mmynedshlp

Hello,
I just wanted to say my first son i did everything with. had himlisten to music while in the womb and used sign while talking with him. He could read before the age of the three and because i talked while I signed he spoke way before other kids. he couldnt figure out potty training though until he had a little brother who learned it before he did. You see he had to be using both sides of his brain for him to catch on to it and as long as he was he learned it real fast. he could not learn anything by just speach alone.
I didnt all the things with my 2nd son he learned from his bigger brother. There was never any sign language involved. He did have a speach problem and many of his words were unclear but later began to speak better than his brother.
my youngest, my daughter, I am just starting to teach sign language with her. Boy am I wishing I had I started earlier than 3. She still can not talk but one word requests. Let me tell you what i noticed. When i use sign language with her and say the word too. She does not sign the word but guess what?
She remembers it and not only that uses it. When we first started signing with her she asked her first question it was a three word sentance. She only starts talking better with us when we are signing because we slacked off for awhile thinking wow this is great she is doing better and as we slacked so did she. I dont know if its a brain thing or an interaction thing or what. Maybe its just more exciting when we use our hands for her to learn the words or maybe its stimulating the part her brain but it works and i wouldnt knock it.
We also do not reward our child for NOT trying to say something. She has to attempt to say her word and when she accomplishes it for awhile we move onto two words. she is rewarded for trying for now even if it doesnt come out clear we work on it till it is clear. We are now at "some juice please"
All my children's hearing tests have come out fine.
I am a true believer in starting sign as early as possible and only seen signs of it being bad when it was going to be bad or worse without it.