What really matters- Signing- Communicating without words. Whit started using signing later than her siblings; but by the time babies are 9 to 11 months old, they are quite capable of knowing what it is they need or want and discovering how to use their hands to communicate it. This ability comes along with this sensitive period during which babies become aware of a new “sense of self and theory of mind”. Babies do not and will not have the oral control to pronounce recognizable words beyond babbling for some time—which leads directly to frustration for baby and parent alike. However, they can create gestures and are able to use signs. With signs like "eat," "drink," "more" and "change me,” babies can make their needs known quickly and quietly without becoming frustrated and resorting to “Demand Crys” (see vid), tantrums and tears. Signs are not only critical for setting language foundations but can be a life saver for a families sanity (see video).

Signing actually helps babies learn to talk. Research has found that 2-year-olds who signed had significantly larger verbal vocabularies than their non-signing peers. And by the time they were three years old, their language skills were more like that of 4 years old. Babies gain a lot of language knowledge when they are able to actively engage in communication with signs—knowledge that lays a good foundation for learning to talk. There are other benefits as well. Because signers can communicate effectively with their caregivers, and because their caregivers respond so positively to these communications, signing babies develop a sense of pride in their accomplishments that lays a solid foundation for the development of their self-esteem and self-confidence. Also when a baby and parent can truly understand each other and share what’s on their minds, they feel more connected to one another.

How to put it into practice-

I think the best way to start is to pick just a handful of signs but to model them religiously, every time the need occurs. For example, I started to model  signs to Whit at 8 months and used these four: “eat”, “drink”, “more”, “change”. I selected these 4 because they are very practical. I need to know when she is hungry, thristy, wants more, or has a dirty diaper. If she can communicate that to me, we save both of ourselves alot of frustration and fussing. When your baby will actually produce the first sign varies enormously as it depends on a baby's interest in communicating (some babies prefer climbing bookshelves to reading books), development of related skills (e.g., memory, imitation, attention), and the frequency with which parents model the signs. The most typical age range for first signs is between 10 and 14 months.

It's Important to keep in mind that the younger the child is when you begin modeling - even within this age range -- the longer it will take for those first few signs to appear. After that it's "off to the races!"

In our household, Kenly started earliest at 10 months and Whitney last at 11 months.  However, once started new signs are added very quickly. You can start to model more signs for more situations. For example, once Whit started “drink”, we added the sign for “milk” and “water” so she could tell us which fluid she wanted to drink.

Discovering & developing Whit’s story-