Research-Backed Benefits of the Baby Signs® Program

• Faster Verbal Development. Babies who had been in the Baby Signs® Program developed both receptive and productive verbal skills faster than those who had not. (Journal of Nonverbal Behavior, 2000)
• Higher IQs: Retested at age 8, the children in our NIH-funded study who been in the Baby Signs® Program as babies scored significantly higher (by 12 points) on IQ tests than children who had not. (International Conference on Infant Studies, Paris, 2000)
• Emotional Benefits. A content analysis of parent interviews indicated that signing was associated with lower frustration, greater respect for babies’ abilities, enriched parent-child relationships, increased interest in books, and enhanced infant self-esteem (Acredolo & Goodwyn, 1996).

EHS families who were encouraged to sign with their children were compared to EHS families who were not in an intervention study in the Yolo County (California) Early Head Start Program conducted by Dr. Vallotton. Results indicated that mothers in the signing families perceived their children as more “reinforcing” and “acceptable,” two important components of a Parenting Stress Index. Why these changes in attitude toward their children? Other results provide clues: Using signs changed the mother child interactions specifically by (a) helping mothers become more “tuned in” to their children’s emotions, (b) increasing the children’s attempts to communicate with their mothers, and (c) decreasing the number of expressions of distress from the children. These results suggest that the addition of signing to EHS curricula for parents is an easy and effective way to improve family interactions in “at-risk” families. (Paper presented at WAIMH Congress, 2006)

The Baby Signs® Program has been an integral part of the curriculum at the UCD Center for Child & Family Studies since 1990. Using this setting, Dr. Claire Vallotton conducted a study of 10 infants videotaped in interactions with teachers over an 8-month period and a study of 12 toddlers videotaped in interactions with teachers over a 3-month period. The videotapes were coded to provide data relevant to a variety of specific questions. The following were among the results:

• Generally Observed Benefits: Signing in the classroom reduces aggression, builds trust between babies and teachers, provides a “universal language” that facilitates interactions in multi-lingual classrooms, makes teachers more observant and responsive, increases “active” learning, helps daily routines proceed more smoothly. (Paper presented at the Zero to Three 18th National Training Institute, 2003)
• Teacher Responsiveness: Using multiple-regression analyses to account for teachers’ experience, children’s age, individual child effects, and frequency of children’s gestures, the data revealed that the children’s use of signs in response to teachers’ signs predicted more responsiveness from caregivers. (Paper presented at WAIMH Congress, 2006)
• Internal States: Infants and toddlers used signs to express both emotions (e.g., happy, sad, afraid, mad) and feelings (e.g., sleepy, cold, hurt)—both to label their own states and to comment on the states of other children. Such early evidence of empathy is exciting. (In press, Infant Mental Health Journal).
• Conversations: Two-sign combinations were observed as early as 9 months, 3-sign combinations at 12 months. Also, the children routinely used signs to engage in multi- utterance conversations with teachers, with the longest exchange including 16 turns (back and forth) in a conversation about a mom’s departure and eventual return. Paper presented at the International Society for Gesture Studies, June 2007.)