Get your baby “talking” with these common signs, demonstrated by a sign language expert

Even before your baby says their first words, they can start to communicate through simple sign language. Some babies are ready to understand basic signs by around 6 months. Once their fine motor skills have developed, they may start to sign or gesture back at 8 or 9 months. Using both spoken and signed words together builds multiple pathways for communication.

Signing can help babies learn to communicate their thoughts and feelings both before and after they’re able to speak. Even if your baby can’t understand everything quite yet, there are benefits to introducing some common signs now.

Why teach sign to babies?

• Some research shows a link between early sign language and language development in toddlers. 
• Speech-language experts agree signs, similar to other languages, count as first words when they’re used consistently and in context.
• Learning signs may strengthen your baby’s brain architecture and frontal lobe functioning, similar to learning a spoken language. 
• Research suggests using sign language activates the same brain regions as spoken language.
• Sign language gives babies more ways to say what they want to say, which may help reduce frustration.
• Signing may also help improve your baby’s fine motor skills.

What kind of signs should I use?

Experts recommend using the real sign language used by Deaf people in your region—for instance, American Sign Language (ASL). This way, your baby’s early signed words can develop into real language.

Sign language tips

• Try to be consistent. Each time you feed your baby milk, use the sign for milk.
• If you speak and sign the word at the same time, you can connect the two languages in your baby’s brain: “You’re drinking milk!”
• Introduce signs as a natural part of conversation. Babies learn best through repeated exposure tied to real-life situations and everyday routines. 
• Babies understand much more than they can express—they will begin to understand your signs well before they can sign back.
• Use each new sign along with a variety of other words to deepen your baby’s understanding: “Here’s your water. Oooh, the water is cold!”
• Give your baby positive feedback when they attempt a sign, even if they don’t do it quite right. You can show that you understand by validating their communication and casually using the correct sign. For example: “Oh, you’d like more banana? Yes, let’s have more!”
• At the early stages of learning, your baby’s signs may not look as refined as yours. Just like vocal language “babbling,” signed words start off with “manual babbling,” or “mabbling.”

See our board book My First Signs and the video linked above for more!

Learn more about the research

Goodwyn, S. W., Acredolo, L. P., & Brown, C. A. (2000). Impact of symbolic gesturing on early language development. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior, 24(2), 81-103.

Kirk, E., Howlett, N., Pine, K. J., & Fletcher, B. (2013). To sign or not to sign? The impact of encouraging infants to gesture on infant language and maternal mind-mindedness. Child Development, 84(2), 574-590.

Nelson, L. H., White, K. R., & Grewe, J. (2012). Evidence for website claims about the benefits of teaching sign language to infants and toddlers with normal hearing. Infant and Child Development, 21(5), 474-502.

Thompson, R. H., Cotnoir-Bichelman, N. M., McKerchar, P. M., Tate, T. L., & Dancho, K. A. (2007). Enhancing early communication through infant sign training. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 40(1), 15-23.