Sign When You Play (More Quick Ideas for Getting Started with Signing)

Have you ever wondered, "Why isn't my baby signing back to me yet?" There are several possible reasons, but sometimes it's simply because you haven't yet introduced signs that are of interest to your baby. Another possibility is that the bulk of your signing has been in task mode. Do a quick self check: Do you predominantly sign "more" and "all done" during mealtime, and reserve the signs for "change" and "sleep" to diaper changes and nap times? If your answer is, "Yes," I'll encourage you to shift your attention a bit, so that the majority of your signing happens when you are singing and when you're playing.

The last several posts I've talked about the value of singing and signing. Equally effective is signing during playful times.  I find that parents and caregivers are more successful at signing with their babies if the majority of their contextual signing is introduced during play time. That doesn't mean you shouldn't sign during mealtime or during diaper changes and before nap time. It just means that ideally those aren't the only times (or even the majority of the times) you are signing about those topics.

When we're focused on a task (such as getting our baby fed, diapered or down for a nap), we are generally more hurried and focused on getting the task accomplished. Mealtime can be stressful when you're trying to get your baby fed and get a little morsel of food into your own mouth as well! Adding an additional "task," such as signing, requires a conscious effort to add an "extra" step to an already stressful process. As a result, it might feel like work, or like a technique we're trying out on our baby versus a way of communicating with our baby.

When signing is emphasized during playful times, your habits around signing will be established more deeply, and you will be able to more easily incorporate those signing habits into task activities as well. This is because when signing becomes a habit, it becomes routine and natural to join your words with a sign. Think about how you wave and point without giving it any thought. You body just naturally adds those gestures to your communication. When you build the foundation for signing through playful activities, your body will likewise more naturally gesture with signs when you use those same words during task activities.

Here are some examples of how you can incorporate signing into playtime:

*Bounce your baby on your lap. Stop every now and then and ask your baby if she wants MORE bounces.

*Tickle your baby or blow raspberries on your baby's belly. Stop every now and then and ask your baby if he wants MORE tickles or more kisses.

*Put your baby in the wind-up swing and say, "It's time to SWING."  When the swing stops, say, "would you like to swing some MORE?" When you can tell that your baby has grown tired of swinging you can say, "We're ALL DONE swinging."

*Blow some bubbles.  When the bubbles die down, ask your baby, "Do you want MORE bubbles?"

*Play some music.  Say, "Let's turn on the MUSIC." Once your baby starts movin and groovin, say, "Look at you DANCING!"

*Cover up a favorite object such as a ball or a book or a doll. Sing "WHERE is the BALL" to the tune of the "Farmer in the Dell" (i.e. "Where is the ball? Where is the ball? Hi Ho the Derry-O. There is the ball").

*Put a baby doll or teddy bear into the high chair or booster seat. Playfully interact with your child and the baby doll. When you feed the baby doll, you can say, "Do you want more BANANAS?" or "Oh look, the BABY likes her bananas," or, "Oh, it looks like the baby is ALL DONE," as you are cleaning up the baby doll and taking her out of the high chair.

*Use one of your old (clean!) diapers from when your baby was younger, and playfully interact with your child to give a teddy bear a diaper change. Say, "It's time for the teddy bear to get his DIAPER changed."  When the diaper change is over, say, "We're ALL DONE with your diaper change, Teddy."

*Get a box of bandages and examine your legs and your baby's legs to find some owies.  When you find a bruise or a shaving nick, or a scratch, say, "Uh Oh. Mommy has an owie," (and sign HURT). Toddlers love to help you cover your legs with bandages!

The more you sign during playtime, the more familiar you will become with a wide variety of signs, and this will help you become more comfortable incorporating signs during routine tasks. In addition, your baby will have more and more opportunities to notice you signing. Your baby will come to realize that your hands are full of meaning...and theirs can be, too!

Sing and Sign When You Read (More Ideas for Getting Started with Signing)

Story Time with Signs & Rhymes

One of my favorite things to do is sing and sign when I read to kids. I routinely model this for teachers, librarians and parents when I facilitate in-service training sessions and literacy programs at community education events. After a guest appearance at a conference facilitated by one of my heroes, Nellie Edge, I was encouraged to capture a video of me singing and signing my stories with children. For logistical reasons, this still hasn't happened (lining up cameras and the necessary parental permissions during the same timeframe I've managed to fit in a fresh haircut and wardrobe check has not worked out quite yet).

However, after many gentle nudges from Nellie, I did finally film myself reading my book SEE THE COLORS. Nellie references  the book and video clip in her annual list of favorite new books (you have to scroll down a bit on her page to find it).

The video, (here is the YouTube link), is not nearly as fun or inspiring as it would be if I had a group of engaged kids surrounding me, but it does provide an opportunity to illustrate some of the ideas I encourage you to try at home or in your own classrooms. It provides an example of how the story might be signed if I were reading to a group of children, for example in a classroom or library story time session.

For family story times, cuddle your child(ren) on your lap.  Hold the book in front of you.  You can make some of the signs like "blue" or "green" in front of the pages of the book (instead of near your shoulder, where these signs are typically made). You can also make some of the signs on your child's body (for example, tug on your child's tee shirt for the sign "white," or move your pointer finger across your child's eyebrow for the sign "black").  If you prop your child more sideways (vs. forward) on your lap, you can make the signs on your own body, and you will notice that your child will look up from the book to watch your hands and face, where the signing action is taking place.

For some kids, you can also use their hands to make the signs. For example, I use the sign for "baby"(or for older kids, "child") to convey the repeating phrase "little one."  Try cuddling your child's arms into the "baby" motion to make this sign.  For the sign "brown," you can move your child's open hand down their cheek to approximate the motion.  Some kids really like having their hands manipulated in this way; others don't.  My daughter used to hold her hands out to me and say "help" when she was having trouble articulating a more complicated new word (such as "helicopter"). My son, on the other hand, would arch his back and aggressively move his arms and hands away from me saying, "by myself!" if I tried to manipulate his hands to make a sign.  Let your baby be your guide!

And be relaxed about it.  Don't be afraid to put the book down from time to time.  You can set it on your lap, or you can set it down next to you. You might find that you and your child(ren) get sidetracked talking back and forth about different signs.  That's fine.  The whole point is to interact and to explore language and literacy together!

I also encourage you to use books that you are really familiar with, books that you and your child really enjoy, and books that feel rhythmic and musical to you. For example, children's classics like "Chicka Chicka Boom Boom" and "Brown Bear, Brown Bear" aren't officially singable, but they have a rhythmic quality to them.  Chant and sign along with those stories!

Many of my books from the Story Time with Signs & Rhymes Series can be sung, not just read. In my next post, I'll provide a summary of the familiar tunes that match up with my singable stories. In the meantime, please feel free to share other books you like to sing and sign along with in the comments section below!
    

Quick Ideas for Getting Started with Signing: Sing and Play

As usual, my signing classes will be back in full swing this fall. No worries if you can't wait until the next class begins or you can't make it to an upcoming class. For the next several weeks I'll use the blog to share some of the key learning points I incorporate into my Infant/Toddler Sign Language classes. Don't hesitate to post your questions, and I'll do my best to address those as well.

I find that signing opportunities come in three main contexts: when you sing and play with your baby, when you verbally label routine activities and objects throughout the day, and when you focus on key words that are important to you and your baby. Today we'll begin the first of several posts on singing and playing!

In my experience, singing is the easiest and most natural way to sign with your baby. Your baby loves the sound of your voice (even if you don't!), and babies love finger plays (such as "Patty Cake," "The Itsy Bitsy Spider," and "The Wheels on the Bus"). If you already do finger plays and lap games with your baby, you already know how to sign with your baby--you just need to learn a few new gestures (that happen to be ASL). I'll provide more specifics about that later.

If you haven't yet started doing finger plays or lap games with your baby, don't wait any longer. It's time to get started! And, if you don't know any finger plays or lap games, (or if you just want to go to the best place on earth for babies and their parents) get ye to your local library! Ask at the library's information desk or ask the youth librarian for the library's "Book Babies" or "Tiny Tots" story time schedule. (Yes, libraries have STORY TIMES for BABIES!) These story times are a great way for you to learn some finger plays and lap games, and it's a great way for you to make new friends with other parents in your community. (Oh, and while you're there, you can borrow some of my books in the Story Time with Signs & Rhymes series!)

If you are based in Oregon or SW Washington, here are links to just a few of the wonderful library systems in the Portland/Metro area:

Multnomah County Library
Washington County Cooperative Library Services
Fort Vancouver Regional Library District

Or, find a library in Oregon near you by clicking here.

If you already do finger plays and lap games with your baby, you have a jump start on signing.  Take the same relaxed and carefree approach that you take when you engage in a playful round of "The Wheels on the Bus" or "Patty Cake" with your baby.  When you're signing, instead of incorporating random gestures (like moving your arms back and forth for "the wipers on the bus") to symbolize words that don't really matter to your baby, (like "swish, swish, swish"), sing songs that will enable you to incorporate key words in sign language to symbolize the words and ideas your baby is motivated to express.  For example, sing, "If you're hungry and you know it, ask for more," to the tune of "If You're Happy and You Know It." Add more verses and more signs over time (i.e. "If you're thirsty and you know it ask for a drink," "If you're full and you know it, say all done").

Don't worry at this point about connecting the songs and signs to any specific context.  Just like you sing "The Wheels on the Bus" when there is no bus in sight, and you play "Patty Cake" without any flour in hand, you can sing and sign without worrying about props or context (for now!).  When you sing and sign just for fun, you will gradually build your own signing vocabulary, (so it's available when you do want to use it in a particular context).  Likewise, your baby will enjoy the playful attention of singing and signing, and will learn to focus on your hands (which is a necessary element of signing).  This will lay the groundwork for more context-based singing and playing, labeling and focusing.

My next posts will build on this topic. In the meantime, feel free to post your questions and/or your favorite songs for signing.