Happy Thursday! I hope that everyone had a good reading break and are ready for the rest of the semester. As we approach the end of the term, I am continuing to improve my own ASL skills while learning more about how ASL can be used in the classroom. For this week, I am going to look at a first-hand account of a teacher using ASL in their classrooms.

The website I found is called “Education Oasis”, a blog where teachers can share strategies they use in a multitude of subject areas. The article “Using Sign Language in the Classroom” by Rick Morris, discusses how he uses sign language to communicate with his students. In his blog, he gave the students a math problem and had different ways he used ASL to help create more efficient conversations with his students. In the 3 images below, you will see which signs Rick has taught his students.

Images from Rick Morris’ Blog

I could 100% see myself using these communication techniques in my classroom. This is beneficial because if you see a student with their hand raised, you may be unsure of what they are going to say. If you are wanting an answer to a question, but someone still does not understand, the teacher can call on that student before getting the answers so it gives that student a chance to understand. Non-verbal communication in the classroom is extremely important. In the chaos of the day, it can be difficult to be consistently relying on verbal communication. Using ASL can help eliminate confusion in every classroom.

– Ms. G 🙂