Does Baby Signs use American Sign Language (ASL)?

Since the publication of the our book, many people have asked us how using the Baby Signs^® Program relates to American Sign Language, the official language of the deaf community. The simple answer is that the Baby Signs^® Program incorporates the most useful, "baby friendly" signs from American Sign Language and combines them with signs that babies and parents have created themselves and found particularly useful.

When we first began our Baby Signs^® Research, we feared that parents of hearing babies would find ASL too overwhelming to learn in the short time their baby would use signs as a bridge to speech. We also knew that young babies, with their limited motor coordination, are not be able to master many of the complex "hand shapes" of ASL. Since for hearing babies using sign language is simply a temporary bridge to speech, our goal has always been to do what is easiest for babies and their parents. Our focus has not been to teach hearing babies a second language but to provide them with the signs that they can use most easily to express their needs, thoughts, and feelings until they have words. Research has shown that signs are easiest for babies-and for parents-when they involve simple gestures and when they resemble the things they stand for (e.g. fingers to lips for eat, arms out straight like wings for airplane). The signs featured in our books and products, whether from American Sign Language or not, have been selected based on what has worked best for babies and their parents.

In revising the Baby Signs^® Dictionary, we asked parents to help us make a list of 100 things that their babies need and want to "talk" about. Using our knowledge of babies' motor development and the advice of our colleagues, we carefully evaluated the motor complexity of the ASL sign for each of these concepts. As a result, our Baby Signs^® Dictionary now includes many ASL signs that both express important concepts and are easy enough for babies to do. In many cases the Baby Signs^® Dictionary itself includes more than one sign suggestion so you can choose which works best for your baby. The Baby Signs^® Dictionary can be found in the revised edition of our book, “Baby Signs: How to talk with your baby before your baby can talk”.

We strongly support the importance of American Sign Language for the deaf community and certainly understand its value for hearing children who will be communicating with deaf relatives or friends. Other parents of hearing babies may choose to opt for signs primarily from American Sign Language should they wish to teach their children this vital and rich language. By clearly indicating in the revised Dictionary which Baby Signs are also ASL signs, we are providing these families, too, with an easy way to get started on the road to successful communication.

Most important of all, however, is that you do what works most easily and joyfully for your family. Using the Baby Signs^® Program is about communication, understanding, and intimacy between you and your baby. In the end, whatever signs you use, you are opening the world to your baby and opening your baby's world to you.

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