Whether you choose to use only a handful of signs, or sign everything you say, you want to begin by using signs that are important to your child; favorite toys, snacks, or things to do. Then, try and use those signs as often as possible. One good way to do this is by signing before, during, and after an event. Try this:
Your baby is looking longingly at his blanket. You say, “Does baby want the blanket?” as you sign, “Want blanket?” Then, you pick up the blanket and as you start to hand it to him you say, “Here’s baby’s blanket,” as you sign the word “blanket”. Finally, after you have given your baby the blanket you make a statement about it like, “Baby’s blanket is soft,” as you once again sign “blanket” or “blanket soft.”
At times you will feel as though you are signing but your baby just doesn’t seem to pay attention, don ‘t worry about whether or not your child is making direct eye contact. Chances are your child can see you and you don’t even realize it, and if he can’t it’s still good practice for you. The most important thing is to relax and make it natural. it should be no more of a ‘lesson’ for your child than the way she learns to speak by you talking with her throughout the day. As long as you are signing consistently when you can your child will see the signs enough to learn them.
There are ways you can naturally help your child learn signs. One way is to sign between the object and your child when possible. This will help your child to see the sign with the object it represents. You can also sign on your child, signs like ‘cat’ and ‘bath’ especially lend themselves to this method. Finally, you can physically help your child to make the sign by manipulating his hands into the correct handshape and movement. Of course, if your child does not like any of these methods discontinue them at once, you can always try again at another time. Again, the most important thing is for you and your baby to be comfortable.
Much like when she learns to talk, your baby will make approximations of signs before she may make them correctly. She may make the sign in a different place on her body or using a slightly different movement or hand-shape. The most common hand-shapes your baby will use are a fist, the index finger, or the whole hand. So watch for approximations of the movement, location or hand-shape you are doing.
Here are some examples of this to help you. When my daughter Rachel learned to sign father she would tap her temple with her pointer instead of her thumb in an open five hand. She was doing the correct motion in the right location, but with a different hand-shape. She would sign all done by waving her hands in front of her rather than twisting them. This was the correct hand-shape in the right location but with a different movement. For banana she would ‘peel’ her elbow rather than her pointer finger, the correct hand-shape and the right movement, but in the wrong location.
As your baby makes approximations, it is important for you to continue to make the correct signs. Because your baby may believe that she is making the same movements you are, she may become frustrated if you change your sign to look like hers. As she grows and matures her signs will more closely match yours. With a young baby quite often you are unable to sign using two hands; your signs may be slightly altered. This is nothing to be concerned about. As long as you also show the two handed sign as often as you can your baby is capable of understanding how the sign should be done.
Always remember to reward any attempts or approximations your baby makes to make a sign. If at all possible give your baby what he is requesting. If it’s not possible at the time, say he asks for a cookie and you only have crackers, make sure it’s clear you understand what he’s communicating and reward him with something similar, explaining why he can’t have what he’s requesting and of course always shower him with praise and hugs.