Stephanie Karp, Certified Sign2Me Instructor, Proud Mom

Long before I was a mom, I remember watching a Dateline program about the benefits of using American Sign Language with babies. Watching the pre-verbal babies communicate with their parents in ways I would never have imagined possible, I became certain that one day I, too, would sign with my babies. When my first daughter, Emma, was born, I read SIGN with your BABY™ by Dr. Joseph Garcia -- I was hooked right away on research that showed how my baby would soon be able to communicate with me. Eager for more, I scoured the movie aisles for innovative signing videos for babies and wound up watching them on my own, even when the baby was napping (Signing Time videos were and still are a huge favorite!) Hoping to find like-minded moms, I participated in local (and not so local) Mommy & Me signing classes. Despite the fact that both my husband and mother were actually quite skeptical about the idea of signing with babies, my heart was in it completely. I didn't want to have to wait until my daughter was a talking toddler to get to know her completely. I wanted to know all the wonderful thoughts in her head right away! I didn't want to have to wait to communicate.

I began actively using signs with Emma when she was five months old. I was never fluent in American Sign Language; in fact, we learned signs together at the same pace. We started off slowly, just three simple signs. Very shortly after, she began to respond to my signs with leg kicks and excited movements. She knew what my signs meant! Soon, she would begin initiate signing with me. Emma signed her first word "milk" at eight months old. My husband insisted she was just waving to me in a funny sideways motion, but as a signing mom, I knew that her tiny wrist movements and awkward clenching fist was her first sign! Within days, it became even clearer. I didn't know it then – but I would soon be wowing and amazing the skeptics in my life and would become a conversation piece whenever we were out in public signing. New moms were intrigued and inspired. Grandparents and teachers stopped me too. This was in 2002 – a little before signing became more mainstream. In my own neck of the woods, I was an innovator ;-) I was excited to learn more -- we were well on our way to being a signing family. "Eat", "more" and "book" were Emma's next signs. From there, her vocabulary began to increase almost daily.

At ten months old, my daughter was in the backseat of the car with her Grandma. "She's so cute – she's doing something very silly with her hands!" my mother told me. I looked in the rearview mirror and smiled – "No, mom, she's just asking you for more cheerios." My mother looked shocked. She quickly offered more cereal and became a convert in that instant. My ten month old was communicating in two word sentences. At about this age, my husband saw how calm Emma's disposition always was compared to other babies in restaurants or other quiet places. Why should my baby have to cry to get what she needed? She simply signed her needs. I knew exactly when she wanted to play or was all finished, when she was thirsty as opposed to hungry, when she wanted a blueberry or a banana or cracker or cheese or bread -- she was very specific.

One morning, at 11 months old, Emma was crying uncontrollably. After repeated attempts to figure out the cause of her distress, I watched in awe as Emma signed "pain" and then touched her ear. She had never signed "pain" before yet I had been modeling the concept and sign for her for months. She was able to let me know her ears hurt and seemed almost as astonished as I was! She communicated to me and I listened. Within minutes we arrived at the pediatrician where we discovered that she had a double ear infection. I was blown away that my baby was able to tell me where it hurt her! By the time she was 18 months old, Emma had a signing vocabulary of over 50 words. As well, having been exposed to the symbols of language from an early age, Emma began reading sight words when she was 3½ and has been an active reader since she was 4½. Emma is a big sister to Eden and continues to sign with our family.

Eden, at two years old, had an ASL vocabulary that exceeded 100 words. Long before most toddlers spoke two and three word sentences, Eden was signing them fluently. Eden was born with hypotonia (low muscle tone) which affected her mouth and throat and resulted in poor articulation. In fact, her fine motor skills were delayed as well so that it took a few months longer than usual for her to begin signing. But once she was able to, her signing vocabulary grew exponentially. As a result of signing with Eden since she was an infant, her ability to sign and communicate with us completely eliminated any frustration that would have resulted from her inability to verbalize clearly with us. Her signing and verbal abilities continue to grow and augment each other. Today, at age 3, Eden is extremely verbal with expressions and vocabulary that are well beyond her years. She still sometimes uses sign language, her first language, as a fun and meaningful way to communicate with us.

Due to the amazing and rewarding experiences that resulted from signing with my children, I continued my ASL education at Brooklyn College and ultimately received certification as a Sign2Me instructor. I continue to hone my ASL skills with private lessons with my Brooklyn College instructor who is part of the deaf community. Additionally, I have a Bachelors Degree in Psychology and a background in Public Relations. I have acted as a consumer spokesperson on local new programs nationwide. I have also been published in Parents Magazine and Parents Expecting.

Signing with my children has been one of the most rewarding and exciting experiences of my parenting life. It is my goal and my joy to help other parents and caregivers to sign and discover the amazing world of communication that awaits them.