Baby Sign Language

I think Tali needs to communicate. There's no way she's crying this much just for the hell of it. She wants to have a conversation and tell me what's bugging her. My solution? Baby sign language. Babies can start learning sign language at six months old (tomorrow!) and therefore have the ability to communicate much earlier. Sign language actually improves a child's speaking vocabulary and has also been shown to improve IQ. And, Tali has no tricks. Jackson can do so many things and Tali's biggest trick is smiling at strangers. She needs some new material. 

We took a baby sign language course about a month ago and I started signing with Tali on Sunday. Babies can only learn one word at a time and the first word you teach them is "more." The way you teach a word is to use it verbally and do the sign at the same time. There are many opportunities to use the word "more" so I am signing to her when I feed her ("Tali, do you want more food"), when I sing to her ("Tali, do you want more singing"), when I make faces, when I pour water on her in the bath, etc. Most of the time, she thinks its funny. 

It can take 8-10 weeks for a baby to learn the first sign since she first has to understand that she's being taught something and then develop the coordination to do it. But once she learns that first sign,  the next signs should only take about 2-3 weeks each. Once again my patience will be put to the test. For the next two or more months I will repeatedly use the word and sign for "more" without any sort of response. Around the end of August I will start carrying the video camera everywhere in hopes of catching the first (or second) time she asks for "more" on her own. Then it's on to the words "eat" and "milk." After that, the possibilities are endless. She could tell me she needs a diaper change, she needs help, she sees a giraffe, etc.