Oklahoma City babies learning sign language at childcare facility

OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) - They're too young to talk, and some of them are too young to walk, but they're already learning sign language! 

At The Learning Experience in Oklahoma City, sing-a-longs are also 'sign-a-longs.' 

At this childcare facility, babies as young as six weeks old are learning to communicate their wants and needs.

You may wonder how they're able to teach such young students.

Staff say they do it in baby steps, incorporating sign language throughout the day. 

"When they're ready to eat, they sign to us that they're ready to eat so we'll sign that to them," said Victoria Taylor, Owner and Director of the Learning Experience. "When they're asking for their food 'please' and then when they receive it, 'thank you.' So there's little things like that throughout the day that you start incorporating for them to grasp the concept."

The Learning Experience introduces a new sign language word every month. They say it's a helpful tool to bridge the communication gap with the tiny tots.

"So they're able to communicate their needs and their wants so they can meet us where they're at," Taylor told News 4. 

Research shows babies who learn sign language see long-term benefits like larger vocabularies. 

They also often understand more words by age two than those who do not learn sign language.