3.0 out of 5 stars
Not everything it could be, Sep 21 2001
This is a well-written, well-researched book. The concept is wonderful, but it is not everything that it could be. I am a graduate student studying infant and toddler development, and I have devoted years to researching this topic. Teaching your children to communicate through sign language is one of the best and most important commitments a parent can make. Your child will have a larger vocabulary and greater social skills. (my 25-month old has a vocabulary of approximately 850 words.)
However, if you are going to invest all of time and effort, teach your children ASL! Baby Signs are meant to be used for a time and then cast aside - BUT preschoolers who sign have significantly larger vocabularies, and elementary children who sign perform approximately 1 grade level above their peers in Language Arts. If they encounter deaf individuals they will be able to communicate with them. If you are going to teach them to sign, let it become a lifelong thing, not a rudimentary language to be cast aside in a few years! I recommend Joseph Garcia's book, Sign With Your Baby, and if you are interested in the research behind it and ASL for older children, buy Dancing with words by Marilyn Daniels. That is a 5-star book!
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Uses ASL, easy to read, Mar 15 2004
This review is from: Baby Signs: How to Talk with Your Baby Before Your Baby Can Talk, Second Edition (Paperback)
I like this book because it uses ASL and I was easily able to scan/read it in one sitting. I think teaching a baby ASL over baby signs is very important because baby signs will only be useful til they are 2-3yrs wherebys ASL will be useful throughout their life and they will be able to communicate to deaf children.
The book shows how to do the signs and also outlines ideal settings to use the signs to communicate with your baby. My son is 6 months old now and loves it when I sign 'Mommy loves you' and 'car/drive' to him.
I also like how there is an dictionary section with about 150 signs; their is also illustrations of signs in appropiate areas of the book (i.e. in "which signs to start with" section it shows how to do Milk, More... Signs so you don't have to go to the dictionary to see how to do each.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Baby Signs, Dec 31 2003
This review is from: Baby Signs: How to Talk with Your Baby Before Your Baby Can Talk, Second Edition (Paperback)
To any who read the review RE:Holly Cox, Nov.10,2003.
I am the mother of a 1 1/2yr. daughter. I also know signing and as the result of reading an article in Parents Magasine reguarding "signing with babies", I began an experiment to see wether signing would be an assett to a toddler. This article highlighted the lowering of frustration levels with increased communication, AS WELL as, an increased oral vocabulary due to the repetition of verbal reenforcement associated with the use of the sign. The experiment was more successful than I had expected and my daughter could soon communicate her needs in situations that were a previously source of frustration to her:" down, finished, drink, eat, up, more". It wasn't long before her interests expanded and with them her oral AND signing vocabulary. Although she does not have the fine motor coordination to manipulate many of the intricicies of advanced signing, she is eager to keep her active mind occupied with visually learning signs dear to her little heart. Signing has not stinted her oral vocabulary, ON THE CONTRARY, she is an extremely verbal child for her age (she is my 4th, I know the difference) and, although credit immersion in early reading/and natural linguistic aptitude to a portion of her development, If I had to rate "SIGNING" as a stepping stone in her growth I would hold it in the same place of influence as these other factors. If you wonder what I mean by early talker here is a sample list of words that she knows in both sign AND oraly: eat, drink, bottle, shower, toothbrush, wash, CD, jacket, shoes, rain, snow, twinkle, star, cold, up, down, finished, come, dog, cat, bird, chicken, upstairs, sleep, sit, moon, stop, patience, not yours, mine, help, water, wave, flower, funny, car, music,....there are more oral words in her vocabulary. OH YEAH, Holly (and any new moms out there worried about slow talkers)....if indeed a 2 1/2 year old is not speaking and clings to signs, it may be that that child is just not yet ready to jump into talking, yet...it's no biggie, that child WILL talk in good time unless there is some delay at the root. ...Who are we to judge another persons security zone. If you suspect a delay SEE A DR. IMMEDIATELY.
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