I noticed on the wall everything was labeled from math words, furniture, the alphabet that was presented in cursive and sign language, colors, shapes, temperature, numbers, and word of the day sentences. I think that it is essential for these students to have this connection with the words and the pictures or objects that they represent to help build their vocabulary since they can not hear these words spoken. The mode of communication that was used in the classroom was Signed English. With this type of communication, the goal is to help students learn the structure of the English language while still being able to use a form of sign language.
I observed from 8:30-10:15 and noticed how much reading, spelling, and vocabulary are used in every subject. When I arrived the children were doing calendar time for the day which included learning about the month, year, the day before, present day, tomorrow, the season, time, how many days of school had been completed, and who had birthdays in October. The students must be able to read these words to understand the sign that corresponds and what meaning the word carries so that they can use it when completing morning work.
From 8:40- 9:10 different students worked on various tasks. One student in the third grade, John worked on his morning work using frequently used works, while two other boys used Microsoft Word. Markus who is in fourth grade with multiple disabilities worked to identify words and learn how to recognize letters on the keyword that the interpreter Kara signed. Branden, who is in fifth grade worked on typing sentences that describe a picture that he found on the internet. An interpreter intern student from UT helped him complete this task. Jasmine, who is in the fourth grade, worked with the teacher, Ms. Sally, on math problems. She used a small white board to work on these problems.
Starting at 9:15, the students learned about China on the globe, how to fingerspell/sign the word, and how to use chopsticks. I believe this lesson helped the students connect with the rest of the world while helping with fine motor skills.
At 9:30, the teacher, Ms. Sally read a book to the students that Branden had picked out. The book was called "Horrorble Book", which she pointed to as saying. The teacher did a wonderful job of presenting the concepts of print. She stated things such as: "I see an eyeball, spider web, and skeleton. What do you all see?" She then said "Let's open the book." She did an awesome job of acting out the book as she signed to the students. She asked questions before going to the next page. The students were also allowed to touch the pages and express the pictures that they saw on each page. I thought that this activity should a great way to get students to interact with one another, the teacher, and the book.
When it was 9:50, Jasmine and Branden had their spelling tests. Since the students are at different grade levels they each had ten different words. After the test, Ms. Sally explained to the students ways to improve their spelling. She expressed the need that they need to write them down to help study and could also have their parents help them study throughout the week. I believe that it is essential to get to parents involved in the student's learning. A parent who helps the student learn, creates a connection that will help the child feel confident about learning in all aspects of education. John worked on making origami during this time, which I also believe helped the students with fine motor skills, and connecting with the world. Markus used flexible rubber cords to spell out recognition words. This ended at around 10:15 when I had to leave.
Overall I learned that reading must be incorporated into all subjects of learning. This can be done through hands-on interactive lessons, which I feel is essential for students who are deaf and hard of hearing. I also feel that it is important for the teacher, interpreters, and parents to support the student when learning how to spell and read, to create a comfortable safe learning environment. I also think that parents should understand that learning should carry over to time spend out of the school day as well. Teachers must also realize that every minute counts while the student learns at school because the majority of their day is spent in the school environment. Learning should be fun but meaningful at the same time. This observation helped me realize just how much reading and spelling is used throughout the learning process for students.
Note: All names are pseudonyms.
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