Hello! My name is Anna and I run Sing and Sign Baby Signing classes which I’m delighted to be bringing to YO8 in September 2023!My own baby signing journey started by accident. A chance mention by a new mum friend that she was wandering into town to attend something called ‘baby signing’ piqued my interest and I decided to join her. Truthfully, as I set off with my baby in her buggy, I was feeling rather sceptical; signing? With babies and language emerging toddlers to help with communication? It couldn’t work…could it?! I had no idea then that I would go on to have the most incredible baby signing journeys with my own children and that 14 years later I would be celebrating six years of running Sing and Sign in York and also expanding it further into YO8. Not only that but I am IN LOVE with baby signing now more than ever!
So what is baby signing? Baby signing is the use of gestures, or ‘signs’, modelled alongside spoken words, to help smooth communication with pre-verbal / language emerging little people. If you think about it, it make sense; we wave hello/good-bye and blow kisses to our little ones from the moment that they are able to give us a twinkle or a smile in response, and pointing by babies is a developmental milestone, something that almost all babies do eventually and is an indicator that speech is on its way. Modelling signs for things that your little one might be keen to talk about is a great motivator for them as it shows that you are interested in their ideas, wants and needs. And with Sing and Sign, baby signing is also really easy and fun to learn.
Starting simply with high frequency signs such as ‘milk’, ‘more’, ‘eat’, ‘drink’, and ‘finished’, Sing and Sign courses build parents’ vocabulary week by week through themed classes that have music and songs at their core, and you’ll be really surprised what your baby is able to ‘tell you’ once signing takes off. She spots a dog in the park? There’s an easy sign for that. He feels frightened? There’s a simple sign for that, too. Need a nappy change? There’s a sign for that and a great song to help you remember it as well! Even if you might be a bit more Kermit The Frog than Taylor Swift (your baby doesn’t care!), songs are a great way to engage your baby as they are super fun. They are also an efficient way to learn baby signing, serving as hooks on which to hang new signs as you start to learn and embed them into your daily routines. Developed with the help of Speech and Language professionals, Sing and Sign sessions are designed to be fun for both babies and carers (we have quite a number of Sing and Sign grandparents in classes, too!) with small classes and the consistency of a familiar structure helping everyone to feel orientated and looking forward to what comes next! Pictures, props, musical instruments and a very special cat called Jessie all make weekly appearances but with the twist of a different theme each week so that there is always something new to learn as well as enjoying songs and signs from previous weeks to help consolidate learning.
For those with little babies under 6m, we start with our five week course, Sing and Sign Babes. This gentle course introduces you to some developmentally appropriate signs whilst helping you build a fantastic framework for communication with your baby. We look at different themes each week such as the importance of eye contact and joint attention, and signs are embedded into our activities. We also enjoy some movement and play time, too. Complementary online resources means that you can refer to themes and activities whenever you wish and also serve as a great way to involve other family members too.
If your baby is 6 – 13m Stage 1, our flagship course, is where signing really begins in earnest as we chart a course over 10 weeks through your baby’s daily routines and ever expanding interests, also taking in signs for family members, feelings, going out, being ill and lots of animals and vehicles!
Both Stage 1 and Sing and Sign Babes courses will start in YO8 w/c September 25th, running Mondays at Osgodby Village 
Institute and on Tuesdays at Communitea Community Centre in the centre of Selby. Stage 1 courses run for ten weeks, five weeks either side of half-term and cost £72. Sing and Sign Babes will be running in the same venues and is a five week course costing £36. Paying in instalments before the start of the course is possible – please feel free get in touch to arrange this – annagibbeson@singandsign.co.uk
You can check times, availability of all courses and BOOK here.
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