If you’re a first-time parent, get excited.
As every mum and dad already know, babies and toddlers can get cranky sometimes. Okay, often. And when baby gets cranky, you can say goodbye to a good night’s sleep. If only there was a way to know if crying means they’re sleepy or hungry or need a nappy change.
Oh, but there is! It’s no newfangled device or fancy app that translates baby talk for clueless parents. Quite the opposite, in fact. All you need is some patience to learn a whole new language.
We’re talking about Auslan, the sign language of the Australian Deaf community. Learning Auslan signs offers both the child and the parents two ways to communicate: auditory and visual.
According to The Auslan Company, learning Auslan spurs the development of both the logical and creative sides of the brain. Children experience less frustration in expressing themselves and even help them acquire verbal skills faster.
The Auslan Company has created a USB resource to teach parents, grandparents, and everyone else at home to better communicate with children under two years old, until the young one is able to do so verbally. It presents 100 everyday Auslan signs for you to learn and teach your baby, including common signs, baby signs, food and drink, family, and signs for the first things we usually teach kids, like the alphabet, numbers, colours, and animals.
What a fantastic way to bond with your baby or toddler - and for most parents, a real life-saver!