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- Your children need to face you to so that they can see your signs. They can be seated on the floor, sitting or standing. Just be sure that each child can see your arms and face.
- Use your voice to tell your children you are going to sign. Ask them to look at you so that they don't miss anything.
- Eye contact is crucial in signed communication. Believe it or not, it’s something that has to be learned. At the beginning, sign at your child's eye level.
- As the aim is to develop spoken language, speak and sign at the same time.
- Encourage your children to join in signing in different situations such as songs, stories and games. If they are joining in, then they are learning.
- When your children are confident, you may occasionally like to use signs without your voice.
- Make the sign for "switching" off your voice. Repeat until your children have physically switched off their voices.
- Sign instructions with the expectation that your child will respond. "Come here please."
- Learn behaviour signs from the DVD's and use at different times throughout the day; when your child is going to bed, eating breakfast, playing...
- Vary the level of your voice in different situations. Raise it. Lower it. Whisper. Switch your voice off. Your child will follow your example.
- Above all, enjoy your children because signing communication is fun!