Eliminating distractions one Sign at a time?!

On my next steps of learning ASL, I wanted to focus on some signs that could be helpful in the classroom. Learning signs such as asking to use the washroom, get water, ask if they are paying attention and more. Again this week I used Youtube, but I used a different poster under the account “Learn How To Sign”. She is an ASL teacher and explains signs that she finds to be helpful in a classroom setting and the reasons as to why signing in the classroom, especially during work periods can be great alternatives.

In the video, the poster talks about how you can use ASL to give students commands or answer simple questions in a silent classroom , such as during an independent work period. This is also an alternative way to give a visual to verbal commands, which can be very beneficial to many students!

In addition, as teachers we love finding opportunities to avoid distractions or limit them in our classroom, through this video she explains how other classroom teachers have used these videos and learning styles and the positive impacts they have had on the learning environment. So, in this video, I learned how to sign bathroom, water, paying attention, counsellor/advisor, office/principal, book, paper, focus, work and so many more. All of these signs were relatively easy to learn and can be super beneficial in a classroom setting. 

From my own experience, I currently have a student with a hearing impairment that affects their phonological processing. While this student can still hear relatively well, it is much more difficult to process the information that is being taught verbally. As a support teacher, we have implemented many other supports for this student, but learning and teaching these signs opens up more opportunities in your classroom not only for yourself but for all of your students as well. 

Overall, I really like her videos because she takes the time to explain the reasoning, or how she is doing the sign to make it easier to grasp. For example when she explains “YES” she says you shake your fist up and down, as if representing you nodding your head yes. The same for “NO” essentially you are missing the finger letters “N” and “O” and putting them together to sign “NO”.

I am going to add her videos into my favorites because I find them to be extremely helpful. I am a person that learns better when there is a reason or explanation behind what I am being taught and this Youtuber thrives in this!!