More Signing, Less Whining
This bowl of yogurt is so yummy that the 9-month old wants more. Which age-old method will she use to signal her needs: Crying? Kicking her legs? Tossing her bowl?
This 21st-century baby simply touches the fingertips of each hand to their respective thumbs and then brings hands together and presents them to her mother as their word for "more." Mom gladly dishes up extra yogurt and the baby gladly eats. Everyone's happy in this tiny snapshot from the new age of signing, when infants begin expressing themselves in language soon after they can sit up.
Easy-to-Learn Gestures
"More" is a universally favorite sign, as is "eat," with the hand to the mouth, "milk," with the motion of milking a cow, and "all done," where open hands with palms up are quickly flipped palms down. The gestures may vary from family to family, but the baby, parents, grandparents and caregivers are quickly on the same wavelength.
"Babies understand language a lot faster than they can express it," says Lindsay Stutz, MA, CCC-SLP, a speech and language pathologist at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center Outpatient Eastgate. "Signing is an easier communication skill than talking and helps reduce their frustration. A good time to start signing to them would be around 4-5 months, as soon as they can sit up in a high chair. But don't expect them to sign back until around 8-10 months."
Some families follow the format of American Sign Language, with its own syntax, while others use signed English, which follows English word order. Others develop their own gestures. "Signs don't have to be produced exactly the right way. But the more universal the sign, the more people will know it, especially when a child goes to preschool," Ms. Stutz says.
Added Benefits
In addition to expressing immediate needs, signing also enhances an infant's receptive language skills. One research study of children ages 2, 3 and 8 conducted for the National Institutes of Child Health and Human Development discovered that signers outperformed non-signers in all areas, including spoken language development and IQ.
Signing is especially beneficial for children with delayed language development. "With signing, at least they have a language.
"I'm very excited about the increase in signing among typically developing children. If they do have classmates later with special needs and they both know how to sign, it creates a bond where they can interact," she explains.
Signing also can come in handy as children produce their first syllables. "Duh" can mean "daddy," "drink," "all done" or "dog," Ms. Stutz says. "Signing can help differentiate among those and reduce a child's frustration and aggression."
And that will be, in a sign, "good."
You can find commonly used signs and their descriptions at your local library, bookstore or online. Then, progress is just a matter of practice and patience.
