Happy Birthday!: A Beginners Book of Signs (Beginner's Book of Signs)

Rating:
Summary: This book is INDEED ASL!!
Review: ... I am certified in ASL and can state with certainty that the signs are real ASL signs. The line drawings are not the best, I agree, but it is a nice way to read and sign with your child, even children under the age of 2. While some ADULTS may think some of the signs seem difficult for young children to produce (e.g., card or gift), trust me when I say even one year olds are able to learn and produce any sign. They may make approximations of the signs, just as they do when they try and say challenging words, such as "alligator," but there is no scientific reason to think a sign is too "difficult" to produce. Giving children, even babies, the means to communicate thoughts, ideas, or wants is such a gift, why hold them back because WE think we know what they can and cannot do. The reality is, when it comes to language learning, children have the upper hand on us adults. That said, I do feel the book is small, but the drawings are actually larger than some of the ones in Slier's books, which also have signs. Both author's books require that you do a little "deciphering" of the pictures, but these are still some of the only books that have the sign pictures right in there. Happy reading!

Rating:
Summary: Happy Birthday! A Beginner's Book of Signs
Review: I got this sign language board book to use with infants, but after seeing it I believe the book is more suited to children about three years old. The photos are cute, but the signing instructions are a little difficult to figure out if you're just learning American Sign Language. Words like "balloon," "clown," and "ice cream" are relatively easy for a young child to do, but "cards" and "gifts" seem harder. All in all, I recommend it because it really does capture the colorful fun of a birthday party (with numbers 1-5 included to count candles), it's just not particularly suited to a young infant.

Rating:
Summary: This book isn't what you think!
Review: This is a lovely book with beautiful baby pictures and drawing of signs, BUT the book is written by a British author and the signs are from British Sign Language, not American Sign Language! I couldn't figure out why all of the signs were "wrong" until I discovered the origin of the book.

Contrary to the popular myth, sign languages are not universal. If you are looking to learn/use the sign language used in the United States, unfortunately, this book and the others written by the same author aren't what you are looking for.

As a good alternative, my favorite American Sign Langauge board books are written by Debby Slier (Word Signs: A First Book fo Sign Language and Animal Signs: A First Book of Sign Language.