In prior posts we have suggested that you print our handy wallchart and place it in strategic places around the home where is visible to those involved with the care and education of baby. But reality presents far more complexities and most of us will have baby with us as we take care of daily matters or travel to visit friends and relatives. Ideally, by the time we hit the road baby should have mastered a few signs that will help him communicate his needs while away from home. For example, baby can let you know he is hungry even when unable to point to the area of the kitchen where you normally keep the baby bottles and/or sippy cups.
If baby has not yet mastered basic signs or you want to take the opportunity afforded by new experiences to learn new signs and new objects let us make a few suggestions to facilitate learning baby sign language on the road:
Make a Portable Baby Sign Language Deck
Take time to print and laminate a mini deck of baby sign flashcards that covers the signs you are likely to encounter during your outing. This is particularly useful if you trip will expose baby to new concepts like the beach,animals at the zoo or perhaps a birthday party where cake will be served!!. Imagine how adorable it would be to pull the flashcard for monkey, penguin and giraffe as you visit each individual display.
Consider Taking a Baby Sign Language Dictionary With You
If you are going overseas and planning to be off-the-grid taking a copy of our handy baby sign language dictionary gives you access to a full array of words without having to be dependent on the internet or limited to the few cards you can print for a customized deck. The baby sign language dictionary is specially useful for multi-week or multi-country trips.
Access Our Video Dictionary Online From Your Smart Phone
Our online video dictionary has super easy mobile navigation. Head to our website, click on the menu on the upper right corner, select dictionary and go directly to the range of letters for the word you need. The website will serve you an alphabetical menu that links you directly to a short video showing you how to complete the baby sign.
Carry Some Props With You
Yesterday we featured a designer diaper bag in our May Baby Sign Language Giveaway Extravaganza. I came across this brand looking for a fun bag that had a ton of inside pockets to stay extra organized. Their bag has 8 inside pockets making one or two great homes for toys and props. For us, this usually means sets of objects we have incorporated into the learning curriculum of our children, we have carried small plastic animals, vegetable foam cutouts (these work great while dining out!) and paper dolls with clothing items to help baby become familiar with signs such as shirt, shoes, socks, pants
With a little imagination and some planning your bag can be ready to help baby communicate and discover new signs and words!
