Baby Sign Language - Australian Baby Hands July 07 Newsletter

Monthly Article Section:
Many parents think that as their child grows from being a baby to a toddler that it is too late to introduce "baby sign language". There are still many benefits to using simple signing with your toddler which we look at this month in Using Sign Language With Toddlers

Check out all the article listings from previous months.
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Your Stories:
A double picture feature this month for Kenzie who is one of our earliest signing babies at just 6 months old! Thanks very much Sarah for sending these to me.

“Hi Jackie,

I have a 6 and a half-month-old, Kenzie, who is signing. We caught him on camera at 51/2 months signing ‘hello’ as I was saying hello to make him smile for the camera. He didn’t do it again for a couple of weeks until the day before he was 6 months old, we were driving in the car and I looked around at him and I said hello and he signed ‘hello’ back to me with a big grin! He’s being doing it more since then.

The sign I’ve been most intentional about teaching him is ‘milk’ which I sign when I’m breast-feeding him. I wasn’t sure I’d done it often enough, but a few days after he was 6 months old, a few days into introducing solids, I saw him signing ‘milk’. He now thinks ‘milk’ is anything he eats so now we’re showing him the sign for ‘food’ when he eats in his highchair.

I used to teach Auslan and have a number of Deaf friends, so I’m so excited to be seeing Kenzie signing.

”Sarah Nicholson
Wyndham Vale, Vic

Kenzie Signs Hello

Kenzie signs "Hello"

Kenzie Signs Milk

Kenzie signs "Milk"

To read more stories and see pictures of babies signing visit our testimonials page: There now over 8,000 parents around Australia using Australian Baby Hands.

Do you have a story and a picture that you would like to share? Send them to me jackiedurnin@australianbabyhands.com I would love to hear from you!
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Website Updates:
Australian Baby Hands has had a bit of a make over in the last few weeks to make it look a little bit fresher and give you the information you need on baby sign language.

Have a look at www.australianbabyhands.com and you will see plenty of new information on the home page as well as new articles and information about the benefits of baby sign and information on baby sign research. ___________________________________________________

Baby Sign Language Classes:
A big THANK YOU to everyone who replied to the short survey I sent out a couple of weeks ago to get your feedback on setting up baby sign classes.
There were quite a few questions that people asked in the survey as well and I'm really sorry but due to the number of responses I was not able to reply to everyone.

So, below I have outlined the most common questions that were asked and answered those for you.

If you did not fill in a survey and would like to give your feedback on what you would like to see in Australian Baby Hands baby sign classes please use the link below to fill in our short survey, thank you.

Baby Sign Language Classes Survey Form

Q1. - Will you be holding classes in (insert your town or area)?
A1. - Initial classes will be launching in Sydney and rolled out in other States and areas as soon as possible.

Q2. - Can I bring my baby along?
A2. - Of course. These classes will be designed as an interactive learning experience for you and your child.

Q3. - Can I bring my husband/partner along?
A3. - Of course:-) The more family members involved with baby sign the better.

Q4. - Can the classes be at the weekend for working parents?
A4. - We expect to have a range of times which will be suited to the demand from parents as and when they can attend.

Here's that link again for the form if you would like to give your feedback:
Baby Sign Language Classes Survey Form
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Huggies Parents Exchange:
Come along and visit the Huggies Parents exchange forum on Baby Sign Language at the Huggies website where I am on their panel to answer any questions you may have relating to baby sign language.

Visit the Huggies forum to send me a question or to simply share your baby sign language stories with other parents.
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Anniversary Special Offer:

As a special offer for the One Year Anniversary of Australian Baby Hands newsletter you can get 10% off any Australian Baby Hands product in our online store.

Simply type "1year" into the shopping cart discount coupon section and 10% will instantly be deducted from your shopping. This offer is valid until the 31st of July.