Mini Signs: Less frustration, more understanding thanks to signing for children

Many parents are familiar with these everyday situations when a child suddenly starts whining and a quickly stressful guessing game begins. Is it hungry? Does it want to be carried? Is the nappy perhaps full? If these questions remain unanswered for too long, the reaction is crying. On average, toddlers only begin to say their first intelligible words between the ages of one and a half and two years. But even in the months before that, babies already have needs that are often not understood without spoken language. Non-verbal communication is the key term here, as facial expressions, gestures and posture can also convey information.

The concept of "baby signs", i.e. sign language for children, has been around since the 1980s, but was initially mainly used for children with speech development disorders or cognitive impairments. Since the Einfach Eltern Akademie from Germany started offering its "MiniSigns" course, however, the topic of signing has also become popular with other parents (for precision: MiniSigns is the registered trademark of Einfach Eltern, while Mini Signs stands for signing for children in general). One of them is Julie Oswald, who first stumbled across the concept three years ago via Google: "My first daughter often got frustrated and grumpy in eating situations, but I never really understood what she wanted, so crises kept happening. When I searched the internet for other means of communication, I came across the topic of signing and was immediately fascinated."

Benefits for child and parents

The trained educator tested sign language with her child at home and quickly noticed a rapid change for the better, so she enrolled in the training programme in Germany. "The concept is based on official German sign language, such as that used by deaf people, except that MiniSigns is really designed for children and is organised into eight themed lessons, " explains Julie. She integrated the hand gestures into communication in a playful way with friends and their children and accompanied her words with signs right from the start with her second child. From May, the mum of two now wants to offer courses herself in her "Eisleker Haus".

"From the age of six months, children use their gestures consciously. In the activities, we don't learn vocabulary, but rather how to incorporate gestures into everyday situations without any pressure. This not only helps with communication, as children can express themselves and communicate better, but also strengthens the bond with parents, as eye contact is much more intense than with pure spoken language." Signing creates a moment of togetherness, something that you only share with your child. It's not just parents who can benefit from hand gestures, but anyone who spends time with children, says Julie: "Multilingualism is often a challenge, especially in Luxembourg. But in our case, gestures are always the same, no matter which language you speak, so you clearly break down a barrier."