[Sca-cooks] Deaf, ASL poll

[Bonne de Traquair]

> > so how many deaf, friends of deaf, grew up around
> deaf, or know sign
> language types are ON this list anyway?
> > Kirsten

My sister-in-law (who used to teach special needs
children, and now is a professor teaching teachers)
used ASL in her classroom.  She may have had some deaf
students, though I think usually not, but the idea was
that the children could see and respond to ASL from
all over the room, without her having to raise her
voice.  It was used not for curriculum, but for
instruction.  'Be quieter', 'clean up your area',
'come sit down', that sort of thing.   I think any
teacher of pre-school and early grades could use this
idea.

She and my brother now use some ASL with their
toddler.   My mom reports my niece arguing with her
dad in ASL at a restaurant.  She wanted MORE dessert,
he signed NO MORE, she signed, emphatically, MORE, he
signed, calmly,  NO MORE.  Repeat a few times. She
became (silently) tantrumish.  Caught her mother's eye
and signed MORE, but mom agreed with dad.  By this
time, grandaddy and grandma caught on and also signed
NO MORE when big brown eyes in a furious little face
turned their way.  Finally, Sophie gave up, consented
to have her face and hands wiped off, and was given
toys.  She did cry a bit, but the whole situation
didn't turn into the sort of terribles twos tantrum
one would usuallly expect, complete with screaming
child and angry parent.

Given a lifelong history of illnesses effecting my
hearing, including a current cold/bacterial infection,
I pretty much expect to spend my elderly years with
little or no hearing and am yet again mulling the idea
of learning ASL sooner rather than later.
Personally, I think ASL should be offered as a foreign
language credit in high school and college.  More
useful than the German my eldest child studied.  Our
local HS is the county school for deaf and hearing
impaired.  A summer school ASL class is offered so
that more kids are able to communicate with the deaf
students, but it's just a 6 week course.

Bonne

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