What if you could communicate with your baby before he or she can tell you what they want? You can with baby sign language.

New mom Erika Steele says not knowing exactly why her infant son is crying can be frustrating.

"As every new Mom knows, you have no idea what they want," said Steele.

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But there's a way to break through that barrier. Dawn Prochovnic teaches baby sign language in the Portland area.

"When we're crying in the middle of the night we're wanting a bannana, not just our diaper checked or wanting to be nursed," said Prochovnic

The class is based on American Sign Language. Many of the signs are intuitive, like hungry and thirsty. But babies also learn more complicated signs like peas, pears and cereal.

Six years ago, Prochovnic taught her toddler daughter how to sign. For Dawn, it was part of her new mommy survival.

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"I always say there will be a time when we look back like we do with bike helmets and say 'can you imagine a time when we didn't sign with our babies?," she said.

One of the most common concerns about teaching your baby sign language is whether it will delay your child's speech, but experts say that's not the case.

"Infact there is data to support that children who learn sign language have an easier time learning to speak," according to Dr. Paul Horowitz with Legacy Emanuel Children's Hospital.

"I had a lot of guessing, what do they need, what are they trying to tell me?," said Emily Troper. This mother of four taught her two youngest children to sign before they could speak.

"The frustration level with the kids was a lot lower. There were fewer trantrums.," Troper said.

Find out more:  SmallTalkLearning.com