Baby Sign Language

My own journey with ASL began a long time ago when my parents taught me baby sign language. My mom started with the basics but soon it became a family affair. It was an interest that I continued to nurture in elementary school years and, again, in high school. When I graduated high school, I decided I wanted to further pursue ASL and was relieved to find course offerings at Aims Community College. More recently, I have found community education courses and clubs to help me broaden my ASL knowledge. 

Sign Language is a fantastic way to enrich you and your baby’s minds! Babies are little sponges and are learning and developing everyday. The American Association of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends starting to teach them when they are as young as 6 months old but can be taught even younger than that. You can start signing to your baby as soon as they are born to help yourself learn it too; but the baby's vision is pretty limited when they are little so keep that in mind! It certainly takes some time for a baby to start signing themselves! 

It will be well worth it when your baby can tell caregivers what they need, even if that is simply just signing “milk” or “diaper” or “more.” I encourage you to do more research about baby signing to see how it could fit into your life. It is so cool seeing a baby signing what they need because it can help take the frustration of not knowing what your baby needs!  

Further reading and resources:

1. https://www.thebump.com/a/how-to-teach-baby-sign-language 

2. https://huckleberrycare.com/blog/a-guide-to-baby-sign-language 

3. https://www.today.com/parents/baby-sign-language-basics-when-start-how-teach-it-t156990