my poor sicky baby signs "dog"
He might have signed DOG fifty times today. EVERYtime we see our dog Ava - DOG! When we come across a dog in a book - DOG! When we saw a dog outside - DOG! What is amazing to me is that he is labeling creatures as "dogs" without me telling him that they belong in that category. Its not as if he is simply memorizing that certain pictures are "dogs." He'll spontaneously label animals that he's never seen before (like the dogs we saw on the street today) dogs without me uttering a word. At eleven months! Signing is allowing us a little window into his developing brain that we would otherwise never have. Sure he'd be able to point and act excited. But now he can actually tell me what is on his mind. (Usually washing machines and dogs.)
What's also interesting is that dogs can vary greatly in appearance. I'm curious to see which dogs he finds worthy of the label. He saw a dachshund in a book and knew it was a dog, but the basset hound was passed over. I'm wondering if a certain Penelope the bulldog will make the cut.