Signs of Activity
Most babies love to move and groove, especially as they become more mobile. Not only do the signs in this section represent these moves, but they also mimic them. Your child will likely enjoy forming these signs and may do so often. Some babies may not bother with the signs at all and will simply demonstrate the action itself. See Chapter 16 for other signs of activity, such as WALK and RUN.
DANCEMany toddlers have great fun dancing to their favorite music. With this sign, as shown in Figure 9–7, they can let you know when they want to groove.
FIGURE 9–7
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1. Extend your index and middle fingers downward, like legs.
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2. Have the fingers dance across the palm of your opposite hand.
Look for opportunities to demonstrate this sign, other than when your baby is dancing. Show your baby the sign whenever she sees dancing—in person, on television, or in books.
JUMPThe signs for JUMP (
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1. As with DANCE, your index and middle fingers are acting as legs in this sign.
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2. Simply have your fingers spring up off of the palm of your opposite hand.
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Want to make this sign a bit more fun? Make a game out of it. After a heavy rain, take your little one outside and look for puddles on the sidewalk. Point out the puddle and then demonstrate the sign for JUMP. Then help your child to jump over the puddle.
Because of this sign’s similarity to DANCE, you may want to have one well established before introducing the other. As your child gets older and more skilled at signing, she will be better able to distinguish between two signs that are very much alike.
PAINTPAINT (
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1. Using one hand to represent a canvas, hold it upright with your palm open.
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2. Use your other hand like a paintbrush and make up and down strokes on your “canvas.”
A fun way to reinforce this sign is by actually putting a paintbrush in your child’s hand and allowing her to paint her other palm with it. To avoid a big mess, have her paint her hand with water.
