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Notes for lesson plan
development:
Font
snake
buzz
if it is to be
lazy dog
tic tac toe
hangman
Bingo using words
Bingo, group of 5, take turns spelling one word from the grid, try to get five in a row before your teammates.
Helen Keller Speller
Relay
Wheel of Fortune
Management:
* When a student wins a game, have him spell his name to another student who
writes it on the board for later choosing between 1 and 100 to see which student
(from the names on the board of students who won games) is closest to the number
and wins the prize.
* When it comes time to pick a number between 1 and 100 have a student go
to the board where the names are listed and have him spell RANDOM names from the
list (not in order) to the class and those people then do their number and the
person at the board writes them down.
* Make sure to teach the sign "PASS" and give students the opportunity to "pass"
so you don't stress them out.
In a message dated 11/15/2009 7:51:01 P.M. Pacific Standard Time, dolphindawn99@
writes:
Do you have any ideas on how I can improve my finger spelling--specifically
increasing speed. I can read it really well and use your recommended site to
practice but I need more practice with expressive finger spelling. Any ideas?
Answer:
Practice common letter
combinations until you can do them without thinking.
Say them in your mind the way they are pronounced in english at the same time as
you spell them.
Never think the "individual letters." When spelling "rig" in your mind SAY "rrr--i-gh"
as if you were pronouncing the word in English simultaneously while spelling it.
Sample combinations:
bat, cat, fat, hat, mat, pat, sat, vat
big, cig, dig, fig, gig, mig, pig, rig,
etc.
Question: A student asks: "If you have a name that is a word (like
'Hope'), would it be appropriate to use the sign for that word, or would you
still spell it?"
Response: In general if you are first entering the Deaf community and
have not yet been given a name sign I recommend you spell your name. Then after
you've associated with us sufficiently you will probably be given a name sign by
your new Deaf friends or associates. If your English name also happens to be a
general English word your new name sign may or may not end up being related to
the ASL sign for the English concept. If your English name is "Hope" we may or
may not use the sign "HOPE" as your name sign.
* I recommend that Hearing newcomers to the Deaf community do not pick their own
name sign since they likely do not know what name signs are currently in use in
the local community or wider Deaf World.
* If your name is "Hope" there might be someone else in your local Deaf
community with the same name who is already using the sign HOPE as her name
sign.
* I met a lady named Charity. Her name sign consisted of "half" of the sign for
CHARITY and then the sign for BOSS. In actual use, the thumb of the dominant "C"
hand was touched to the upper left chest area and then to the right shoulder
area (by right-handed signers).
* A friend of mine is named Roseann. Her name sign moves from one side of the
nose to the other as it changes from an "R" into an "A."
* If someone named "Hope" were to enter the Deaf community and people were to
spell her name, it is likely that the spelling of the name would become somewhat
lexicalized (which in this situation means the fingerspelling would morph to
take on the characteristics of a "sign"). For example, the letters "O" and "E"
might only actively use the index finger, the middle finger, and the thumb.
* I know a fellow who has a last name of "Cheeseman." His name sign is a
combination of CHEESE and MAN.
* It is very likely that a person with a last name of "King" would end up with a
name sign of KING or perhaps the initial of their first name done using the
movement of KING.
* People whose names are reminiscent of "things" often end up with name signs
for those things. For example I know a lady whose name is Rainee and her name
sign is RAIN.
* People whose names mean common English words that are short will likely end up
fingerspelled. For example, "Pat" is quite likely to be fingerspelled. On the
other hand, a person named "Pat" might end up with people signing her name by
"patting" the area over their heart, or patting their head.
* I know a fellow named "Tuck" and we all sign his name by miming the action of
tucking something into an imaginary (or real) breast pocket.
* I know a fellow whose last name is "Steed." We all sign his name as "HORSE."
* I don't know anyone personally with a (last) name of "Steel," but I could
certainly envision him receiving a name sign of "METAL-(steel)."
- Dr. Bill
Question: A student asks: "It's easy to understand B-I-L-L-V-I-C-A-R-S
because you're unlikely to meet anyone (at least in America) named Bi Llvicars,
but what would you do if you have an unusual/ambiguous first/last name break? It
seems like you could 'pause' between the two, but seeing how quickly skilled
signers fingerspell, I doubt that's the right answer."
Answer: Actually, your answer is right. We do "pause" when
transitioning between two parts of a fingerspelled concept. It is a challenge
for newbies however to recognize such transitions because the pauses tend to be
very brief and or involve a very small lateral (to the side) movement. So your
example is a bit off. It wouldn't be:
B-I-L-L-V-I-C-A-R-S
But rather it would be:
B-I-L-L V-I-C-A-R-S
The "space" between the "L" and the "V" is small but important. You, as a
skilled reader of English, easily catch that "space" which takes up no more than
one "letter" width. The same goes for skilled ASL signers – we can easily
recognize one "letter space" between fingerspelled words.
Cordially,
- Dr. Bill
Research notes: