda

Linda Acredolo, Ph.D.
Co-Founder, the Baby Signs® Program
and
Professor Emeritus, UC Davis

Sunday, December 15, 2013

Signing: A Priceless Gift for One Little Girl





I remember once overhearing someone say, “Oh, signing---that’s just parlor tricks for babies. You say a word and they produce the sign. How is that any different from a dog who rolls over when you say the words?” Whenever I hear comments like this, I know that that person has never been around a signing baby long enough to see signs in action. Anyone who has knows that the magic of signing is that it enables babies who have few or no words to tell us what’s on their minds.

But how, in the moment, to make this point real to people who say such things? Simple! I tell them the following story:

Heather, a Baby Signs instructor in Iowa, had a baby daughter who started using signs at about 10 months and became quite the signer by 14 months. It was at this point that the baby began to have what looked like severe temper tantrums. She would flail her arms and legs and twist her head back and forth, often falling to the floor. When Heather sought help, she was simply told that it was probably just the terrible-twos starting early. But then Heather noticed that each time her daughter had one of these “spells,” she would tap her index fingers together—the sign for HURT. That’s when Heather knew something serious was wrong—and she was right. Heather insisted that she see a pediatric neurologist who discovered that her daughter had Childhood Epilepsy! Fortunately, because it was diagnosed extremely early, she escaped any long term neurological problems and has done so well that she was spared long term medication.

Certainly doesn’t sound like “parlor tricks” to me! And it’s because we know that the signing experience can make an important—and sometimes life-saving—contribution to a child’s life that we are trying to raise funds to enable us to bring the magic of signing to low income, teen, and foster families, as well as families in the military. Please help us with a holiday gift of your own by visiting our Baby Signs Scholarship page. And if you can’t help monetarily at this time, you can still help by telling your family and friends about this worthwhile project.

Happy Signing (and don’t forget to follow us on Facebook)!

Linda

Linda Acredolo, Ph.D.
Co-Founder, the Baby Signs® Program
and
Professor Emeritus, UC Davis

Tuesday, October 1, 2013

Hidden Benefits of Reading the Same Book Over and Over





Even if you are bored with a particular book, reading the same storybook many times over is really good for children. In the case of dialogic reading (incorporating conversation outside of the written text into your reading time) going over the same story more than once enables a child to learn new vocabulary items well enough to us them in answer to questions. This is exactly what researcher Monique Senechal found when she read 3-year-olds a story either one time or three times. Toe two extra times make a big difference in the ability of the children to remember the meanings of ten new target words—like “angling,” “fedora,” and “satchel.” What’s more, when the three readings also included questions to the child (a la dialogic reading), the number of words remembered went up even higher—to average of almost 70 percent.

If that’s not enough to convince you, a study by Peter Jusczyk and Elizabeth Hohne has even shown that by the end of three readings, babies as young as 8 months recognize as familiar the specific words they’ve heard in the story. Unlike the 3-year-olds in Senechal’s study, babies this young aren’t learning what the words actually mean. They are, however, learning to recognize the sequence of sounds from which these words are made. Even at 8 months, then, rereading the stories leaves an impression on a baby’s mind.

Happy Signing (and don’t forget to follow us on Facebook)!

Linda

Linda Acredolo, Ph.D.
Co-Founder, the Baby Signs® Program
and
Professor Emeritus, UC Davis

Sunday, September 1, 2013

This Little Piggy Went to Market




I recently posted in this blog a description of an experimental study I did at UC Davis to see if toddlers would use a sign to indicate that they remembered something that had happened 2 months earlier. (They did.) I certainly wasn’t surprised by our findings because I had long been hearing stories from parents indicating real life examples of babies using signs to indicate memories. Here’s one of my favorites:

A roly-poly potbellied pig was 15-month-old Brandon’s favorite exhibition at a street fair in a neighboring town he had never visited before. In fact, Brandon was so enchanted with the pig that he sued his sign for PIG (fingertip to nose) countless times during the day to let his parents know he wanted to see it again…and again…and again. His parents happily obliged, enjoying the fact that he could actually tell them what he wanted. But something even more amazing happened six weeks later. Brandon and his parents visited the town for a second time, and even though there as no street fair and not pig, Brandon suddenly began to sign PG with great glee. At first his parents were confused, but then they realized they were standing in the exact spot where the pig had been six weeks earlier! The fair may have been a distant memory to his parents, but it was clearly still vivid to him. Wow! Where his parents impressed! Not only had he remembered a pig seen long ago, but he had also remembered the exact greasy spot by the sidewalk where it had been, showing his parents just how smart their baby was!

Brandon’s is only one of many stories showing signs being used to talk about memories. Do you have examples of your own? I’d love to hear them! Send them along to me via email at info@babysigns.com (putting Baby Signs in the subject line to make sure I get it.) and maybe they’ll make it into a future posting right here!

Happy Signing! (and don’t forget to look for us on Facebook)

Linda

Linda Acredolo, Ph.D.
Co-Founder, the Baby Signs® Program and Professor Emeritus, UC Davis

Sunday, July 28, 2013

Our Study Still Stands Tall!




One of our Baby Signs® Instructors called my attention last week to an article by a Speech Pathologist who was questioning our research findings that signing helps children learn to talk. She was basing her criticism on a study by researchers in England who claimed to be replicating our study but finding no positive effects when the verbal development of their signing group of babies was compared to that of their control group of babies.

Whenever such criticisms arise, the first thing I do is get my hands on the supposedly contradictory study and read it carefully. So that’s what I did, and just as I suspected, the authors didn’t have a leg to stand on! Let me outline a few of the more blatant differences between their study and ours, differences that explain why they didn’t find the language advantages we did. This post will be longer and a bit more “academic” than usual, but please bear with me. We want every parent who’s signing with a child or even contemplating doing so, to share the unwavering confidence we have in our own research.

Issue: Sample Size. The smaller the sample size (number of subjects within two groups), the harder it is to demonstrate a statistically significant difference between them, especially when the behavior in question varies dramatically from subject to subject as early language development does.
• Our study--Goodwyn, Acredolo, & Brown (2000): 32 in the Signing Group, 39 in the Control Group.
• English study: 10 in each Signing Group, 10 in the Control Group.
Conclusion: Goodwyn et al. was more likely to detect a facilitative effect, the English study more likely to miss a facilitative effect genuinely there.

Issue. Length of the study. Language development in its early stages is notoriously variable across children. The longer data collection continues, the more likely that trends will be visible.
• English study: Ceased data collection at 20 months.
• Goodwyn, Acredolo, & Brown (2000): Continued data collection well past 20 months (i.e., 24, 30, and 36 months).
Conclusion: Goodwyn et al. (2000) was more likely to discover a meaningful trend in the direction of a facilitative effect of signing.

Issue: Number of Signs Learned. To determine whether signing by infants facilitates learning to talk, the “signing group” has to have actually learned a meaningful number of signs. The larger the number of signs learned, the better equipped the study is to determine if signing makes a difference. If a baby learns only a handful of signs, one wouldn’t expect much of an effect on learning to talk.
• Goodwyn, Acredolo, & Brown (2000): Average number of signs learned = 20.3 (Range 9-61 signs)
• English study: Highest average number of signs learned across ages was 8.67 (Range 2-17 signs)
Conclusion: Goodwyn et al. was in a better position to test the effect of signing because the subjects in their study actually learned many more signs.

Why does the number of signs a baby uses matter to verbal development?

Signs pull language from adults. Babies learn words from listening to adults. When a baby uses a sign (e.g., BIRD) upon seeing a bird, the adult responds with lots of words (“Yes! That’s a birdie! We call that a robin. See, there’s another bird. Oh, the bird flew away.”) The more signs a baby knows, the more likely this is to happen.

Signs enable babies to pick the topic. Again, babies learn words from listening to adults. When a baby uses a sign, it starts a conversation about something the baby is interested in, thereby making it more likely the baby will listen to and learn from what the adult says. The more sign a baby knows, the more likely this is to happen.

Signing excites babies about communicating and motivates them to move on to an even better system--words. The more signs a baby is able to use successfully to communicate, the more motivated he/she is to get better at communicating—that is, to move on to words.

Signs increase a baby’s interest in books. Babies learn new vocabulary from reading books with parents. Because signs enable babies to be active participants in book-reading (naming pictures with signs), babies are drawn more strongly to books, thereby exposing them to more new vocabulary items. The more signs a baby knows, the more likely this is to happen.

Issue: Why did children in Goodwyn et al. (2000) learn more signs?

Instructions to Parents. The instructions to parents clearly can affect the number of signs learned.
o Goodwyn, Acredolo, & Brown (2000): Parents were encouraged to choose whatever signs they thought their child might be interested in learning and to add new signs at any time. This freedom addresses the fact that not all babies are interested in the same things.
o Kirk et al. (2013): Parents were told to stick to a specific set of first 10, and then 20 signs no matter what their child’s interests.

Amount of modeling. The more a sign is modeled by the parent, the more likely it is to be learned by the child.
o Kirk et al. (2013): Data indicate that parents on average modeled a sign “a few times a week to once a day.” This isn’t nearly enough!
o Goodwyn et al. (2000): Modelling rate was not reported. However, the likelihood that parents would, in fact, model signs was increased by the fact that they were given specific toys and books depicting objects represented by signs.

Given all the points I’ve outlined, I hope you can see why we disagree so strongly that this new study somehow negates our findings of a facilitative effect of signing on verbal development. And even if you hadn’t read this posting, all you would have had to do is talk to parents of preschoolers who used signs as babies to feel confident that signing is not just “okay,” but actually really good for language development.

Happy Signing! (and don’t forget to look for us on Facebook)

Linda

Linda Acredolo, Ph.D.
Co-Founder, the Baby Signs® Program
and
Professor Emeritus, UC Davis

Sunday, July 14, 2013

When to Start Signing



One of the most frequent questions our network of Baby Signs® Instructors hear when they give their Parent Workshops and Sign, Say & Play® classes is “When should we start signing with our baby?” Truth is, there’s no “perfect” time to start signing. Over the years we’ve noticed three different approaches parents take to the issue of when to get started. Each has its own advantages. I will describe all three approaches so you can decide which approach will work best for your family.

Birth – 8 months
Some parents start early – at birth or sometime during the first 8 months. These parents want their babies to get lots of exposure to both signs and words from the very beginning. And they like getting into the habit of signing early on. If you know that you have the patience and the persistence to use signs yourself even though your baby is unlikely to sign back until she’s a bit older, then starting early may be a good choice for you.

8-12 months
Many parents choose to wait until their babies are 8-12 months old to start signing. The advantage of starting during this time period is that babies are closer to the age that they can start using signs themselves (usually around 10-11 months). If you like to see more immediate results, starting during this age range may be best for you.

12+ months
Some parents wait until their babies are 12-18 months old before they start using signs. Even at these later ages most babies still don’t have the words to express all the thoughts they want to share. The advantage of starting during this time is that babies are likely to learn signs more quickly, sometimes within a matter of days. With this approach, however, babies will use their signs for a shorter length of time because signs drop off quickly once babies start using more spoken words.

Finally, is it ever too late to start signing? No, not if a child is still frustrated because he or she can’t say the words needed to communicate important things. In other words, any baby or toddler who shows readiness to communicate, but cannot do so effectively with words, is a candidate for signing, and as a parent, you should not feel that it’s too early or too late to start.


Happy Signing (and don’t forget to visit us on Facebook)!

Linda

Linda Acredolo, Ph.D.
Professor Emeritus, UC Davis
and
Co-Founder, The Baby Signs® Program

Sunday, July 7, 2013

Signs: Here, There, and Everywhere!



Do you remember how, once you were expecting a baby, you began to see pregnant women everywhere? Or, having finally decided to buy a particular car, you started to notice how many like it were already on the road? Where did they all come from? The answer, of course, lies in the heightened awareness that your own situation creates. It’s as though you have special radar unconsciously scanning the environment for the things that are momentarily of special importance to you.

The same thing happens to your baby when she learns a new sign or new word. With a new label at her command, she suddenly sees examples everywhere—even in places that you don’t expect. For example, for 14-monthy-old Eli, the “apple” sign made even a trip to the grocery store a special adventure, what with apples, labels on apple pies and apple juice and even pictures of apples on greeting cards. His mother, like many of us, nad never realized how pervasive apples were in the environment until Eli set about to find them all.

In a similar way, 15-month-old Trina had a love affair with her “bird” sign. Everyone expects to find birds out the window or at the park—but at church? Sure enough, embedded in the stained-glass windows over the altar were not one but two ornamental doves, peace symbols to the congregation but just plain birds to Trina. At least using signs was a quiet way to talk about them!

Like these parents, you’ll find yourself amazed at how vigilant your baby can be. She may be only a baby, but lots of mental activity is happening for her behind the scenes. And each time your baby tells you about something with a sign, she is providing you with a glimpse into all that activity, enabling you to respond appropriately and enthusiastically.

Happy Signing (and don’t forget to visit us on Facebook)!

Linda

Linda Acredolo, PhD.
Co-Founder, the Baby Signs® Program
and
Professor Emeritus, UC Davis

Sunday, June 2, 2013

Going Beyond Single Signs



There’s no doubt that a single sign—such as MORE, for example—conveys important information. But there’s also no denying that the combination MORE + COOKIE is even clearer. Babies seem to know this intuitively; that’s why as soon as they can, they begin stringing two words (or signs!) together and sentences are born.

This important intellectual milestone—the ability to put true words together—typically occurs on average around 20 months, with many babies waiting until their third year. Things happen much earlier, however, with signs. Because signs are easier to learn than words, babies can begin putting them together with each other and with single words as early as 12 months! The most useful signs in this regard are MORE which can be combined with lots of other signs or words (e.g., cookie, milk, book, bubbles, etc.) and ALL GONE which is equally combinable (e.g., with water for down the drain, food words or signs, and even animal signs when animals run or fly away).

Many signing babies, however, don’t stop with just two. Here’s a great illustration: Michelle, mom to toddler twins Jimmie and Julianna (see photo), decided to make a detour from shopping and take the kids for their first trip through the car wash. She thought they might enjoy it. Instead, they began crying hysterically, clearly terrified by the onslaught of water, brushes, and noise. That night when Daddy got home, they immediately told him all about it…with signs: CAR + BATH+ SCARED! For weeks afterward, when they would get in the car they would repeat the same “sentence” just to make sure Mom wouldn’t forget and take them there again!

Yup! Sometimes one word (or sign) alone isn’t nearly enough!

Happy Signing! (and don’t forget to look for us on Facebook)

Linda

Linda Acredolo, Ph.D.
Co-Founder, the Baby Signs® Program
and
Professor Emeritus, UC Davis

Sunday, May 19, 2013

A Grandma By Any Other Name. . .



I’m on a kick about grandparents, probably because I’ve been able to spend lots of time with my nearing 4-years-old grandchildren. Of course, I’m too young to be a grandmother—aren’t we all? Fortunately, the grandmother image I grew up with has slowly given way to a new view. When I was a child, grandmothers, including my own, were typically frail women with white hair drawn up into a bun, solid black laced-up old lady shoes, and flowered dresses about as form fitting as a garage around a car. Nowadays, grandmothers are vibrant women still right in the thick of things, with or without gray hair—but very seldom in a bun!

One thing, however, hasn’t changed and never will. Grandmothers of any era relish the first time a grandchild reaches out with a smile and murmurs some version of her name, be it “gamma,” “mimi,” or “nana.” The wait for this memorable event is often long—sometimes not until a child is over 2 years old—because learning to say words is such a struggle for young children.

Fortunately, there’s a way around this frustration and the need for guessing. The solution is helping babies and toddlers use signs to communicate with those they love. And included in these sign vocabularies for many children are signs for grandpa and grandma that function exactly like names. Here are some fun examples from our files:

--13-month-old Claire used a rocking motion as her name for Grandma because Grandma frequently rocked her in a rocking chair.

--12-month-old Kai picked up on the way his Grandpa always threw him up in the air and began raising his arms up high whenever his grandpa arrived—or even when he saw a picture of him.

--15-month-old Sadie would enthusiastically do her version of the ASL sign for Grandma (thumb of open hand on chin, arched forward two times) when Grandma entered the house.

Being a grandparent is one of the sweetest experiences on earth, and now it’s easy to make it sweeter still. Start signing with your grandbabies today and enjoy the sense of connection and love that being able to communicate brings.

Happy Signing (and don’t forget to follow us on Facebook)!

Linda

Linda Acredolo, Ph.D.
Co-Founder, the Baby Signs Program
and
Professor Emeritus, UC Davis

Monday, April 22, 2013

Babies Remember More Than You Think





There's nothing more fascinating to me than the mind of a baby. That's one reason I find the ability of babies to communicate with signs so interesting. Signs provide a window into a baby's mind. However, their skills don't stop with signing. Dr. Susan Goodwyn and I wrote the book Baby Minds so parents could appreciate how much more competent babies are than many parents suspect. The following story provides an excellent example.

“Who turned off the lights?” would seem to be the most natural question if you suddenly found yourself sitting in pitch-blackness. That apparently wasn’t what was running through two-and-a-half-year-old Miriam’s mind, however, when the lights went out during her visit to the psychology lab at the University of Massachusetts. Instead of questioning, crying, or even reaching toward Mom, Miriam confidently thrust her hands out in front of her s though she fully expected to encounter something interesting just beyond her fingertips.

Now why, when no object had been visible with the lights on, would she expect to find an object out there once everything was dark? It doesn’t seem to make sense—until you learn that this was Miriam’s second encounter with this particular dark room. Along with other children, Miriam had made an earlier visit to the lab to participate in a study of hearing ability conducted by Eve Perris, Nancy Myers, and Rachel Clifton. Miriam’s job during that earlier visit had been to reach out toward a toy that was making noise. When the lights were on, she had both her eyes and her ears to guide her. But when the lights were suddenly turned off, the job was left to her ears. Despite the dark, Miriam and her peers had no trouble finding the toy. Their ears were definitely up to the task.

But now let’s jump ahead again to Miriam’s current visit. Given these previous experiences with the dark room, it certainly makes sense that Miriam would anticipate finding an object out there in the dark. After all, you and I would probably remember a salient event like the one these children experienced. In fact, Miriam’s easy acceptance of the sudden darkness and her confident reaching behavior this time around hardly seem remarkable at all—until you realize that the event Miriam is remembering took place two full years earlier, when she was just six- and-a-half months old!

There’s an important lesson here for parents. Babies are affected by events that happen early in their lives. They may not be able to tell us yet about them, but the traces of the experiences—positive or negative—remain accessible to children for long periods of time and influence their reactions to things later on. So, let’s dedicate ourselves to making as many of those experiences positive as we can!

Happy Signing (and don’t forget to visit us on Facebook)!

Linda

Linda Acredolo, PhD.
Co-Founder, the Baby Signs® Program
and
Professor Emeritus, UC Davis

Sunday, April 7, 2013

From Signs to Speech—Inevitable!



Parents and babies love the Baby Signs® Program because it reduces frustration and makes being together even more fun. But speech is even more important, isn't it? Will babies be willing to move on to words if life is so easy with signs?

Despite our federally-funded research evidence showing that signing babies actually learn to talk sooner, some parents still worry that their babies will be too content with signing to do the work of learning to talk. Below are four reasons why children are, in fact, eager to make the transition from signs to speech:

New Places to Go: As toddlers get older and more mobile, they are more and more likely to wander away from direct eye-to-eye contact with parents—around corners, behind chairs, up and down the slide. Signs, which require being able to see each other, are much less effective that words in such situations. You simply can’t shout a sign from around the bend!

New Faces to Meet: Greater mobility and maturity also mean that children are destined to meet more and more new people along the way—people who engage them in conversations and most likely don’t know signs. They may be new playmates at daycare or cashiers at the grocery store or friendly parents at the park. Conversing with these folks requires words.

New Games to Play: Getting older also means that children become increasingly attracted to activities that keep the hands busy—like finger paints, crayons, puzzles, ladders to climb, bikes to ride. Signing in such situations is much less convenient that words!

New Things to Say: To a 15-month-old, simply telling you that he sees a butterfly is a magnificent feat—and one easily accomplished with a simple sign. However, as children grow intellectually, gathering more and more information about the world around them, the ideas they want to get across become much more complicated. Except for children whose parents are capable of teaching them to be fluent in ASL, complex ideas and observations are beyond the power of simple signs to express. Words are the perfect substitute.

So, don’t worry about the transition to speech; your child will be eager to move on to words. In fact, if you’re like many parents, you’ll actually be a bit sad to see the signs slowly drift away one by one as an onslaught of words takes over!

Happy Signing (and don’t forget to follow us on Facebook)!

Linda

Linda Acredolo, Ph.D.
Co-Founder, the Baby Signs® Program
and
Professor Emeritus, UC Davis

Sunday, March 24, 2013

The Baby Signs® Program & Learning to Talk




By far the most frequently voiced concern about encouraging babies to use signs to communicate before they can talk is that doing so will slow down verbal development. In fact, the exact opposite is true. Baby sign language actually speeds up the process.

How do we know? With a grant from the federal government, Dr. Susan Goodwyn and I compared verbal development in babies using the Baby Signs® Program with that of non-signing babies. In test after test the babies who signed were more advanced than the non-signers in language skills. (The published study is available on our Baby Signs web site.) We really weren’t surprised because we had already observed the following ways in which baby signing spurs language skills.

• Signing is to talking as crawling is to walking. In other words, just as crawling excites babies about getting around even faster by walking, the excitement of being able to communicate with signs motivates babies to figure out ways to communicate better—and the most obvious way is with words.

• Signing provides practice. The experience of signing teaches babies useful lessons about how language works (like using symbols to label objects, etc.). These lessons speed up the process of learning to talk once words are finally available.

• Signing pulls language from adults. The natural reaction to a baby’s use of a sign is to flood the child with words, and the more words a child hears, the faster he or she will learn to talk. What’s more, signs enable babies to pick the topic of conversation, thereby increasing the likelihood that they will listen attentively to the words parents say.

• Signing changes the brain. Every time a baby successfully uses a sign to label something, circuits in the brain are strengthened; circuits that then make learning words easier.

• Signing makes book-reading more fun. Babies who sign can actively participate in book-reading by labeling pictures they see well before they would be able to do so with words. Because taking a active role is more exciting they sitting passively on the sidelines, thereby making the experience more fun. How does that help language? Books expose children to lots of new vocabulary words and stimulate conversations.

So, the next time someone suggests that your use of the Baby Signs® Program is going to keep your child from talking, just smile knowingly, roll your eyes, and say “Oh, that old wives’ tale!”

Happy Signing (and don’t forget to follow us on Facebook)!

Linda

Linda Acredolo, Ph.D.
Co-Founder, the Baby Signs® Program
and
Professor Emeritus, UC Davis

Sunday, March 17, 2013

What Exactly Does “Ba” Mean?!



I recently ran into an old friend who was out shopping with her 20-month-old granddaughter. I was delighted to hear that little Laney had taken our Baby Signs® Sign, Say & Play® class and been a great signer since age 10 months, and equally delighted to hear that words had started to appear in her repertoire as well. According to Grandma, however, most of these words sound pretty much the same, and although Mom and Dad can often figure them out based on context, it's a real challenge for Grandma. For example, she told me, Laney currently says something like “ba” for “baby,” “ball,” and “bottle.” What helps enormously, Grandma, said with a smile, is that Laney almost always combines the sign for what she's talking about with the word, thereby clarifying her message! So the sign for BABY accompanies "ba" in some cases, while the sign for BALL does so in others, etc.

Aha! A great example of how signing still has a role to play even when words begin! Instead of looking at their babies in frustration and listing all the possibilities, adults can correctly interpret these early words ( “Oh, baby! You see the baby!” ). Using signs in this way to clarify what they are trying to say is an advantage of baby sign language that is often overlooked—until a parent or grandparent very gratefully sees it in action. It turns out to be important because receiving positive attention for trying to talk is an important incentive that motivates children to keep working hard to add new words.

Just think how discouraging it is to be struggling to be understood in a foreign country when you can’t say the words quite right. It’s enough to make you want to retreat in silence to your hotel room! Having signs to help them clarify their messages keeps babies from feeling this way so that instead of retreating into silence, they become more and more excited about learning to talk.

Happy Signing (and don’t forget to follow us on Facebook)!

Linda

Linda Acredolo, Ph.D.
Co-Founder, the Baby Signs Program
and
Professor Emeritus, UC Davis

Sunday, March 3, 2013

Signs: A Window into the Infant Mind for Researchers Too




I spent last Tuesday with my twin, almost 4-year-old grandchildren—Nate and Olivia—because they were home sick from preschool. Both of them were great signers, so I decided to see if they remembered any of their signs. I mentioned that they used to use a sign for “more,” and Nathan quickly tapped his fists together, clearly remembering something from easily 18 months earlier. Then Olivia did the sign for “all done” and Nate asked me to remind him what the sign was for “drink.” Soon we were all into it with them remembering lots of signs—like book, bird, dog, and moon—and even a specific experience when they had used the bird sign to talk about a hawk out back. My conversation with them reminded me of one of my favorite signing stories where a 2-year-old little girl, who had switched from sign to words a whole year earlier, suddenly began to teach her doll the sign for “more!”

The doll story and my conversation with Nate and Olivia reminds me of one of the less obvious gifts signing with babies has given us. For a very long time, researchers (as well as parents) assumed that babies’ memory abilities were severely limited. And who was to tell us differently? After all, without words to share their thoughts, babies seem almost oblivious to the past and future. But now, with signs at their disposal, babies are sharing what they see, hear, feel, and even what they remember with both parents and researchers! Finally we’re getting proof that babies are a lot smarter than they look!

Let’s hear it for signing with babies!

Linda

Linda Acredolo, Ph.D.
Professor Emeritus, UC Davis
and
Co-Founder, The Baby Signs® Program