When Carrie E. Tompkins Elementary School sign language interpreter Christine Fico noticed how enthusiastic students in Linda Reich’s third-grade class were about learning how to say the Pledge of Allegiance in sign language, she extended the interest to a lunch club for all third-grade students.“The response was overwhelming,” she said. “When other third-graders saw what was going on, they begged to join.”
Soon, the club was meeting two days a week, and the group of 12 students haven’t missed a single meeting.“Students learned signs related to playground, food, colors and numbers, and my deaf student suddenly had friends to communicate with,” said Fico. “Their interest didn’t stop there, however, and holiday songs were the next step. They learned so quickly and had so much fun with the language – their new super power – that the only thing left was to record them.”
The students learned the lyrics to the Pharrell song “Happy” and recorded a music video that was edited by a former CET student, who is also deaf.“Teachers, aides and lunch staff also started learning signs and recognizing the beauty of this 3-D language,” said Fico.
An end to a successful first year for the Signing with a Friend Club was fitting as the group was invited to sign “Happy” at the spring concert.
Click here to watch a video of the event
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