BABIES are the most innocent, adorable and beautiful creations in the world and as fascinating it is to watch them go ga-ga over everything ... it can get mightily difficult to calm them down when you have no clue what they really want.
One mother in Budaiya believes she had found the way to bridge the communication gap and help put an end to the wailing woes when baby goes ballistic with 'Baby Singing Signing' classes.
Shelly Harrigan, 38, is running special half-hour sessions at the Future Shape Dance Studio in the Garden City compound.
The former Gulf Air stewardess from England explained: "Babies are a lot smarter than we give them any credit for. Signing with your baby is a bridge to speech."
The signing programme is increasingly popular in the US, the UK and, now, also in the Middle East.
After intensive research on the subject as well as gaining a qualification in British Sign Language (BSL), Shelly incorporated these techniques with Sign Supported English (SSE) and Makaton, a structured language programme using signs and symbols, to bring the Singing Signs classes to Bahrain.
Shelly also included the American Sign Language and other techniques bringing together up to 150 signs for babies to master.
She said: "You can't expect them to sign back to you immediately. If they do, it's fantastic. My daughter Ellie started responding to me after 10 months.
"Babies need to get used to the signs so just a couple of signs each day works fine. The basic idea is to get the child to communicate to you what they want. They are then able to understand you and respond."
Shelly uses rhymes and songs to help attract children's attention and help them better understand and remember the signs.
Allison Dunkley, 39, from Saar, feels her seven-month old baby, Caityln, really enjoys the signing sessions. "She cannot really sign much but she is picking it up slowly. She responds to basic signs such as 'come to mummy'.
"This is a very effective way to communicate with your baby. I hope it will lessen the screaming, yelling and crying. I feel it's going to be very useful.
"Singing signs is a fun way to learn signs. Putting signs to your own music helps the parent to remember each one - the emphasis should be on fun."
Amandeep Manku, 29, a Barbar mother of nine-month-old Avnesh, says her son already knows all the nursery rhymes as she sings them to him everyday.
"He's amazed by the whole thing. I would recommend any mother to join these classes as I feel they are really helpful when it comes to understanding what your baby really wants."
Shelly also believes toddlers in nursery and pre-schools can also benefit from signing sessions as it transcends language. She added: "It has also been shown to reduce tantrums and anti-social behaviour."
Whilst BSL is a recognised formal language, baby signing can be adapted to fit dual language households and bi-lingual schools. More than leading to confusion this helps them build an interest in learning multi-languages at an early age.
"After a session of English sign languages at the class, the mother or housemaid can use the same symbol in their mother tongue and hence the baby gets a hang of both the languages. Parents can take turns and speak two languages."
Shelly also believes signing doesn't "hinder but accelerates verbal communication of a baby". She added: "While growing, children start realising or understanding words and its usage and then don't find it necessary to use sign languages anymore. "
Medical experts support the initiative too. "I think it is healthy - it can help develop a stronger bond between mother and child. I don't see any problems as signing should develop with speech at the earliest stage possible," said Dr Martin Avancena, general pediatrician. "Once they start understanding the object and learn to say it, they wouldn't need to use the sign anymore."
"If the sign classes are conducted by experienced individuals it can be very beneficial to babies and it does not hamper their growth or speech process in any manner," said Dr Mohammed Harraz, paediatrician and neonatologist at the International Hospital of Bahrain.
Dr Judy Pipo-Deveza, paediatric neurologist at the American Mission Hospital, agrees. She said: "If done the proper way the classes could be an advantage both to the parents and the baby. It also depends on whether the parent feels that it has brought home benefits."
After Christmas the mothers may be called back for an investigative session to see how well their children have responded to the month-long four-day course. Shelly is also keen to help working mothers get an insight into the programme by offering two-hour intensive workshops at her residence in Jasra.
