Product Details

• Actors: Rachel de Azevedo Coleman, Alex Brown, Leah Coleman
• Directors: Doug Chamberlain
• Format: NTSC
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Two Little Hands Productions
• VHS Release Date: December 14, 2004
• Run Time: 30 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B00074OLRW
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #60,024 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Learn sign language, January 1, 2005

By 

Jennifer Ackerson (Norman, Oklahoma) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Signing Time! Volume 5: ABC Signs VHS (VHS Tape)

We discovered Signing Time while researching ASL (American Sign Language) as a 2nd language for our children. We knew we wanted to teach ASL as a 2nd language because of the many benefits such as earlier communication. You can communicate with your baby as young as 8 months old, maybe even younger. What a gift to know what your child needs before they can tell you with spoken words! For more information on the benefits of ASL check out the Signing Time website at www.signingtime.com

What fun the songs are in this volume. The ABC songs are very catchy and show you lots of new signs. If you can only get one of the Signing Time shows I would suggest this one because it covers so much information. The entire alphabet is shown along with words for each letter. Also numbers 1-10 in ASL. This volume is currently my kid's favorite.

We love that we get to hear Leah's voice. What a positive experience for children who are Deaf and Hard Of Hearing to see another Child who is Deaf proudly using their voice. Leah does a great job. It is also great for children who are hearing to see that children who are Deaf can and do use their voices. Alex does a great job as well. We love to see the 2 friends/cousins interacting together. We also enjoyed the addition of the frog Hopkins. He helps transition from one theme to another smoothly.

One downside to this volume. While it does introduce tons of new signs not all of the words from the show are shown in sign. I know it is difficult to show every sign but we would have found it very helpful. For example B is for bubbles but they don't show the sign for bubbles. If you have a child who wants to know the sign for everything you need to do your homework for this volume. I have made a list of the words that are discussed in this volume but don't have a sign in the show. Many of the words are shown in other volumes of Signing Time and I have marked them with a * the rest are not shown in any of the volumes so you may want to look them up. Also a slide and a horse are shown. They do not say the word or show the sign. My 2 year old saw them though and wanted to know those signs as well so you may want to look them up also.

Apples*

Bubbles

Car*

Dog*

Feet

Grass*

Hopkins or frog*

Helicopter

Hat*

Ice Cream*

Jump*

Kick

Light

Monkey

Newspaper

Organ

Picnic

Pink* and Pig*

Quilt

Sleep*

Turtles

Tree*

Under

Unicycle

Van

Water*

Yo-Yo

Yellow* and Yarn

One other thing that may be confusing for some younger kids is some of the word choices. For example O is for organ. Many kids are not familiar with this instrument so you may find your younger ones arguing with you that O is for piano, Q is for blanket (quilt), N is for paper (newspaper), V is for car (van), and K is for ball (kick).

We like that the written word comes on the screen first and then they show the sign. It is very helpful for practicing the signs. It is like a video flashcard. It also helps children develop reading skills because they start to recognize the written word that goes with the sign. We love watching the children do the signs because you see lots of different kids and lots of different skill levels. It gives you an idea of how your child might make the sign at different ages. Rachel also does the sign so you can clearly see the proper way to do it. She has paint on her fingers to help you focus on her finger positions. This is a new addition for Volumes 3-6. Some people find it distracting at first but I found it very helpful.

The song during the credits is a great way to learn additional signs that were not covered in the show. You can really add to your signing vocabulary if you pay attention. The new version of the theme song is a little slower (so you can sign along) and has an additional verse. Some may not like it as well as the original but we loved it. We love the original version too so make sure you get both. The older version is in Volumes 1-3. We liked the new verse "Where friends can meet and find we're not so different after all" Isn't that what Signing Time is all about?

I highly recommend this volume of signing time as well as the other 5 in the series. As a mother and a teacher I can say it is truly the best educational tool I have found for teaching ASL to children (and adults too). I hope they make many more and I will buy them all without hesitation. These shows are a labor of love for these families and we are thankful they chose to share with us.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Learn your Sign Language ABC's!, January 4, 2005

By 

Shannon Osborne "weecansign" (Las Vegas, Nevada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Signing Time! Volume 5: ABC Signs VHS (VHS Tape)

Volume 5 in the "Signing Time" series is absolutely wonderful for teaching children (and adults) the American Sign Language Manual Alphabet, as well as over 50 Signs to use in your daily activities.

If you think this video is too advanced for your little ones -- think again! Even Toddlers can learn the handshapes, what the printed letter looks like, the sounds of the letters, and a few ASL Signs for each letter of the alphabet. There are cute kids, cute graphics, Alex and Leah are having lots of fun, and (in the usual Signing Time fashion) there are some FUN new songs that pertain to learning your ABC's!

In the song, "A is for Alex and Alligator" the fingerspelling is quite fast, but really fun to TRY if you are learning American Sign Language and want to get to Rachel Coleman's level of skill... Good luck with that!!! The "LMNO" song is about how some children think that 'LMNO' is just one letter, or word. Educators are really going to love it!

There are many young children of different ages and abilities showing the handshapes, so you can see that children don't need to do the Signs perfectly. We don't expect them to, either. Some children just don't have the fine motor skills yet, and for some we just have to adjust to the way they are capable of making the shapes. (This is another aspect of learning and using Sign Language, everyone has their own 'accent' and skill level. We learn to be flexible.)

I wish this had been available a few years ago, when my son was younger! He learned the manual alphabet at age 2, but it would have been really easy if we had this Signing Time video!

I know that many families will benefit from this useful learning tool. Two Thumbs (or... "Hands") Up!!!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best signing video/dvd yet, April 9, 2005

By 

Rene M. Cohen (Cypress, TX United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Signing Time! Volume 5: ABC Signs VHS (VHS Tape)

I bought 3 different baby signing dvd's/vhs ; "signing time" vol.1 and vol.5, "baby see and sign" and "my baby can talk first signs". Signing Time videos by far are the most informative and fun ones yet. The songs are so catchy! and it is put together so well. The narrator is meant to make these videos. These are perfect for kids of all ages. My 4 year old (girl) LOVES IT, and my husband's 6 and 9 year old (boy and girl) LOVE IT...and can't wait to teach my 3 month old son! I love how the DVD's have so many other options you can review...like on vol.5 you can have Rachel go over the alphabet clearly...and much more! I never thought of it as a 2nd language but am so glad so many people are bringing it to our attention---thanks to the Fokker's! For small babies and toddlers it is so helpful for them to be able to tell you what they need! Another way to communicate! And who knows , you may use it when you least expect it! A MUST BUY!

I wish they had the entire set for sale!