Dr. Linda Acredolo, Baby Signs co-author - A PERSONAL MESSAGE

NiaSadeMomma · #1 (**permalink**) 03-24-2005, 09:06 AM

Signing Mommies,

I am "re-posting" Dr. Acredolo's personal message to the board.

Hello Everyone!

I'm delighted at the enthusiasm for signing that is so clearly evidenced in this group. What a change from 1996 when our book, Baby Signs, first appeared! Back then, so few people had heard about signing with hearing babies that those who tried it were often criticized by family and friends worried that encouraging signing would slow down learning to talk. As more and more people have learned about our research showing exactly the opposite and have talked to families with personal signing success stories, attitudes have changed dramatically. And now, with "Meet the Fockers," the movement has definitely reached the infamous "tipping point!"

Now the concerns have changed. Among the most common these days is the worry expressed by parents that they have done something wrong -- or that there's something wrong with their baby -- when their baby doesn't begin signing back as early as they expected. It's important to remind these parents about the tremendous individual differences among babies in terms of their timetables for development and their priorities. More and more frequently I hear from families with experiences like I had with my son Kai: It wasn't until he was up on two legs and finally able to toddle around on this own at 12 months that he turned his attention to signing. Until then he was more interested in motor skills than in communicating. But after he did his first sign ("fan"), it was off to the races!

So, don't get discouraged if your neighbor's child is signing at 9 months while your pride and joy still isn't at 13 or 14 months. Just keep modeling signs and when your child is ready, he'll let you know!

Warmly,
Linda Acredolo
Co-Author, BABY SIGNS

Linda Acredolo, Ph.D.
Professor Emeritus of Psychology
University of California, Davis
Davis, CA 95616
(530) 662-0553