Signing to your young baby – what’s it all about?

Baby sign language is a set of simple hand gestures (signs) that relate to common words in your baby’s everyday life. The signs are based on the sign language from that country, e.g. Auslan in Australia.

The difference between baby sign and Auslan, is that with baby sign, we say the word as we produce the sign, in order to model both the spoken word and gesture to our baby.

There are many variations of baby sign language – many baby sign tutors will adapt signs to make them easier for a young baby to do considering their hand skills. The key is to be consistent! Stick with the signs you learn and teach those around you to use the same signs too (e.g. grandparents, day care staff). 

So, will using baby sign help my baby to talk??

If you google baby sign, you’ll read many great claims that it ‘speeds up’ your child’s language and will get them talking sooner.

Research has shown that this isn’t necessarily the case. Using baby sign language doesn’t guarantee that your child will talk sooner than a baby who isn’t exposed to signs. There are, however, lots of benefits to using it.

Here’s a few:

• Using sign language helps you to slow down your speech, as you will be concentrating on using the sign too. This is a fantastic strategy to use with young babies as it helps them process all the sounds and words you are modelling to them.
• A sign lasts a lot longer than a word. A word is gone as soon as you say it, where as a sign lasts longer, therefore helping your child to process what you are saying.
• Your baby might find it easier to use a gesture before they say a word. In this way, they will be able to communicate to you what they want, before they can actually say a word. For example, my daughter used to make the sign for ‘milk’ well before she could say the word. This can reduce frustrations for a young baby if they can get their message across more easily to you!

When to start

You can start signing to your baby from the day they are born – just don’t expect them to sign back for a while! You definitely don’t need to sign this early on, however, if you choose to sign with your baby, it can be great to get into the habit of doing it from the start, so it becomes natural for you to sign as you talk to your baby.

Most babies will start to use the signs themselves from about 8-12 months of age. This is when their hand skills start to develop AND when they really start to discover the power of communication.

In order to produce a sign themselves, they need to be able to understand that word firstly (and the connection between the sign and the meaning of that word) and be physically capable of moving their hands to make that sign (or at least a variation of it!).

Will using sign stop my baby from talking?

This is a common concern from parents when I start using sign with their young child. The answer is definitely no! Using baby sign (or key word sign which is commonly used by Speech Pathologists) will only support your child on their journey to talking, not replace spoken words. Usually once a child starts producing the spoken word, they stop using the sign as they realise the spoken word is easier!

How to start using baby sign

Think about which words you say often to your child throughout the day, and which are very meaningful and motivating for them. Think about what you wish they could say if they could talk and what would make both of your lives easier if they could communicate them!

 Some great ones to start with are ‘more’ ‘finished’ ‘milk’ ‘mum’ ‘dad’ ‘help’ and ‘go’.

• When you say these words to your baby, make the sign too
• Remember to ALWAYS say the spoken word as you sign
• Repeat the word and the sign A LOT! Repetition is key to learning language (whether you choose to sign with your baby or not).
• Wait and watch to see what your child is interested in, then model the word and sign for them. For example, if they are reaching up for you, pulling at your top or looking towards a bottle, you might realise they want milk. Use this opportunity to say ‘milk’ and make the sign at the same time. PAUSE and wait to see what your child does, then say the word and sign again.
• Create opportunities to use signs with your baby. This is a strategy that goes for language learning in general, not just baby sign! For example, if you want your baby to be able to ask for ‘help’, then place objects that they love out of their reach (this might be on the floor out of their reach for a young baby, or up on a shelf they can see but not reach for an older baby). This way, they need YOU to get that object, and it is a fantastic opportunity for you to model the word and sign for ‘help’ before you get them the object.
• Don’t be disheartened if your baby takes a long time to use the sign themselves. It is still so beneficial for you to model that sign to them and you are helping to build their understanding of that word. There are many signs that I signed over and over to my daughter in her first year that she never signed back, because she started saying the words! I’m confident, however, that using the signs supported her understanding of those words.

SO….where to now?

If you’re interested in learning more about baby sign, please get in touch!

In our Walky Talky Baby membership, we have a video tutorial every week from  our Speech Pathologist teaching members a new sign, and more importantly, HOW to model that sign in every day activities. It’s just one of the many topics we cover in the membership, so if you’re interested, please come on board!

 We also have lots more to help you and your baby along their journey:

❤️  Join us Walky Talky Baby: The Membership

❤️ Buy our Tummy Time e-book No Tears Tummy Time

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