Smile and Sign - Introduction to American Sign Language Vocabulary and Phrases

Hello! Welcome to the world of American Sign Language.  It's so nice to meet you!

American Sign Language is the third most-used language in the United States, and over 70 million people around the world use some form of sign language. My goal is to foster a love for this unique language and to encourage learners to continue their learning well beyond basic vocabulary. 

Each week, a new topic will be discussed.  We will learn the signs for 8-15 vocabulary words in each category. We occasionally will also learn to sign simple phrases associated with those words. 

This class is ONGOING. No previous signing experience is necessary, as the lessons do not build on each other. Your learner may join in at any time and be able to participate fully.  I ask that new learners stay a couple minutes after class so that I can explain how it works a bit more in detail.

Each lesson will include a hands-on lesson with lots of modeling.  This is an interactive course where students will be asked to model the signs that are taught to them.  This will be a high-energy, fast paced course, which will involved lots of movement in order to keep our young learners interested. 

Each week, learners will receive a short video of the signs that were taught so that your learner can keep practicing. This will be posted in the classroom at the conclusion of class. 

Let's get signing!

Class Format: 

10-15 Minutes: Introductions and Greetings *see class policies

15-20 Minutes: Interactive Lesson (fast-paced, hands-on)

5 Minutes: Recap/Game, Preview of Next Week, Goodbyes


Lessons will go in the following order *subject to change*:

Week of 9/16: Numbers 0-10
Week of 9/23: Colors
Week of 9/30: More Colors
Week of 10/14: Animals (Pets) 
Week of 10/21 Animals (Farm Animals)
Week of 10/28: Animals (Wild Animals)
Week of 11/4: Family Members 
Week of 11/11: Food (Fruits)
Week of 11/18: Food (Veggies)
Week of 12/1: Emotions 1
Week of: Emotions 2
Week of 12/8: Months of the Year (Jan-June)
Week of 12/15: Months of the Year (July-Dec)
Week of 12/29:Days of the Week
Week of 1/5: Games
Week of 1/12: Sports 1 (team sports)
Week of 1/19: Sports 2 (individual sports)
Week of 1/26: Transportation
Week of 2/2: Weather
Week of 2/9: Physical Features
Week of 2/16: Clothing 1 
Week of 2/23: Clothing 2
Week of 3/2: House & Home 1 (Rooms in the House)
Week of 3/9 : House & Home 2 (Furniture)
Week of 3/16: House & Home 3 (Misc.)
Week of 3/23: Jobs
Week of 3/30: Hobbies
Week of 4/6: School & Education 1 (Places in a school)
Week of 4/13: School & Education 2 (Subjects)
Week of 4/20: In the kitchen
Week of 4/27: In the bathroom
Week of : In the bedroom
Week of : Starter ASL Signs
Week of : Tools
Week of : Beverages
Week of : Nature
Week of : Breakfast Foods
Week of : Simple adjectives (opposites)
Week of : Common verbs
Week of: Question Words
Week of: Greetings & Basic Manners/Social Vocab
Week of : Emergencies
Week of: Places/Locations
Week of: Seasons/Basic Weather
Week of: Times of the Day
Week of : ASL Alphabet Intro. & Practice 1
Week of : ASL Alphabet Intro. & Practice 2

*content starts over from the top and is subject to change*


** CLASS INFORMATION **

GOAL OF THIS CLASS:
The goal of this class is to learn basic vocabulary and simple sentences using American Sign Language.

HOW WILL WE REACH THIS GOAL?:
Each week, students will learn a new set of vocabulary (as listed above).  Certain weeks, students will learn to use this vocabulary in a simple sentence. This will be a hands-on class, and students will need to participate in order to be successful. Your learner will be asked to utilize "gallery view" during our ZOOM session. This allows students to view all learners - as this is a visual language. 

WHAT PRIOR KNOWLEDGE IS REQUIRED TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN THIS CLASS?:
Simple vocabulary terms in English. Abiity to focus for period of time and copy the teacher.

TEACHING STYLE:
As a teacher for the last 15 years, with many more years of experience with children on top of that, I will use my fun and animated personality to engage learners, interacting with them each step of the way. By keeping the class fast-paced, it helps to keep learners focused.

CLASS POLICIES:
- All late learners will be admitted, however, I am unable to go back and teach them the signs they missed.  For most classes, the first ten minutes are practiced signing our names and catching up. 
- I do incorporate a lot of catching up/free talk in the beginning of class.  I have found this cuts down on the off-task behavior/talking during the teaching of content and I can teach more content in a shorter amount of time.
- I do not require students in this class to be on mute, however if background noise or excessive talking drowns out the sound of the instructions, I will place the child.  They are welcome to unmute themselves as needed.  
- This class is can get quiet, since we are using our hands to do the talking.  Do not be alarmed if you don't hear much coming from your learner.
- While OS does not require cameras to be on (after a learner is verified), I would encourage it. Due to the nature of the class, I will need to see your learner sign in order to correct them or interact with them. If your learner chooses to keep their camera off, they will receive little interaction from myself and other learners, since this is a visual language. 
- Class recordings are generally not posted.  To protect the privacy of all users, all learners in the classroom must be verified before the recording is shared - including those who did not attend.  For this reason, and to encourage practice, I will try to post a video in the classroom or a graphic of the signs learned that day.
- All OS policies will be followed.  Please make sure to be familiar with all policies prior to class.
- Please note that this class is ONGOING and will be charged to parents each Sunday. Before signing up, please ensure you read about how ONGOING classes are charged by OutSchool. Please read about the PAUSE feature before pausing your student's enrollment.  A student who is paused is not guaranteed a seat in the class if it fills during the pause.
- Please note that I am located in Arizona, a state that does not participate in daylight savings.  Class times will be affected during those transition times.  Please make sure to double-check class times before enrolling your child during those changes.