Why the sign language???
Sign language in english is different from sign language in spanish, yet they use the same signs. Personally, I think there should be a different dvd dedicated to sign language and not combined with this type of dvd. It takes up good quality puppet time that my kid loves. I was not happy at all with this and would not recommend this video unless they came out with the same video without the sign language.

Harmful to children
Your child would love watching this video, but she'd also love eating cotton candy and drinking grape soda. Many pediatric and psychological studies (e.g., by Boston Children's Hospital and the University of Washington) have shown that young children know FEWER words for every hour they spend watching videos like this one. Why? Because they aren't spending time with YOU, practicing their language and social skills. There's also evidence that young children who watch TV have a greater risk of developing ADHD. Last, toddlers who grow up in homes with the TV always on in the background literally seem to have more trouble hearing themselves think. This hurts their developing linguistic abilities and consequently their abilities to engage silent reasoning.

Please protect your child -- don't let her watch any TV during her early, crucial, developmental years. We only watch TV when our little girl is asleep.

AMERICAN ACADEMY OF PEDIATRICS RECOMMENDS NO TV FOR CHILDREN UNDER 2!
The name "Baby Einstein" wants to make parents think it's okay for babies to watch this program, but the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends no television at all to children under two, maybe because:

(1) - Recent studies have shown that every hour spent watching programs daily such as 'BABY EINSTEIN' or 'BRAINY BABY' translated into 6-8 fewer words in their vocabularies as compared with other children their age (among babies ages 8-16 months).

(2) - For every hour of television a baby watches daily, their chances of acquiring an attention deficit disorder increases by 10%.

(3) - Brain wave activity is slower when watching television than when sleeping in babies.

In summary, three hours every day of watching programs like this day can result in 30% greater chance of ADD and 18-24 fewer vocabulary words!!

The worst of Baby Einstein
I have a special needs child who loves most all Baby Einstein videos. He walked away from this one after 1 minute. So did my typical 18 month old. It does very little to engage the children. It's boring, and like the previous mom mentioned...."what baby needs to know the sign for 'bank' and 'salon'?". "Signing Times" videos are much better.

Baby Einstein - Baby's Favorite Places - First Words Around Town, Just brilliant
Baby Einstein is a wonderful line of videos to help aid in your child's development. Get them off to a very good start with these videos, and this special one, Baby Einstein - Baby's Favorite Places - First Words Around Town. Get them well on the way to a successful future now! Don't wait!