Baby Sign Language Basics

I love, love, love this class and Manta (the instructor). We look forward to it, it’s fun, my baby is getting so much out of it, and we are signing which is super cool. I love the set-​up, the environment, the people, and the curriculum. I highly recommend this. I just wish I didn’t have to drive so far (but that’s not their fault).

My son and I took this class with Monta for 6 months straight, and loved it – I can’t recommend it enough!
I am a parent who takes my baby to a lot of classes and activities, both free and paid, and felt like this one was a good investment both money and time-​wise because it included all of the elements I was looking for in one class — music, playtime with other babies, the occasional story, as well as sign language. The class size is small, so we made friends but it wasn’t overwhelming for my baby.
My son was 10 months old when we started and together we learned over 100 signs. Sign Language has been such a valuable tool for figuring out what he needs, and now that he is a toddler, I feel he is a lot less of a ‘terrible two’ than he would have been otherwise.
Each class starts with a short lesson for the parents, while the babies play with toys. The rest of the class time is taken up with fun activities, like songs, and other activities that are for the babies. Of course babies will learn most signs by us parents repeating them at home, but the activities we did in class gave me a lot of fun ideas I could use.
I have also been to Monta’s free storytimes at the library, which was a fun way to continue exposing my son to signs. However, the storytime doesn’t include a lesson for parents, so I recommend taking Monta’s class first — then attending storytime.
I’ve recently moved to the Bay Area and had a second child. I looked into the classes here and was very sad to find that the ones here don’t include any of the fun activities for the babies. They just teach the parents with flash cards and posters and the babies just have to entertain themselves. So I guess I’m spoiled now.

I took my daughter there for a session. It was suppose to be 12 weeks, but after 6 weeks, Monta argued that the $ 150 was only for the first 6 weeks. I decided to goto the San Diego Continuing Education Classes for free.
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I also am appalled that this business owner attacks someone in a public forum for an honest review. Do you really want someone with such an attitude to teach your child? We have all had good and bad teachers while growing up. I would consider this business owner to be the later rather than the prior!

We attended the 6 week toddler class and the material was very useful and presented in a fun way. The songs and stories were fun. However, I must say the short playtime in the middle of the class with the toys was a little bit boring. Maybe something else during that time (a bubble machine and more obstacle type activities balance beams, more tunnels etc. maybe? That’ll get everyone into the mix and up and moving) may go over better.
I also will point out that we paid for the 6 week class and the very first class was exactly the same as the class we attended for free at the library. So that kinda stinks. Not sure if the remaining 5 classes were different from the library classes or not.

We have taken 2 semesters with Monta. Although the class size is small, the same material was covered in both sessions even-​though she will tell you that the material will be new in the 2^nd session. Also, you can get FREE sign language class… Yes, I said FREE! Search San Diego Continuing Education. With today’s economy, it is always better to try and save some cash!

We are huge fans of Monta and her baby sign language classes. As new residents in San Diego without many friends with kids, going to signing classes was an easy way to interact with other parents and babies the same age as my son.
We started classes when he was around 4 months. My son is a social kid and he enjoyed being around the other babies but didn’t really sign for many months. One morning when he was 9 months a dog barked outside and he signed «dog». I was shocked. «Did you just sign dog?!!» He cooed and slobbered and acted bashful. The dog barked again. He signed «dog» again. Are you kidding?!! It was amazing. We were hooked.
Starting with: dog, more, milk, and all done, we branched out to: read, story, cow, sun, rain, dream. By the time he was 18 months he had more than 50 signs. He could babble and make sounds but didn’t have many spoken words. It didn’t matter. With sign language we communicated constantly and had actual «conversations».
He’s now two and extremely verbal. His pediatrician says he talks more like a three year old than a two year old. I am certain signing played a significant role in his language development. That and my stellar mommy skills, obvi ;)
Sure, you can learn sign language from a book but going to the classes helped us remember to keep signing. We learned new signs and were around other parents who were just as interested and engaged in the signing experience.
Monta is nothing if not passionate about sign language. She was an inspiring source of knowledge and as a new SAHM who left a rewarding career to raise my son, it was wonderful to use MY brain to learn a new language.
We don’t sign as often as we did when he couldn’t speak but he still signs for emphasis when he REALLY wants to get his point across. «I want to go to the park again. Again. Again. AGAIN!»
I highly recommend this class for anyone even remotely interested in signing with their child. Babies really can sign (!!) and Monta’s classes will keep you engaged, signing and having a good time.

My husband and I took our son for one six week signing session here when he was 6 months old. I can’t remember the teacher’s name, but it was the lady who also teaches in Spanish, not Monta. All three of us liked the classes and I found them to be useful, interesting, and fun. It is structured with an opening song, a demonstration of the words, songs that use the words, play time where they bring out toys grouped into little stations and you practice the words while playing with your child, and a closing song.
The only thing I didn’t like about the classes was the play time. It is a great concept, but in practice, it was awkward. We weren’t always exactly sure what to do with the toys; we felt weird about rotating to other stations because we didn’t want to kick other families off a station if they weren’t done yet; we weren’t sure if the other parents wanted to share stations, especially since my son would try to talk to and touch their kids in a not so gentle way; my son was still small and wasn’t particularly interested in the toys, so I felt kind of lame trying to get him to play with them when he was clearly non-​responsive and wanted to be doing other things… I think the toys stations would have worked better if 1. they had made more of an effort for the group to get to know one another and thus feel more comfortable sharing and 2. the class was made up of older babies (most of the kids in our session were under one year).

My son continues to learn new signs on a regular basis. I like having the book that came with the class registration. I can refer back to it when I want to teach my son a new sign.

Great sign language classes. Both teachers are excellent and fun! Its a fun way to interact with other families in the community while learning to sign.
So grateful to have this in our community.

Just wanted to update since my last review, 3 months ago. The light bulb has gone off and our son has now used over 30 signs! So grateful for this class, it’s amazing to communicate with your baby this way :)

While the information is useful and the studio is very nice, there is no reason why this class needs to be two hours long. We were hoping for an interactive class where we could get to know the other babies and parents while learning the signing in a hands-​on atmosphere, but instead we got talked at for two hours, which is way too long for babies and adults. Moreover, the entire lecture focused on why signing is useful and beneficial for babies (hint: if we’re taking the class, we already buy in) rather than practicing doing it. You may as well buy a book and use common sense.

I started class with my daughter at 13 months with Susan in Carmel Valley. Susan is a really great teacher, wonderful with the babies, and patient with the parents. In just 6 weeks, my daughter learned and absorbed so much and is now using several signs, including more, all done, cat, bird, ceiling fan, please, … it’s very cute, and amazes me! The class was fun and the session flew by. Would definitely recommend!

Dear Monte,
I started signing with my little one around 6 months old. Now she is 10 months old and my little «Super Baby» is signing all the time. She signs dog (now she actually says the word!), tree, leaf, waves «Hi» and «Bye», finished, she points at things that she wants, but I always ask while signing it. I am notsure if she is going to ever tell me «milk» or «water»… However the outside signs are so fun. She did rain, grass, butterfly and flower and she always signs «Baby» and «Signing Time»! WOW! This kid has learned so much! In just a short amount of time. Thank you for your help and we love the flash cards and books and the DVDs are an obvious hit. I am defiantly going to sign up for the next class. See you then!
Thank you! Kimberly

I started taking my daughter to the South Park Baby Garten location for classes when she was 9 months old. Within a few classes she was signing, and around 10 months, she really had a signing and verbal vocabulary explosion. She is now 11 months old and knows more than 10 signs– I’m starting to lose count! Not only is she signing, but she’s also saying new words. I am amazed at how fast she has picked this up thanks to Monta’s fun, innovative, and engaging classes. We also purchased the Sign Language Kit, and the Baby Sign Language Basics book. My daughter loves the flash cards, and the sing and sign along music CD. We recently purchased the Baby Signing Time DVD series, and she absolutely loves that as well. She has picked up a few signs from the DVD series too.
The classes are just the right size and the best part is watching my daughter interact with others, and participate in the group and center time activities. My daughter loves to dance to the music during class.
I highly recommend this class to all parents of infants and toddlers looking for a new way to communicate better with their children.

Wow, these classes are really a lifesaver when it comes to combating toddler frustration! I took one class when my son was just 8 mos. old and I am enrolled for another class this fall. My now 17 month-​old son is really starting to ‘blossom’ with his signing skills and has started taking a keen interest in Monta Briant’s flashcards too. Particularly the photos of her signing, which he always ignored before! It is really exciting to see his signing vocabulary growing along with his new, increased hand-​eye coordination. Ms. Briant is incredibly gifted at helping us communicate with our kiddos! If you don’t believe in baby sign language… doubt no more, just try it and you will be surprised!

We are taking the class at the Bird Rock location in La Jolla. My son started going at 7 months and has taken about 12 classes. He mostly attends the school with our nanny, but I have been to a few classes with him as well. He loves it! He comes back from the class very excited and happy. He enjoys the teaching methods that include music, songs, and games that go along with sign language learning. He is happy to interact with other kids. Now he routinely signs for milk when he is hungry and is attentive to our efforts to introduce him to other signs. I am glad to expose him to Monta’s teaching techniques. I think the learning that he does will benefit him long-​term.

I attended Baby Sign Language Classes with my daughter beginning when she turned six months old. This was rejuvenating for me as I met some wonderful mommies and babies who were ‘like-​minded’, progressive and fun! I believe I have made some life-​long friends and gained a huge support system in raising my first baby. This was such a rewarding experience, I must recommend it to all mommies, daddies and babies!
It was a fabulous class for my daughter because she learned how to communicate by signing, without frustration, with her mommy, daddy and grammy. After taking these classes, she was able to sign when she wanted ‘more,’ when she was ‘hungry’ or ‘thirsty,’ and was even able to differentiate on some of her specific needs and wants. She enjoyed learning but mostly she absolutely loved the class activities, songs and interaction with other babies.
Monta is a very committed, creative and knowledgable teacher. She welcomes parents and children with open arms. It is a relaxing, easy-​going and fun atmosphere. No one can do any wrong with our very supportive, patient and kind Monta!
Since we attended this class, she has also published additional books and tools to help you learn, with your baby, ASL Sign Language! If you would like more information, I recommend checking out the web site or just giving Monta a call!