Rating: 
Summary: Great gift idea
Review: I purchased this set after seeing my 2 year old cousin signing things to her parents (both of whom are not deaf but well versed in ASL). It seemed like such a great idea. The video is easy to understand and not boring, and the book is entertaining and easy to read. Joseph Garcia has a great idea and I would love to become more fluent in ASL, however this book has given me a great start. My twin girls are now 7 months old and we are starting to introduce signs over and over in our every day activities. I really think in the next few months they will not only be able to understand me but also communicate with each other. I think it is such a great book I have purchased the set for all of my expectant friends. Even if you hate to read this book is short and to the point, you have to get it and read it or just watch the video!!! I can see where signing can take away a lot of toddler/parent frustrations and make for a better, happier, and smarter toddler.
Rating:
Summary: Great set!
Review: I think this set is wonderful! It is so clear on where and how to get started. Great and easy to use, I have already lent it out to several of my friends. My daughter is now 15 months old and uses 10+ signs. No more whining and crying - she will come up to me and tell me that she wants a drink or something to eat. I really can't say how wonderful that is. I plan on using this with every child I have and I tell everyone about it.
Rating:
Summary: Absolutely Wonderful!
Review: My mother works with special children and encouraged me to teach my daughter sign language. We started introducing signs to her at 8 months and she gave us her first sign at 10 months. The sign was milk. It was so exciting! We have followed the kit step-by-step. It has been really helpful when she is upset and can tell us what she needs. We plan on teaching our next child. The daycare she attends has been really supportive. They use the reference card and is also showing the other toddlers signs. She is now 16 months and can sign 25 signs. It has been a great tool!
Rating:
Summary: Useful in more ways than one.....
Review: I recieved this kit as a present when my son was two months old, and started using a core set of signs pretty soon afterwards. The video is very useful for picking up a few quick signs to memorize. Gabriel showed that he recognized the signs starting around 4 months - before he recognized most of the associated words. For example, if you showed him "milk" when he was hungry, he would get all excited! It was very cute. Signing "more" would calm him a bit when he was clamoring for more food, etc.
He is now 9 months old, and has just started using some of the signs himself, most notably "up", "more", and "hop" (it's how he asks to get into the baby jumper).
I would say this was very useful and fun, and did not cost much effort on our part. I think that two underplayed benefits of baby signing are: 1) the baby understanding you a long time before s/he can talk back and 2) the ability you for you and your spouse to communicate silently about the baby (i.e. asking your spouse to "change" the kid, without having to shout it across the room).
I am looking forward to much more "chatting" with my baby as he gets better hand control and learns more signs....
Rating:
Summary: Want to know what your baby needs?
Review: Do you become frustrated when your baby cries and you have no idea why? Try using American Sign Language with your hearing baby to help! I started using American Sign Lanugage in my work with children and adults with disabilities in 1989, and have found it to be one of the best tools for helping those who are non-verbal communicate their needs effectively. I currently use the Sign with your Baby program professionally in my work with babies and parents as well as personally with my 7-month old baby. Joseph Garcia has compiled a very user-friendly program that will meet the needs of many new parents.
Rating:
Summary: An Absolute MUST!
Review: I am the mother of twin boys. We used Joseph Garcia's Sign with Your Baby Kit and are absolutely thrilled with the results! The boys still "talk" to each other in their own little twin language, but they will also sign to us and their Nanny their wants/desires! We also used the Sign With Me video (geared toward the babies) and were absolutely amazed with the way it captured their attention and worked well with this kit! They are able to "tell" me if they have an earache, a toothache, or want a drink or are hungry, through signs! Our pediatrician was so amazed that she is going to teach her newborn! We love this program!
Rating:
Summary: An investment in your child's future
Review: The concept of using American Sign Language with preverbal children is so amazing. Offering them a manual LANGUAGE to communicate with, not only provides them with a basis for a second (or third) language, but gives them the ability to communicate with others that know American Sign Language, too. My son is 16 months old and has so many signs I have lost count. He also has more spoken words than many babies his age, which I attribute to his knowledge of ASL. He learns new words ans signs everyday! He is so much less frustrated than many of his peers. He tells me stories about his day in a combination of words and signs. I have a window into his mind that I wouldn't have if he didn't know ASL. This is so incredible, I can't imagine life without this type of back and forth communication with him. I am a teacher of deaf and hard of hearing babies and their families. I have seen first hand how empowering ASL is not only for hearing impaired children, but for their hearing siblings as well. I had always planned on signing with my own children and was so excited when the SIGN with your BABY program came out, because it gives parents with no prior knowledge of sign language an easily accesible way to learn and incorporate signing into their everyday activities. I recommend it to ALL parents. I believe so strongly in giving babies a way to communicate all that they know as early as possible that I started teaching ASL to other moms in our Mommy and Me groups and have become a Presenter for the SWYB program. This kit gives parents (and caregivers) the tools they need to give their baby a way to tell them all the amazing things they are thinking. It is so easy to learn a few signs a week and add more as you get comfortable. The video has precious examples of babies signing, testimony from signing parents, and clear examples of the various signs. If you are interested in signing with your baby, give them the gift of language - use ASL. It is an investment in their childhood and their future well worth making.
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Summary: SIGNING with my BABY!
Review: This book has been a life saver. My daughter of 8 months came crawling up to me babbleing and seemed a bit upset, after asking her what was wrong she lifted her hand and signed "MILK". It was not her feeding time...but she was hungry. Without this tool I am not sure how this situation would have progressed. Joseph Garcia's SIGN with your BABY is very easy and light to read. The video gets you very excited about communicating with your own baby, and the results are amazing! KUDOS to this program!
Rating:
Summary: TA-DAH!
Review: I have to share our excitement about our experience with the Sign With Your Baby program. We decided to try it for fun and what fun it has been! Our daughter began signing at 9 mos. (Her first sign was "more" as she tasted her first jello!) She was communicating in 2-3 word signs (more eat, yes milk, yes bath, help down) by the time she was 11 mos. old and we were having a blast. My husband was worried about learning all the signs and doing them "correctly", but we decided to just do our best and keep the goal on communicating with our daughter, not just to our daughter. Once she figured out that we understood what she was signing she was off to the races! At 11 mos. old, we would introduce a sign and within 24 hours she was excitedly reproducing the sign for us. It never seemed challenging or like work for us. It was always fun.
This program provided us with everything we needed. The video was a good overview and introduction and allowed us to see what it was all about. The book was a reference we referred to whenever we wanted to teach her a new sign, although we did use some signs which she made up on her own. The reference card was a lifesaver at Nana and Papa's house or whenever we had a babysitter. We kept it in her diaperbag to let others know what she was trying to say. They were all amazed at how young she was and how she was letting them know exactly what she needed.
My husband and I would try to pick a different sign each week to focus on. One week when our daughter was 12 mos. old, my husband set out a bird feeder, so he showed our daughter the sign for bird. Within 24 hours she was signing bird. Another day a squirrel ran through our backyard and our daughter was excitedly trying to tell us something, we looked out and saw the squirrel. All we had to do was look in the book and show her the squirrel sign. She signed squirrel to us for a week telling us that she wanted to talk about the squirrel that ran through our yard. Between the ages of 11 - 18 months she learned and used over 65 signs. She even made up some signs of her own for thngs like her "silkies" blanket and Big Bird. (She make the bird sign with her arm raised up above her head). Before visiting a zoo on a family vacation, we picked three new animal signs to show her and then watched her eyes light up as she was able to sign to us when she saw those animals. It was absolutely amazing the communication that was occurring. Her verbal language has developed more rapidly than her peers, and we can only attribute it to the fact that she has been successfully communicating with us since she was 9 mos. old. We no longer need to use signs, but have added signing song books to our collections so we can keep signing together. She is now 2 1/2 and loves to sign her ABCs and Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. She even uses her signs to communicate with her 14 month old cousin (who also uses signs.) We always recommend this kit to friends with babies and even toddlers. Our pediatrician is in strong support of signing and is amazed at how our daughter's verbal skills are advanced due to the signing. We give this kit as a gift to all our friends as baby gifts when they become parents.
Sign on!
Rating:
Summary: An incredible learning tool
Review: I have used this system with both my daughters and have had incredible results both times. I think the pack is well explained, well presented and I found it very easy to use. I took things slowly as is suggested in the pack and within no time was having 'conversations' with my baby. The price does initially seem expensive but if I'd have known what this programme would've given us beforehand, I would have paid 10 times as much! Baby signing does take time and patience, but it also gives you great one to one time with your child and builds their self esteem tremendously. I hope more people try this product.
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