These handy stand-up guides offer clear instructions and playful visuals.

If your baby can wave bye-bye or blow a kiss, she can learn sign language. Andrea Fixell and Ted Stafford, founders of the Sign-a-Song workshops, know that babies as young as 9-months-old are eager to communicate; their book shows parents how to teach baby simple signs such as milk, more, eat, and happy. Photographs of real children signing, plus songs, games, and stories, make learning easy and fun.

Learning sign language also helps babies to acquire the mental building blocks for speaking—and studies prove that babies who sign are better language learners than those who don't. The stand-up format and brightly colored illustrations make it easy (and fun!) to learn and practice the simple hand gestures with your baby.

Andrea Fixell and Ted Stafford are the founders of Sign-a-Song in Brooklyn, New York.