I first learned about teaching sign language for babies when I was a teenager. My brother was born with Downs Syndrome and he was in physically therapy and speech therapy to help with him with his development. The speech therapist used many activities and techniques to help him with his speech, one of them being sign language. My entire family learned sign language through his therapy and we could see how sign language was effective in helping his speech development. He was communicating to us using sign language and by speaking, and his pronunciation of words was clear.
When I became a mother I was set on teaching my children sign language. I started at about 4 months with my first born sign. I would talk to him by speaking and signing at the same time. He learned how to do a few signs before he spoke. His first sign was dog and then he learned how to sign dog and say "woof". Soon after that he was saying dog while he signed it. I was so proud that my son was able to communicate to me and I was able to understand what he wanted. I began to take my son to baby ASL classes when he was about 9 months and he loved it. He loved interacting with the other children and adults. He loved playing with the toys and learning the signs for each toy or activity. He began to do at least one new sign a week and at least say one new word a week as well. Very soon after he was saying or signing at least on new word a day, he was progressing so well and he loved talking.
It is important to know how sign language should be taught to babies. Sign language should be taught by signing a word while saying the word clearly. For babies it should also be reinforced by leading a child's hands to do the sign as well. This reinforces the sign and teaches young children how to sign it. Plus the physical contact helps encourage the sign as well. Here are some ways that sign language encourages not only communication, but communication through speech.
Sign language provides a visual for something audible. There are many ways that we learn. We learn by using all of our five senses especially children who are discovering the world around them and how it works. Introducing sign language helps all types of learners and creates a visual and a physical way of learning and communication. This is particularly helpful for the visual and physical learner, but it also helps the person who learns best through listening. It provides them with another way to learn and communicate. So, when children learn a word they are learning to relate it visually, physically, audibly and verbally.
Sign language helps communicate words and phrases that are hard to say. Some things are easier to sign than to say. Certain sounds are hard for children to make and they take practice. This can make communication difficult because a child is trying to say a word and the parents may not be able to understand. This causes frustration and out of that frustration a child may eventually give up trying to communicate that word. With sign language the children and practice saying that word and still be able to communicate with you understanding by using the sign. I have seen this happen with my son and me several times. One example was he was asking me for water, but it sounded mumbled up and unclear. Finally he used the sign and said it and I knew exactly what he wanted. It saved us from frustration and from him giving up on trying to communicate what he wanted.
Now my son is 21 months and has a large vocabulary with sign language and speaking. He has excelled so much and is using sentences as well. Looking back from the time he first started talking to now I can see how sign language helped him with his communication and with his speech. Many people are afraid that sign language will cause their children to sign rather than speak. This was not the case for my son, or any other babies that know sign language. Rather than causing them to be speech delayed it has proven to encourage communication through signing and speaking. There are many reasons why sign language encourages verbal communication.