Dr.
Linda Acredolo and Dr. Susan Goodwyn, the authors of the bestselling
book, BABY SIGNS: How to Talk with Your Baby Before Your
Baby Can Talk, have conducted over 20 years of research
studies, including a long-term study funded by the National
Institutes of Health. The findings from their research validate
the benefits of the Baby Signs® Program.
RESEARCH
HIGHLIGHTS
PARTICIPANTS
More than 140 families joined the study beginning when their
babies were 11 months old. Each family was randomly assigned
to a Baby Signing or non-Baby Signing group. The groups were
equivalent at the beginning of the study in terms of the following
characteristics: sex, birth order of the children, their tendency
to vocalize or verbalize words, and the parents' education
or income levels.
ASSESSMENTS
The children assessed using standardized language measures
at 11, 15, 19, 24, 30, and 36 months old. In addition, as
many children as could be relocated at age 8 were assessed
using the WISC-III IQ test, the most commonly used measure
of children's intelligence.
RESULTS
Baby Signers at 24 months were on average talking more like
27- or 28-month-olds, representing more than a three-month
advantage over the non-Baby Signers. In addition, the Baby
Signers were putting together significantly longer sentences.
At 36
months, Baby Signers on average were talking like 47-month-olds,
putting them almost a full year ahead of their average age-mates.
Eight-year-olds
who had been Baby Signers scored an average of 12 points higher
in IQ than their non-Baby Signing peers.
CONCLUSION
Using Baby Signs®
helps children develop both language and cognitive skills.
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