Baby Sign Language with Ms. Stephanie

This is a sweet and funny story about a little boy and his imaginary friend. Written and illustrated by Petr Horáček.

Baby sign language borrows signs from American sign language, using basic vocabulary to help you communicate with your little ones and enhance their learning. ASL is its own rich language as part of the rich culture of the Deaf community, and only a fluent and qualified ASL teacher (which I am not) should teach it.

But by incorporating signs for key words you use with your little ones every day – such as milk, potty, and help – you can help them express their needs before they can communicate orally. And for older little ones who might eventually want to learn American Sign Language, baby sign language can be a fun stepping stone to get them interested in future study.

Please sing and sign along with me as we learn the signs for some of our favorite animals. Or instead of singing, you could make animal noises! In this lesson, we’ll learn signs for some of the many animals that walk around on dry land - such as lions, tigers, and bears, oh my! And then next month, we’ll focus on some signs for animals that live on or around bodies of water like oceans, lakes, and rivers. And the month after that, we’ll focus on signs for animals that spend a lot of their time in the sky – like birds, bees, and butterflies – as well as the creepy-crawlies that are lowest to the ground – such as snakes and bugs!

Baby sign language borrows signs from American sign language, using basic vocabulary to help you communicate with your little ones and enhance their learning. ASL is its own rich language as part of the rich culture of the Deaf community, and only a fluent and qualified ASL teacher (which I am not) should teach it.

But by incorporating signs for key words you use with your little ones every day – such as milk, potty, and help – you can help them express their needs before they can communicate orally. And for older little ones who might eventually want to learn American Sign Language, baby sign language can be a fun stepping stone to get them interested in future study.