When Washing a Car is More than Just Getting it Clean

Suggest to a teenager that he or she should wash Mom’s car and you can just imagine the reply, with pursed lips, eye-rolling, and heavy-hearted harrumphing. Suggest the same to a toddler—as I did the other day while babysitting my twin grandchildren—and the result is excited compliance. The contrast is enough to make one wonder why something that is so clearly unwanted work at one age is such a delight at another. The former is too complex for a simple blog entry, so let’s focus on the latter.

The reason lies in the fact that (a) the human ability to imitate is deeply ingrained and (b) meeting challenges at any age brings a sense of well-being. Let’s address them in order. Even 1-day-old human babies are capable of imitating simple facial gestures they see Mom or Dad make—like sticking out one’s tongue or pursing one’s lips. This ability is astonishing given that babies this young have never even seen their own tongues or lips! How do they do it? Neuroscientists have discovered over the last decade that we are all born with a type of cell in the brain called a “mirror neuron,” a cell whose job it is to both register what we see others do and then mirror those actions. Voila! Imitation!

And what a handy tool imitation is. From the very earliest years, children learn tons and tons of important skills by engaging the ability to imitate---including how to feed themselves, use signs to communicate, learn words, sing songs, put on their own clothes, throw balls—and on and on and on.

What about “b,” the satisfaction of a job well-done. Again, this is something humans are born with. Even very young babies work hard to reach goals—whether it’s successfully getting spoon to mouth, communicating with signs or words, singing songs, getting dressed, or throwing a ball. In other words, the ability to imitate and the desire to meet a challenge work in tandem to help each of us develop the skills we need to survive in complex human culture.

This brings us back to why washing Mom’s car was so exciting to my twin toddler grandchildren, Nate and Olivia. Quite simply, they were reveling in the opportunity to imitate something they’d seen grown-ups do and in the fact that doing so provided them with a sense of being a bit more grown up themselves. They had a “job” to do and doing it was satisfying!

Now, if only we could get our teenagers to feel the same way…..

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

Sign Time, Rhyme Time

As some of you may know, the first edition of the foundational book that launched the “sign language with babies” movement—my book with Dr. Susan Goodwyn, Baby Signs: How to Talk with Your Baby Before Your Baby Can Talk—was published way back in 1996. Since that time we’ve published two more editions, one in 2002 and the most recent in 2009.

In all three editions we accomplished the major goal of helping families understand the benefits of signing, appreciate the fact that the Baby Signs® Program is founded on our government-funded research, and learn easy ways to incorporate signing into daily life within their homes.

However, because of space constraints, we found it necessary in this latest edition to leave out one of my favorite features—a set of simple poems easily combined with signs that parents can recite to help their little ones learn signs in a fun way. Maybe because I personally authored most of these, I was really sad to see them go. Then it suddenly occurred to me that there is no reason I can’t share a few of them here! So enjoy!

Dreamland
One last drink of water (Water or Drink)
My favorite teddy bear (Bear)
A lap to curl up in (Pat lap)
And the old rocking chair (Rocking torso)
A book about kittens (Book; Cat)
A song about love (Love)
And I’m off to dreamland (Sleep)
With the stars up above. (Stars)

Butterfly Wings
Butterfly wings go fluttering by (Butterfly—left to right)
Down to the flowers and up to the sky Butterfly—down, then up)
Butterfly wings tickle your toes (Butterfly to toes)
Butterfly wings land right on your nose! (Butterfly—to nose)

Giraffes are Tall
Giraffes are tall (Giraffe)
Birdies are small (Bird)
But itty bitty fleas you can’t see at all! (Tickle baby)

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

A Story Illustrates an Important Advantage of Signing

One of my favorite personal Baby Signs® stories involves my son, Kai (who you see in the photo below with me way back in 1987 doing his sign for airplane--an indication of how long I've been involved with signing). We were in the mall; he was 12 months old and in his stroller as we passed by store after store. Suddenly, he turned around in his stroller, smiled, and did his sign for “crocodile” – clapping his palms together like the jaws of a crocodile. “You see a crocodile—in the mall?” I asked, looking around in vain for such a critter. I knew to trust him, though. He clearly was trying to tell me about something he saw. I let him out of his stroller, and he immediately toddled over to the window of the store we had just passed—a men’s store with racks of men’s shirts in the window. Where was the crocodile? You probably guessed it! The IZOD insignia on the shirts!

I’m telling this story to illustrate a point about why signing with babies speeds up language development.

Imagine yourself in my situation. Do you think I just calmly said “Oh yeah, that’s a crocodile,” plopped him back in his stroller, and went on my merry way? No! I was flabbergasted that he had seen those crocs from his stroller and thrilled that he wanted to tell me about them—so I excitedly flooded him with words like: “You’re right! Those are crocodiles! There are lots of crocodiles! They’re like the crocodile in your book! You are the smartest baby in the world!” (Probably not my exact words, but close enough.)

His use of the sign resulted in him hearing lots and lots of words that he otherwise would not have heard—and who picked the topic? He did! Think about it. We all pay more attention to things we are personally interested in, and that’s true for babies and toddlers, too. When we join them in attending to what they are focused on, chances are much greater that they will listen closely to what we’re saying—and learn! In fact, we know from research done at Emory University that this is true for verbal words even when signs are not involved: children are more likely to learn words they hear while the parent is talking about something the children have chosen.

The magic thing about signs is that it enables babies to pick the topic so much earlier than if they had to wait for words to come along. We shouldn’t be surprised, therefore, that signing gives babies such a lovely jumpstart in learning to understand words and to talk.

Happy Signing

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

Linda

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

Keeping Mom No. 1

I remember vividly when my daughter-in-law called me in tears, worried that her then 10-month-old twins would end up loving their child care provider more than they loved her. I assured her that this anxiety is typical of moms who have to have their children in child care, and I shared some tips with her. The basic one is the following:

Create fun routines that involve activities that are unlikely to be part of child care. Because they are only done at home, they will stick out in the child’s mind. Children find routines of any kind comforting and these home-only routines will become special times with mom and/or dad that your child can look forward to. Here are some possibilities:

Bath time. Almost all kids love to splash in the bath before bedtime. Instead of thinking of this as one more chore to get through, appreciate it as an opportunity to share a fun experience with your child with which child care can’t compete. Bath time also has the advantage of being a chance to relate to more than one child at a time.

Singing. Choose specific songs that only you sing to your child—maybe one for first thing in the morning, one for bedtime, and one for riding in the car. It’s not unusual for grown children to speak nostalgically about such songs and even repeat them with their own kids.

Dancing. I’ve never met a baby or toddler who didn’t like to be held in Mom’s or Dad’s arms and jiggled up, down, and around in time to a favorite CD song. This might be a great routine for when you reunite.

Watching a DVD together. Many child care providers avoid DVDs and yet, cuddling once a day with a child in front of an appropriate DVD can be an intimate and cozy experience (being sure to talk about what’s on the screen—and, whatever you do, not using DVDs in place of books!). For example, my daughter-in-law used the Baby Signs My Bedtime Signs DVD to cuddle and wind the twins down at night before book time, each one clutching his or her own Baby BeeBo.

(By the way, it took only one bad cold during which the twins stuck to her like glue to convince her she had nothing to worry about in the attachment domain!)

Have fun!
Linda

Linda Acredolo, Ph.D. .
Co-Founder the Baby Signs Program and
Professor Emeritus, University of California

The iPad Generation? What’s a Parent to Do?

It was just a few years ago that all parents had to worry about was whether or not their young child was watching too much TV and/or too many DVDs. Now, however, fundamentally different media experiences have been added to the mix. I’m talking about the interactive platforms provided by smart phones (e.g., the iPhone) and tablets (e.g., the iPad). As the photo above of my twin grandchildren, Nathan and Olivia, indicates, the pros and cons of time with these platforms is an issue even in our family.

How prevalent are these items these days? A recent Wall Street Journal article, citing a survey from last year by a non-profit group called Common Sense Media, reported that 39% of 2-to-4-year-olds and 52% of 5-to-8-year-olds have used some form of touch screen platform. Given that the popularity of such devices seems to be growing by the proverbial leaps and bounds, I would bet those percentages are even higher now!

On the plus side, the educational games available as “Apps” are, for the most part, interactive—meaning that they enable even toddlers to make decisions and effect changes by simply touching the screen. This is very different from the primarily passive experiences that TV and DVDs typically provide. And the small amount of research that does exist suggests that well designed games do promote learning.

On the negative side--as anyone who’s tried to wrest an iPad out of the hands of a child can attest to—these devices could be called, as one parent described them to me, “crack for kids.” In other words, kids love themn and don’t want to stop playing with them. The concern is that time spent playing with them is time not spent romping around with other kids, building with legos, nurturing one’s imagination through pretend play, or having conversations with the big people who love them.

So what’s a parent to do? Until we have more research, my best advice is “all things in moderation.” What this means is setting consistent, logical limits by saying “No, enough is enough” and taking the device away. In fact, think of this as an opportunity to get some really helpful practice setting limits—a skill that, trust me, will continue to come in handy until your child leaves home. With short term or long term limits in place that your child can come to understand and anticipate, this will also be a valuable lesson for her as well.

Visit us on Facebook and tell us what you think? What have you tried with your kids that might work for others. This is definitely a discussion worth having!

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

How to Make the Most of Book-Reading

In last week’s blog, I talked about how signing spurs language development by increasing a baby’s enjoyment of books. Part of the explanation that I gave for this positive relationship between books and language development involved something researchers call “Dialogic Reading” Quite simply, this term means engaging your child in a conversation about what’s on the page rather than just reading the text and moving on. What I want to do today is provide some specific tips for how to get such conversations going.

• Instead of only asking for labels (like “What’s that?”), ask questions that require some thought to answer (“Where do you think Goldilocks is running to?”) In general, good openers include “Why….?” “How….?” “Where…?” You’ll find you naturally expand on whatever answer your child provides, thus providing more words for your baby to ponder—and learn (e.g., “Too big? Yes, Goldilocks was too big. She was just too heavy for that little bitty chair.”).

• Ask about things that are more abstract, like feelings or predictions about the future. “How do you think Goldilocks felt when…?” “What do you think Goldilocks told her mommy when she got home?” Parents really underestimate children’s ability to think about such things. What’s more, helping your child identify a character’s feelings will indirectly help her identify her own.

• Ask questions that relate the book’s events to your child’s own life. “Have you ever seen a bear?” “What would you do if you woke up and saw three bears?” Like the rest of the human race, babies are more interested in things that have direct relevance to their own lives.

• Relax, laugh a lot, and “go with the flow.” Don’t worry if your child gives the wrong answer—or no answer at all! The point is to make talking fun. A child who genuinely enjoys such give and take will be motivated to get better at participating. A child who doesn’t, who feels “interrogated” and put on the spot, will emotionally withdraw and see book-reading as aversive. In other words, “Dialogic Reading” is not—I repeat—is not an IQ test! It’s just a simple way to enrich the experience of cuddling up with Mom or Dad and a good book.

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

Baby Sign Language and Books: A Wonderful Partnership

As most of you know by now, Dr. Susan Goodwyn and I discovered through our federally funded research

that signing actually speeds up rather than slows down the process of learning to talk.

There are a number of reasons why. The one I’m going to focus on here is the fact that signing makes book-reading more fun. And how does that help language development? Think about the books you read with your children. First of all, the pages themselves provide lots of things with names—both in the text and in the pictures. For babies just learning to talk, these names are often novel. That means they are getting exposed to new vocabulary items—and every time you read the same book again (which we know babies demand), they get the repetition needed to add these names to their repertoires.

The second reason books help language development is through what psychologists call “Dialogic Reading.” This is a fancy term for something very simple. It means engaging the baby in a conversation (i.e., dialogue) about the things on the pages, conversations that include questions for the baby to answer, even if in very simple terms. (“What’s the doggie doing?” “What do you think the baby owl is feeling?”) Research by Dr. Grover Whitehurst has shown that this “eliciting” of words from the baby during book-reading does promote language development.

So, there you have two reasons why book-reading with young children is good for language development. But, back to the initial assertion--that signing increases a child’s interest in books. The reason is because signs provide a baby with a way to actively participate in book reading at much younger ages. Instead of merely listening to Mom or Dad name things in a book, the baby can name them him/herself—with signs. And they do! Click here for an adorable example on YouTube (title "Baby Signs Julia"")—and notice how Baby Julia can point out things she thinks are interesting that her mother hadn’t really noticed, things she wanted to talk about. That really makes reading books more fun for babies! (By the way, the mom is Bonita from our home office and the videographer is Noah, Julia's 12-year-old brother.)

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