This guest blog post is from LeeAnn. She’s the one who creates those cute Signing Time “Hand-y Crafts” every month. She sends out the Sign of the Week email and Signing Time newsletter, and she answers the questions parents ask us on our Facebook page. This is a question she gets a lot, so we asked her to share her answer here.

Many parents wonder what to do after their child has learned all the signs in the Baby Signing Time series. For me, that answer is easy.

With my oldest daughter, we started with Signing Time Volumes 1-3 because that is all that was available! We waited for each new volume and introduced them to her as quickly as they were released. Volumes 4-6 were released shortly after my second daughter was born. Then in 2005, I was lucky enough to start working for Two Little Hands Productions. I ran a signing playgroup that got invited to be part of the filming of Volumes 7-9, so those quickly became my daughters’ favorites because they knew the kids in the DVDs!

A few years later, we were blessed with a son. With him, we started with Baby Signing Time. However, we also show him Signing Time, Practice Time and Story Time videos. He is 2 1/2 now and asks for the DVDs by name. His current favorites are Baby Signing Time Vol. 4: Let’s Be Friends, Signing Time Vol. 9: Zoo Train,  and Signing Time Vol. 5: ABC Signs. It is so fun to watch him sign his ABCs. Last week he was signing them in his sleep, but by the time I got the video camera out and set up, he was awake.

So when parents ask me what DVD to buy after Baby Signing Time, my answer is “any of them!” My family started out using the series sequentially, but we’ve experienced just as much fun using all of the  Baby Signing Time, Signing Time, Practice Time and Story Time videos at once, in no particular order.

So now that you know what my experience is, let me share with you what others do. Many parents move from Baby Signing Time right into the Signing Time Volumes 1-3, which have most of the same signs that are featured in the Baby Signing Time series, but are an excellent sign review. Some parents skip those videos and jump in at Vol. 4: Family, Feelings and Fun. No matter where you start, you’ll enjoy Series 1, which ends with Vol. 13: Welcome to School. From there you can introduce Sing & Sign, Practice Time, Story Time and Signing Time Series Two.

There is no wrong way to keep teaching your children ASL vocabulary. The most important part is sharing that time with your child and learning new ways to communicate.

Watch the clip of Sam signing along as he watches Volume 9 Zoo Train.

Say hello to LeeAnn at the Signing Time Facebook page!

May is Teacher Appreciation Month! We are grateful to the dedicated men and women who choose to be teachers. We KNOW that you stay up late at night grading papers and making lesson plans. We KNOW how much time and energy you put into helping your students develop a love of learning. Thank you for all you do!

Parents, as the school year draws to a close, thank your child’s teacher with a gift that will benefit students of all ages. Here’s a list of top Signing Time products for teachers:

The Baby Signing Time “Sign & Read” Collection is now available exclusively at www.babysigningtime.com!

• What’s new in this collection?
• Why did you make the new collection?
• Can I order the board books separately?
• Can I order the collection by phone?
• Can I order it on the Signing Time website?

What’s new in this collection?
In addition to the Baby Signing Time Music CDs and Flash Card Sets, we’ve included:

• New Board Books
  Baby Alex, Baby Leah, and Baby Hopkins invite your baby to learn new signs in fun ways in these full-color board books. Each book also includes a sign guide for parents.
• New Parent Guide
  This guide to early learning will teach you how to bond with your baby and enhance early learning through talking, signing and reading together. Includes a Sign Glossary of all the signs taught in Volumes 1-4.
• Enhanced DVDs
  We’ve added new footage of the printed words with Rachel’s fingers running under them as each one is spoken to show babies that printed words have meaning. It’s part of the “see it, sign it, say it” approach to early learning.

Why did you make the new collection?
We asked Emilie Brown, co-creator of Signing Time and Baby Signing Time, to answer: “Parents are their child’s first teachers, so we made sure this Baby Signing Time collection included a parent guide to early learning. Every parent-child interaction can strengthen the relationship and feed a child’s growing mind. Reading together is an especially powerful way to connect and learn. That’s why we insisted on board books being included in the new collection. We’ve added new footage to the DVDs to highlight printed words. Our goal isn’t to get babies to read, but to experience how language works: a word can be spoken, signed, or printed, and they all share the same underlying meaning. This idea may seem simple to adults, but for young children, it’s a profound discovery.”

Can I order the board books separately?
The board books are only available with the collection. If you already have the Baby Signing Time products and want to get the board books, we suggest that you consider purchasing the new collection and giving the items you already have as gifts.

Can I order the collection by phone?
Yes! Call or Skype (855) 589-7800 Monday – Friday 7 a.m. – 5 p.m. MST

Can I order it on the Signing Time website?
Right now, the new collection is only available at www.babysigningtime.com.

Signing is a fun and easy way to engage your child in learning. Did you know that the movement involved in signing helps children learn letters, numbers, colors and spelling?

The Signing Time Homeschool Bundle will  give you the resources you need to use ASL signs to enrich your existing curriculum:

• Practice Time DVD: ABCs
• Practice Time DVD: 123s
• Box of Crayons DVD
• Sing and Sign DVD
• Flash Card Set 5: ABC Signs
• Using Signing Time in Your Homeschool Program – Free eGuide*

*To get your free 10-page eGuide with useful information about signing with children of all ages in your homeschooling program, click on the “Details” tab of the Homeschool Bundle product page.

View Homeschool Bundle now!

Earlier this month, we announced a Facebook Giveaway contest for a FREE  Flash Cards Set 4-6.

Almost 100 of you entered the contest by “Liking” this new product. The stories and comments that you added to our blog were incredibly fun to read and downright inspirational, too!

And our lucky winner is…

Bari Hyatton
06 Jan 2011 We have been signing with our 17 month old deaf daughter since birth and have relied on the Signing Time videos and products to help teach her sign language. She has close to a 100 word vocabulary now and communicates much more than her hearing peers do!

Congratulations, Bari! To claim your prize, please email your name, mailing address and phone number to leeann@signingtime.com.

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Didn’t win? No worries! You can still save 15% with promo code flash15
Promo code expires January 31st