Baby Babbles in Sign Language to Deaf Grandparents in Viral Video

Before baby says their first words around 1-year-old, you’ll likely hear plenty of “baby babble.” This mixture of what can, at times, seem like incoherent consonants and sounds is an important step in baby’s language development. But while most babies are making these adorable sounds aloud, one Florida baby recently garnered nationwide attention after babbling away in sign language.

In a now-viral video, 6-month-old Jane McCullough is shown trying to communicate with her deaf grandparents, Mark and Jessica Stultz, using sign language. Captioning the video, Jane’s mother, Mara McCullough, notes that Jane “waits for her turn to sign back” after her grandparents ask her questions. “She’s trying to communicate,” Mara notes.

“You love talking to Grandpa,” Jessica signs to Jane, who sits in a bouncer vigorously moving her hands, seemingly trying to sign “yes” in response. As the three continue their conversation, Mark and Jessica ask Jane if she had any “good dreams” in her recent long nap. In response, Jane continues to move her hands and adorably “babble” sign language.

Friends, fans and fellow parents sent their love and admiration in the comments. “She’s so expressive with her face while trying to sign too,” wrote one parent. “The way she waits for her turn and pays attention to their signs as if truly conversing with them,” added a commenter. “As another CODA (child of deaf parents), if this is your first just wait til she’s 2 and having full conversations in sign with your parents,” wrote another.

Others chimed in to note how fantastic it was that the McCulloughs were teaching their baby sign language and hoped that it would be more regularly offered in schools in the future. “I’ve always wondered why sign language is not offered as a “language” in school. I would have taken that over anything else, and still taught my kids very basics when they were babies,” commented one parent. “Babies learn sign really quickly. I know it’s not full ASL but teaching my babies baby sign saved a lot of frustration for us and them,” replied another parent.

If you are interested in giving baby more ways to communicate, check out these tips for teaching baby sign language.