Communicating with your baby can take on all forms and sizes. From gesturing, to identifying their cries, to pointing and screaming, your baby will try one or all of these in their pursuit of being able to communicate with you.
Teaching your baby to sign a few basic words can allow your non-verbal little one to express their needs from an earlier age than they can speak. Better communication leads to fewer frustrations. It also gives your baby confidence (“They understand me!”) as a communicator.
When Should You Start Signing with Baby?
Wwhat many first-time parents might not know is that babies can actually learn some simple sign language at a very young age to help bridge the gap in communication. Long before your baby is able to speak verbally, you can help teach them to say some common words.
According to research, many babies can sign starting around age 8 or 9 months. (Think about how your child likely knows to wave “goodbye” already just from watching other adults use this hand movement 👋.)
Let's get started (with videos)
While so many words are helpful to communicate with your little one, we've created a few simple videos on how to start signing with your baby. Don't worry if you or your child don't do the signs perfectly. It will take time to learn and your baby might adapt to their own version of that sign. Whatever works best to communicate between the two of you is the best choice for your family.
How to sign "All Done"
How to sign "Milk"
How to sign "More"
How to sign "Eat"
Resources to keep learning
As your child grows up and throughout their first year, we recommend continuing to use sign language and building their vocabulary. To learn more about infant-focused sign language, Stephanie's practice @storktoforknc specializes in communication and feeding for infants and toddlers, and is based in Charlotte, NC.
In addition, you could consider a deck of our speech and language development cards. These make a great infant language development activity you can share with your child.
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