Signing Time screener

Lindsey Blau, the Communications Manager for Two Little Hands Productions (they produce Signing Time!) contacted me through one of my blog postings inquiring if I would be interested in being a screener for the two new volumes of Baby Signing Time. Would I ever!!! I've had the DVD for nearly a month (I'm sorry!) and I'm ready to post my review and honest response to these two new episodes.

Rachel Coleman is one amazing and talented woman and mother. To read more about Rachel click here for Utah Baby Guide, an online magazine, who have spotlighted Rachel; and click here for Rachel's Signing Time Blog.

Baby Signing Time Volume 3: A New Day
Signs we learn: Day, New, Outside, Wind, Rain, Snow, Sun, Cloud, Sky, Tree, Grass, Flower, Stop, Go, Wait, Again, Bug, Up, Down, Star, Moon, Night.

Like Volumes 1 & 2 of Baby Signing Time, Rachel breaks up the signs into sections. There are 4 sections in this volume: A new day; Strollin'; I'm a bug; Starry night. Rachel, as always, is smiling and speaks with a smile in her voice. And the songs she creates and sings are wonderful, catchy, and help you and your child learn the signs!

Things I liked:
A New Day: Rachel shows the sign for the words and says things like: "let's sign it together," Or, "show me how you sign ..." It engages the child and encourages him/her to interact with Rachel. There are REAL pictures of what's being signed (rain, snow, sun, etc.) in addition to animation. Rachel also incorporates other signs that we've learned in previous Signing Time DVDs ("more," "play") reminding the child and showing how two signs "work" together. Rachel shows the new sign 3 to 4 times, and sometimes explains the sign to help the child (and adult) remember it. When she teaches "outside" she shows what you do when you go outside. I like how Rachel is sitting in the sun w/her sunglasses on to illustrate "sun," and then takes them off to illustrate "cloud."

Strollin' is a GREAT section! Rebecca & Mary-Gail start walking in place when they hear the music! The DVD shows children in their strollers strollin' around with their families/caregivers. When Rachel teaches "tree, grass, & flower" there are REAL pictures of each of them. Can you tell that I LOVE the REAL PICTURES? Rachel takes a moment to explain or help you understand why that is the sign for tree, grass, & flower. Strollin' is a very fun section and gets my girls moving. Now when we go for our walks, we say, "Let's go strollin'!"



Stop & Go: Rachel is wearing a police hat and has a whistle. She helps illustrate rules with these props and explains the signs (stop, go, wait, again) very well. Mary-Gail loves watching Hopkins (the animated frog) as he has to wait for the train to pass. She times it just right to sigh when Hopkins sighs! It's great to watch them learn from these DVDs. Mary-Gail also started saying, "again" (like when she goes down the slide and wants to do it more) instead of "more" which I attribute to this new DVD.

I'm a Bug: Rachel continues to engage the children in this section by adding a big, fuzzy antenna headband as she teaches the sign "bug." Some of the children are dressed in bug costumes (some are bees, some are lady bugs) and they make this section fun for song & dance. The song is catchy and you can't help but smile as Rachel and the children sing and sign "bug."

Starry Night: Rachel teaches star, moon, and night. When she teaches star, she asks the viewers, "Are you pointing to the star in the sky?" Rachel speaks to the children as if she's with them in person, which is great! When she teaches "moon" the picture shows 3 different phases of the moon. I really like this because Mary-Gail & Rebecca seem to identify moon only with a crescent shape. Could that be because "Goodnight Gorilla" is one of their favorite books and it shows the moon as a crescent? Rachel also encourages the children to combine words when she teaches "night." She offers the sign "good" and then signs "night" and puts them together to sign "good night." This section shows families going to bed - a great ending to the DVD.

The DVD ends with a familiar song called "Tiny Hands." Rachel has sung this on another Signing Time DVD and I love it! She shows her daughter, Leah (the inspiration for Signing Time), and nephew, Alex, when they were younger doing the signs (baby, ball, kitty), and then shows them at current age doing those signs. Rachel & Signing Time always show appreciation to the families who helped with and "star" in Signing Time. She always says thank you for making Signing Time possible.

Overview:
I absolutely love this volume! Throughout the DVD Rachel encourages the children to sign with her. When she teaches "snow" she says, "Let me see your snowflakes." It's great because children this age copy what you're doing and you've given them that opportunity. I would suggest adding more REAL pictures (perhaps in the bug section - you've used plastic bugs which are OK, but REAL bugs might be more interesting...?). In the Stop & Go section, you could use streetlights to help correlate stop & go (you've used this on another Signing Time DVD and I think it is very effective).

Rebecca & Mary-Gail have truly enjoyed this volume. They have learned most of these signs from the other Signing Time DVDs, but I think they prefer this Baby Signing Time DVD - they REALLY like seeing other "babies" doing sign. They always point to the screen and say, "baby" and get all silly, giddy, and happy. As I mentioned before, both Rebecca & Mary-Gail interact with this volume. And, they are adding signs to their signing vocabulary that we haven't learned yet (day, new, again, sky). Sign truly has been instrumental in my daughters' development; Rebecca & Mary-Gail have excelled with their speech because of signing and Signing Time - I thank you for that. One more thing - I have been and continue to be pleased and impressed that Signing Time has many different children doing the signs. These children are diverse in race, gender, & learning abilities. Hats off to Signing Time who shows that sign is for everyone regardless of ability.