15-Month-Old Twins Proudly Show Mommy Their Sign Language Skills

Sep 29, 2021 by apost team

Watching your baby grow up and reach important milestones can be one of the greatest joys of being a parent. The stage where children learn to speak can be exciting, especially when you hear their little voice say something for the first time. One way to communicate with your baby before they are able to form words is to teach them baby sign language. 

Baby sign language is a collection of modified hand gestures from American Sign Language. The common signs taught to children are: eat, drink, more, mother and father. These simple gestures can bring down frustration levels when trying to find out what your baby needs. It is still important to teach babies how to verbally speak, but baby sign language is a great way to start communicating early on with a child.

In a video from 2013, 15-month-old twin boys Axten and Rayden showed off their speaking and sign language skills to their parents one evening before bed. Already dressed in their adorable matching pajamas, the boys sat still and listened as their mom asked them to repeat words and perform signs. The little twins were perfect pupils and showed off how smart they were by repeating all of the animal names and sounds that their mother showed them. 

However, you can tell the boys are still learning how to behave as they had to repeatedly be reminded not to hit one another while their mother tried to teach them more words. When they got to the sign language portion, baby Axten did great and used the signs correctly while Rayden seemed distracted. Not long after the sign language lesson was over, Rayden popped up and adorably waddled down the hall. Keep reading to learn more about baby sign language.

Many parents may be wondering if teaching their children sign language is worthwhile. Dr. Jay Hoecker explained the value of teaching children sign language at an early age on the Mayo Clinic website. He said: "Limited research suggests that baby sign language might give a typically developing child a way to communicate several months earlier than those who only use vocal communication."

Dr. Hoecker added: "This might help ease frustration between ages 8 months and 2 years — when children begin to know what they want, need and feel but don't necessarily have the verbal skills to express themselves. Children who have developmental delays might benefit, too. Further research is needed, however, to determine if baby sign language promotes advanced language, literacy or cognition."

One piece of advice he offered was to have realistic expectations when teaching baby sign language to your child. "Feel free to start signing with your child at any age — but remember that most children aren't able to communicate with baby sign language until about age 8 months," Dr. Hoecker explained. 

Dr. Hoecker highlighted the importance of patience as well. He continued, "Don't get discouraged if your child uses signs incorrectly or doesn't start using them right away. The goal is improved communication and reduced frustration — not perfection. However, avoid accepting indiscriminate movements as signs."

Dr. Hoecker's last piece of advice was: "Keep in mind that, as you teach baby sign language, it's important to continue talking to your child. Spoken communication is an important part of your child's speech development."

apost.com

Did you enjoy this adorable video? What do you think of parents teaching their children baby sign language? Let us know your opinion and be sure to send this along to your loved ones.