Most babies and toddlers are intrigued by other babies. They are drawn to their peers and can spot another baby a mile away. And if your child is like my 19-month-old, any human under three feet tall is labeled a “baby”. Teaching babies and toddlers the words BOY and GIRL may be a long process but it will be greatly appreciated by many a five-year-old boy who will be mortified if your little one points him out and refers to him as “baby”.

Picture books and photo albums provide wonderful opportunities to differentiate boys from girls. To help your child make a connection to the words BOY and GIRL, use the words BOY and GIRL to describe someone who is very close to them….a sibling, neighbor friend, or cousin. Say and sign, “Mike is a BOY. Sarah is a GIRL”. Without creating stereotypes, you can try to help your child look for gender “clues” by recognizing that many boys have short hair and many girls wear dresses and have longer hair.

When you are on outings with your child, you can speak and sign words that describe people. “I see a daddy pushing a stroller. That BOY is wearing a hat. The mommy and GIRL are holding hands.” Statements such as these will bring meaning to what your child is viewing. Babies and toddlers love to talk about their family members. They will delight in describing the important people in their lives and will enjoy doing it over and over. “We are going to grandma and grandpa’s house. Grandma is a GIRL and grandpa is a BOY”. As you begin to work on potty training with your little one, you will soon frequent bathroom facilities across the city. This is another opportunity to use the words BOY and GIRL within your natural routine. Typically, there is a picture of a GIRL/woman on one door and a BOY/man on the other. Say and sign, “We are looking for the GIRL bathroom. Can you tell which door is for GIRLS?”

To sign GIRL, make a fist and drag your thumb along your jaw line from your ear to your chin. Babies and toddlers may simply touch a finger or their whole hand to their cheek. To sign BOY, touch your fingers to your thumb at your temple as you pretend to grab the bill of an imaginary ball cap. Babies and toddlers may modify this sign by tapping a finger or all of their fingers to the side of their head. Look for your child’s best effort to sign GIRL and BOY, and praise her: “You are right. Jake is a BOY”.

A wonderful way to practice sign language vocabulary is by reading picture books to your child and signing key words in the text. Here are several books that are great for practicing GIRL and BOY.

BOY: A Boy and a Bear by Lori Litel (Specialty Press)
GIRL: Flower Girl by Laura Godwin (Hyperion