Looking for a WeeHands class this fall?

Looking for a sign language class for you and your baby or toddler this fall? Just visit the WeeHands website to search for a class in your community.  Type in your 7 digit Canadian postal code, e.g., K1A 1B1 (our system counts the space in between as a digit) or your 5 digit US postal code and the distance you are willing to travel to get to a class.  With this information your nearest WeeHands class should appear in a list.

If no list appears, it most likely means that we don't have a WeeHands class in your area yet.  We are getting more requests for classes than we currently have qualified WeeHands Instructors for but we're working on recruiting more Instructors every day.  Our current Instructors are teachers, early chilldhood educators, speech language pathologists and ASL Intrepreters.  We are very picky about our Instructors but let us know if you'd like to teach with WeeHands and bring WeeHands classes  to your community!

While we work on recruiting more awesome and wonderful WeeHands Instructors for your area, you can pick up a copy of The Baby Signing Book and our DVD, WeeHands At Home, so that you can start teaching your little one to sign right away!

The Baby Signing Book includes over 350 American Sign Language signs along with language development milestones for children 0-3 years of age. It's an award winning book that shows you how to sign with your baby and we've included lots of songs, games and strategies that you can use at home with your baby.

The Baby Signing Book has gotten fantastic reviews since it was published in 2007 and our DVD, WeeHands at Home, is well received by everyone that's seen it!  The two items together are great to bundle together when you buy them!

Signing and Early Childhood Development

Looking for a speaker for your Early Childhood Development conference?  WeeHands founder and author of The Baby Signing Book, Sara Bingham, has spoken at Association for the Education of Young Children conferences in Michigan and Indianapolis as well as a number of parenting events in Ontario.  Her speaking topics include:

Using Sign Language with Babies and Toddlers: An Introduction

Why wait to communicate? Learn about American Sign Language signs, songs and language development strategiesto understand baby’s cues and toddler’s behaviour. Learn the benefits of signing with young children as well as signs, songs and strategies to start with.

Sign Language: Improving Language and Lessening Frustrations
The benefits of using American Sign Language (ASL) with all young children include improved vocabulary development, increased interest in books, improved child/caregiver attachment and fewer challenging behaviors. Learn signs, songs and language development strategies in this fun, functional session. 

Diversity the Fun Way: Creating a Multilingual Classroom Through Sign Language:

Are 80% of signs are mnemonic, pictorial representations of words? Joining sign with English speeds the process of learning English as a second language. Using sign language in the classroom creates an inclusive environment where all children can feel welcome. Learn how to use American Sign Language (ASL) signs in your classroom so that you can bridge multiple languages in one setting. Discussion around the use of signed songs and books in multilingual classrooms is included.

Sign Language for Classroom Management and Smooth Transitions

Want to learn some new techniques to assist in transitions? Come learn how to teach and use sign language to enhance classroom management and have smooth transitions through the use of stories, play, songs, and mnemonics.

Signing and Early Literacy

Research shows that using sign language in an early childhood literacy program increases vocabulary and improves letter and word recognition. This workshop teaches the American Sign Language (ASL) alphabet as
well as ASL vocabulary tailored for the preschool environment through the use of age appropriate songs and activities.

Sara Bingham is the founder of WeeHands™ and author of The Baby Signing Book. Wee Hands™ is the world’s leading children’s sign language and language development program for babies, toddler, and preschool children. Sara completed an honors Bachelor of Arts degree in Linguistics at the University of Ottawa, Canada, and holds a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Carleton University. She has also earned an honors post-graduate diploma from Georgian College as a Communicative Disorders Assistant. Invite Sara to your next conference and learn why signing is such an effective tool for supporting language development, phonemic awareness, print knowledge, and even classroom management.

Persis on the Radio!

So excited that one of our Instructors will be on the radio tonight! Keith Wann, radio host, will be interviewing , Persis Bristol who is a Doula, WeeHands instructor, and Interpreter.

Keith Wann is a popular stand-up comedian, actor, producer and deaf needs advocate. Keith's show is the first live talk radio show delivered to the American Sign Language community.  His weekly show, titled That Keith Wann Show–Cultural Bridges, launched on August 4th to rave reviews, and can be heard every Wednesday from 8:00-9:00 pm EST, on the Toginet talk radio network.

Persis Bristol has worked as a certified American Sign Language Interpreter since 1995. She has been involved with the Deaf community nationwide since graduation with a Bachelor of Science degree in Interpreting and Deaf Studies (1996). Persis is also a Certified Labor Doula since 2003 working with women and their families to achieve a satisfying birth experience. She combines her two passions by offering to new parents the gift of communication before speech.

Listen in tonight at  8:00 pm EST, on the Toginet talk radio network....WeeHands will be!