A guest article submitted to BabySignsDVD.com
Once you’ve brought your little bundle of joy home from the hospital and settled into life as Mommy and Daddy, it doesn’t take long before you get the itch to teach your baby everything they’ll need to know to survive and thrive in this great big wonderful world of ours. You probably want to jump right into the good stuff, like reading, writing and arithmetic. Before you get too carried away, don’t forget that there’s a good bit of early learning that must take place before the other skills are even possible. Your child’s early learning experiences will provide the foundation for all learning to come in their future. Why not dedicate yourself to becoming the best teacher you can be to your child?
When I think of early learning I think of things like learning the alphabet, learning to count, learning about colors, shapes and sounds. This is the fun stuff that you share with your child through quality time spent together reading children’s books, playing with flash cards and memory games, working on puzzles, listening to music, etc. The opportunities for early learning are endless. Babies and toddlers learn a lot from their surroundings, so it’s important to provide them with a stimulating and encouraging environment. Bright colors, high contrast, large shapes, and subtle motion are some of the most popular features of baby and toddler décor. From hanging mobiles, colorful crib bumpers and large ABC and 123 wall decals to the toy box full of books and games, your baby’s room is the center of their learning universe.
Here’s a little something that you might be surprised to learn. Babies and toddlers can learn simple sign language. Yes, you read that right. Babies can learn to communicate through sign language before they can speak with words! A growing number of families are teaching their young children sign language at an early age using early learning sign language instructional DVDs. This is not only for hearing impaired children, but for any child. You might be asking what the point is of teaching your baby or toddler sign language. Would you also ask what the point is of teaching your child to communicate? Probably not, and that’s the biggest reason to teach sign language. A young child who can express themselves and be understood is a child who can communicate. Isn’t that wild? And if you stick with the sign language training for a little while, your child will grow up with a rare and powerful skill that will pay dividends throughout their life.
Early learning lays the foundation for all advanced learning. Prepare your child for the world by teaching them the basic building blocks for learning success. From the ABCs and 123s to baby sign language, it’s just another brick in the wall.
