Happy Holidays !!

Sorry it's been awhile, been plenty busy at college! Leaving for home tomorrow, can't wait!

Check out this youtube video! I've learned a lot from the girl who made this video, she just graduated college, and is now a teacher for a 2nd grade deaf class! : "Baby, It's Cold Outside!" in ASL 

New song I'm teaching

over winter break, my mom is having me teach her class how to sign a song for their christmas show. here's the song im teaching them, then translated to ASL. 

I’ve got peace like a river (x2)

I’ve got peace like a river in my soul (repeat)

 I’ve got joy like a fountain (x2)

I’ve got joy like a fountain in my soul (repeat)

 I’ve got love like the ocean (x2)

I’ve got love like the ocean in my soul (repeat)

 I’ve got strength like a mountain (x2)

I’ve got strength like a mountain in my soul (repeat)

ASL version:

River like peace I have

River peace in my soul

Fountain like joy

Fountain like joy I have

Love like ocean I have

Love ocean in soul

Strength like mountain I have

Strength like mountain in soul

I'm not going anywhere!!

Just because my WISE presentation is over, doesn't mean I'm going to stop what I'm doing. In fact I'm doing MORE! I've been skyping every week with a student at the NYSD who has disabilities other then deafness. I've been taking Erin's advice and have been trying to constantly keep my foot into Deaf culture and be as involved as I can. I skype/IM with 4 or 5 of my Deaf friends on a weekly basis. They teach me soo much everyday! The other day my friend Nelson was telling me all about the rivialry between the NY school for the Deaf and the Lexington school for the Deaf in Queens, NY.

Is there a sign for every English word?!

Question: I am looking for the sign for word (insert word) and cannot find it.

Answer: There is not a sign for every word in the English dictionary. However, there is usually a sign for most concepts expressed in English. Conceptually correctness is the key.

If you are trying to find a sign on Signing Savvy, first think about the meaning behind what you want to say. If you search for a word and either no sign comes up or the sign that comes up seems to have a different meaning than what you want to say, think of a different word that conveys the meaning of what you want to say and search for that word.

Lets look at an example from Signing Savvy:

I want to look up the word PROTECTION from the following sentence: I need to put on some more sun protection before going on the boat.

When I search for PROTECTION, I do not find a sign. Therefore, I simplify the word and search for PROTECT. Simplifying the word is a good searching strategy on Signing Savvy, such as removing the -ion, -ing, or s (plural form) of the word.

However, in this case the sign for PROTECT may not really convey the conceptual meaning of sun protection. That sign could be used but what I'm really trying to say in my sentence is more like the sign for FILTER or SCREEN.

Now while looking this up I also thought of the work block, as in sun block. When I looked upBLOCK, I found two signs, one for the meaning to block something or prevent it from entering, and one like a building block.

The sun protection I was thinking about was more of a filter than a block, since I still wanted to get a tan, so I would use the sign for FILTER.

As a signer and a sign language interpreter, you constantly have to decide which sign best fits the conceptual meaning of what you are saying. This is one thing that beginner signers really struggle with. It is not always a direct English to ASL sign translation.

Don't forget to cite it! www.signingsavvy.com 

2 DAYS UNTIL MY PRESENTATION!!

Two days until I give my WISE presentation!! I've been working non stop to make sure everything runs smoothly. I have to make sure I get the auditorium booked for my rehearsal and my presentation tomorrow, I have to tell Mr. Lanzetta to reserve parking spaces for everybody coming, I have to print out God knows how many copies of the ASL alphabet, and much more that I don't want to reveal just yet =)

My Final Lesson Yesterday =(

Yesterday was my last lesson with Mrs. Kane's class before my presentation. I wanted to do my last lesson as something fun, but involving the colors to make sure they have the colors down for my presentation, I brought my friend Gio with me to have a 3rd party not really involved with my presentation to observe so I could get his opinions about my lessons. He thought it was really impressive how much the kids had learned, and how well I could keep them focused on the lesson.

My lesson was using a ball with several different colors having them sit in a circle and roll the ball to eachother, when the ball reached them, whatever color their hand was on, they had to sign to the class.

Getting ready for the presentation!!

YOU'RE INVITED!

When: Wednesday April 13th 12:00pm
Where: High school Auditorium 
What: Megan Doyle's WISE project


STARRING: Mrs. Kane's class from Primrose! 

Days of the week!!

For my days of the week lesson plan today, I read the book The Very Hungry Caterpiller to Mrs. Kane's class. The lesson went well, not as well as I would've liked though. The signs for the days of the week is kind of difficult and they didn't really have the motor skills to handle it. 

Don't Forget to Cite it!
Carle, Eric. The Very Hungry Caterpillar. HUdson Street, New York, NY: Philomel 
     Books, 1969. Print.

Using My Resources!

I decided that for my next lesson plan, I'm going to focus on the days of the week. I'm not sure exactly how I'm going to organize the lesson though. So, this morning I emailed one of the preschool teachers from the NYSD who's class I observed last week when I was there. Hopefully, I'll get some advice to help me create another great lesson plan!



Don't Forget to Cite it!

"My Classroom." Ms. Storytellers Website. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Mar. 2011.
     <http://www.msstoryteller.com/myclassroom.htm>.

NY School of the Deaf!!

Hello! So I have A LOT to say about my day the NY school of the Deaf. First of all, I have a FANTASTIC time. I didn't want to leave! I had so much fun. I observed a lot of classes. I watched a oral kindergarten lesson, an oral preschool lesson, a sign support preschool lesson, 1st/2nd grade class, a 6th/7th graders, I observed a sign plus class... which is a class for Deaf students with other additional disabilities (autism, down syndrome) and some of them are just behind on their language development because they were probably diagnosed with a hearing loss a little late. Then, I also got to meet and talk to some Deaf seniors in high school, and they were awesome!! They taught me a bunch of signs like "foxy mama" They asked Erin if there was any way I could go to prom this year!!! Erin wants to see if we can make that work, which I'm SO excited about. I also got to watch a Deaf gym class!! which was really interesting, and cool! A bunch of the seniors I met added me on facebook, so i'll be sure to keep in touch with them all! I can't wait to go back april 8th for the WISE conference!!

My Motivation For Today!!

So as I'm getting ready for my day at the NY school of the Deaf, I got an email from one of the mothers of a kid in Mrs. Kane's class (where I teach sign language once a week if you haven't been following)

she told me that her son cries every Wednesday morning and when she asks whats wrong he told her that it was "tears of joy" because today is the day that Miss Megan comes to teach sign language, and that he wishes that Miss Megan could come everyday.

After that, I feel like I can do pretty much anything!!!!

WISH ME LUCK!!

Primrose lesson review: things we see in school

Well, I had another great lesson at primrose in Mrs. Kane's self - contained class. I taught the kids the signs for things that they see and use everyday in school (pencil, paper, book, ruler, stapler, ect.) The kids loved it! What made my day though, was when I went to lunch with them, I overheard one of the kids in my class talking to a group of kids from another class and he was showing them how to sign the colors of the rainbow. Because it's so complicated to get permission to take pictures of the kids, I only have pictures of Mrs Kane's classroom, but I'll share them, (better then nothing) one of the boards about the days of the week inspired a new lesson plan, that I'll probably use next week!

NYSD tomorrow!!!

This snow needs to stop!!! Tomorrow is the day I get to spend the school day at the NY school of the Deaf !! I could not be more excited! Today in a little bit, i'm going over to primrose to do another lesson with the self - contained class.

I want to dedicate this post to all of the books I've been reading on Deaf culture/ Teaching Sign language/ Studies on why signing to babies is benefical, because without these books I would be lost!!

NYSD and economics

I was just in my economics class, and I needed to find an article involving something I'm intrested in (that involves economics) and write a reaction to the article. My friend Sara found an article about funding for NYSD (link for the article seen below) and I thought it was really intresting that I knew a lot about what they were talking about, I knew some of the programs that would be affected by budget costs, and I knew of how the budget cuts would affect Deaf culture.

http://yorktown.patch.com/articles/cuomos-proposed-budget-would-eliminate-funding-to-ny-school-for-the-deaf-4

Primrose Lesson: Reaction

Yesterday last minute I changed my mind on my lesson, I decided to teach the kids the signs of weather conditions (rain, sunny, windy) because it was raining out yesterday. The kids loved the lesson, and before I could even bring it up they asked if we could sign the song "I can sing a rainbow." They all remember the signs and I am very happy with the progress they're making! The teacher of the class asked me if I could stay a little longer, so I ended up staying in their class for 2 hours! I have so much fun with the kids I had the best time! and I can't wait until next week!

Primrose Lesson: The Basket Game

Today for my lesson at primrose I got my lesson plan from the lesson plan book I bought. This game is called the basket game, and the purpose of this game is to teach the kids new signs to match everyday objects that they see in school.

I'm going to have a basket, and have a book, pencil, crayon, glue, and paper. When I pull out the object, I'm going to have the kids tell me what it is in english, then I'm going to teach them the signs and have them repeat, this way even when I'm not there they can use these signs during the school day.

Sign Language Game!!

If you click on the following link below you can play a sign language game that sometimes teachers of the Deaf give their students. Reviewing basic sign vocabulary whenever grabbing that item. 
Enjoy the game! I know I had fun playing it! =) 
http://www.labelandlearn.com/lyric_of_the_jungle4.swf

Boyscouts!!

Today after school I'm going over to my friend Kate's house, and I'm teaching a sign lesson to a 9 year old boys troop for their communications badge.

NY school of the Deaf!

I am beyond excited! Next thursday I get to go to the NY school of the Deaf and spend the school day! In the morning, I get to go to the preschool and they're going to let me teach one of the lessons I did over at primrose, then I get to have lunch with the teachers and ask about what schools they recommend to get certified in Deaf education! I cant wait =)

Sign of the Day! [Tired]

Day light saving time is killing me! Enjoy the sign of the day!

Don't Forget to Cite it!

"Baby Sign Language Dictionary." Baby Sign Language. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Mar.
     2011. <http://www.babysignlanguage.com>.

Video of my lesson plan!!!

I wish I had a better lesson plan on tape, this was last minute and not even really planned/thought through. But you get the basic idea of what I've been doing in the classroom for the last month! Usually, I have games/activities planned, but I kept it simple for today =) 

Primrose 'How are you' Lesson

Yesterday I did my third lesson over at primrose, and it was another great success! The kids are having so much fun, and are picking up on all of the signs beautifully. At the end of my lesson, a behavioral consultant came up to me, he said watching my lesson was a great experience and that I was a complete natural and I had great control over the kids, and that he was very impressed with what I was doing!

Made my day =)

lesson blocked...

Not sure what I should do for my next lesson plan at primrose tomorrow. I was talking to Mrs. Stoecker about it briefly the other day, and I know I need to keep the same pattern of reminding the kids the colors, then singing and signing "I can sing a rainbow" The only idea I can come up with is having them watch the goodnight moon video as a fun break from all the great hard work they've been doing!!

I'm just not sure what I want to do next!

Sign(s) of the Day!

Want to learn more ASL?!

If your getting impatient waiting for me to post signs of the day, here are some websites that are ASL (american sign language) video dictionaries. These are the ones I find the most helpful.

www.aslpro.com/
http://www.lifeprint.com/


(My personal favorite, has lots of different info/videos about the life of someone thats deaf, learning sign grammar, and much more!)
http://www.signingsavvy.com/

Expanding the lesson plans!!

Ever since I started teaching baby sign language, I've been focusing on lessons using colors to prepare the kids for my presentation... Since Mrs. Kane's class already knew the song "I can sing a rainbow" My plan is that everytime I come to the class I'm going to have them sign and sing "I can sing a rainbow" in the beginning and end of the lesson, and then I'll be able to try lesson plans for other subjects such as weather, emotions, family, basic conversation.

I plan on emailing Mrs. Kane today to ask if it's possible that I can videotape the next lesson I have so I can post it here!

Lesson 2 at primrose SUCCESS!!

Had the BEST lesson ever today at primrose. It's been 2 weeks since i've seen the kids, and they all remembered all of the signs for the most part! and they were all very enthusiastic about learning more!
We reviewed the colors in the beginning, then we played the color game I explained earlier, then I taught the kids the song I want them to sing/sign for my presentation. And they have it down already!!!! I am SO excited, and happy that I've been able to hold their attention for 30 minutes, and have them able to comprehend the lesson plans.

Sign of the Day! [Child]

Sign of the Day! [Stop]

New Lesson Plan Idea!

Color Blocks 
this activity is going to be the second lesson plan I use with the self contained class over at primrose this week. What I want to do, is have a paper bag full of objects of every color. Have each kid in the class pull out an object from the bag at random, then I'm going to sign "who has red" and whoever has the red object has to raise their hand. and continue with all of the colors.

of course, before I start this activity, I'll have to review the colors with the class to make sure the signs are fresh in their heads since it's been a 2 weeks since i've seen them last!

Sign of the Day! [Eat]

Well, I've been living it up in florida all week, I went to Flagler College today and was offered the opportunity to go with the president of the school to get a tour of the Florida school for the Deaf and Blind, but I couldn't go =(

Enjoy the sign of the day!!!!

Sign of the Day! [Careful]

The Sign of "careful" is the sign for "K" which is the index and middle finger extended and having the thumb touching the middle finger. With both hands in the K sign, have both hands crossing at the wrists and you tap several times.

Enjoy the break !

Sign Language is NOT universal...

Despite what many people believe, Sign Language is not a universal language. There are multiple different kinds of sign language including

British Sign language,French Sign Language, Quebec Sign Language, American Sign Language, Irish Sign Language, Russian Sign Language, Dutch Sign Language, Flemish Sign Language, Belgian-French Sign Language, Spanish Sign Language, Mexican Sign Language, Norwegian Sign Language, and MANY more!

Even baby sign language is different then the traditional American Sign Language.

Sign of the Day! [Family]

Sign of the day is family!! Did you know that 90% of Deaf children are born to hearing poeple whereas only 10% are born to Deaf parents.

Got a response from Columbia !!

The professor of the Deaf Education masters program at Columbia University responded to my email requesting information for how I can help my my journey into the profession of Deaf Education as successful as possible.

She gave me the following website to do more research http://www.deafed.net

Did you know, that the history of teachers who have taught the deaf shows ...
89% are hearing
4% hard of hearing
7% are deaf


Here's a video preview of what a deaf classroom may look like.

Sign of the Day! [Vacation]

Can't wait for February break!!
The sign for 'vacation' is putting your thumbs on your chest =)

Sign of the Day! [Play]

How to start teaching a baby Sign Language...

For the last couple of weeks, I've been babysitting for a family with three kids under the age of 4. Which is perfect for me to test out some of my lesson plan ideas on them. The twin girls just turned 2 last week, they can talk, but they are still kind of hard to understand sometimes, so I've been teaching them some signs.

How To Start:
1. naming something & pointing it out (milk, a dog, book)
2. addressing someone (mom, dad, grandpa)
3. finding something (where shoe?, where toy?)
4. something is gone (food all gone)
5. asking for more (more milk, play again)
5. possessing something (my bear, your toy)

**Most important thing to remember, REPEAT as much as possible**

Sign Of the Day! [I love you]

Happy Valentines Day!!!

Sign Language humor !

Two Is better then one in ASL

This girl actually learned sign language by watching so many youtube clips... pretty cool if you ask me.
Enjoy ! =)

Wanna learn more about Deaf Culture?!

I just ordered A Journey into the Deaf World as recommended to me by Erin Breidenbach from NY school of the Deaf... to learn more about Deaf culture check it out !

Flagler College - Education of the Deaf major

As of right now, I'm planning on going to Flagler College in St. Augustine FL.. (as you can see from the course description below, i have a lot of work ahead of me!)

Program Description

This course of study results in eligibility to receive dual certification in the areas of elementary education (K-6) for hearing children and deaf education (K-12). The deaf education program is nationally-certified and results in eligibility to receive both a state certification and a Council on Education of the Deaf certification which is nationally-recognized. In addition to these dual certifications, students also receive the ESOL endorsement. The course of study in this department requires study in professional education courses, elementary content and methodology courses, and education of the deaf and hard of hearing courses. Depending upon the student's sign language skills, the course of study may require 136 hours to complete. All students participate in practicum courses with elementary schools in the public school system of St. Johns County and the Florida School for the Deaf.

NYSD??!!!

I have pretty exciting news... Today I emailed the lovely Erin Breidenbach from NY school of the Deaf, asking if it was possible for me to come in for a day to do observations, and she said she was going to look into it and let me know!

I get excited about these kinda things...