Do you wish you had more ways to communicate with your baby? After all, those grunts and cries can be difficult to interpret!

 Babies who are too young to speak can easily pick up sign language, and learning this visual form of communication early on can translate into greater language skills down the road. A recently released reference book aims to teach parents all they need to know to start communicating with their babies on deeper and broader levels through the beautiful language of sign. The Baby Sign Language Official Reference Dictionary, by Lila Retnasaba, covers 600 words. Many of the signs come from American Sign Language, a language used widely by the Deaf community in the U.S. Basic words ranging from animal names like “cat” to more abstract terms like “again” are included, as are signs for expressing everything from emotions to describing everyday objects.

The book presents the signs in alphabetical order, so it's very easy to look up specific words you're searching for. Each sign is clearly illustrated with expressive line drawings showing both the hand formation, placement, and motion of the sign. Created by the author of Baby Sign Language Comprehensive Teaching Guide, Retnasaba's efforts here are every bit as practical and comprehensive. Baby Sign Language Official Reference Dictionary is 240-pages of signs you and your baby should know, and it's available in a low-cost paperback format. Learning sign language is both rewarding and fun, and with this new reference book, it can be pretty easy to get started, too!