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From:
Valerie Sutton Date: Fri May 22, 1998 6:37 pm Subject: New Homeschool In Literacy Project | |
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Hello Everyone - I am happy to announce that we have a second homeschool participating in the SignWriting Literacy Project. It is run by Melissa Benson. Actually, Melissa has already introduced herself to the SignWriting List, so some of this may be information you already know. Later I will post her letter and web report on the new web page, created just for Melissa and her children :-) Here is Melissa's web report... From: Sign4baby Date: Thu, 21 May 1998 17:53:37 EDT To: SignWriting List Subject: Re: Web Report #1 FROM: Melissa Benson Foundation Christian School 8071 22nd Street Westminster, CA. 92683 1. Why do you want to learn SignWriting?... I would like to be a part of the SignWriting Literacy Project. I homeschool and have three children...two hearing children, and one deaf child. I am interested in learning and teaching SignWriting to my children because I believe it will enhance the learning of ASL for all three of them, and will improve my deaf child's literacy by allowing her a way to read and write her first language, ASL. 2. What have been some of your past frustrations when teaching?... My biggest frustration has been finding appropriate materials for young Deaf children. Most early childhood books are based on rhyme or non-sense words. I am excited about the possibilities with SignWriting and creating books for my daughter that rhyme in ASL. 3. Are you hoping that SignWriting might help? If so, in what way?... Yes!! SignWriting will give us a whole new way to approach ASL and literacy. I believe giving my daughter her own natural language will help eventually incorporate written English into her life. 4. The SignWriting Teacher's Forum has a free web page for you and your students. How would you like to use your web page?... I would like to post our progress on our web page. For example, I would like to post ways I have developed to teach SignWriting, and how the children have responded to it. 5. Please write any other information about your group that you would like to share... My name is Melissa, and I grew up here in Orange County CA. At 16 I moved to Oregon with my parents, finished high school, then joined the air force. During my time in the air force is when I became a mother, and my world changed! I now have three children, Jimmy 8, Josiah 6, and Miranda 3. Miranda was born Deaf. My husband and I both have deafness in our families, so it wasnt a shock. We are also foster parents to Deaf kids and hope one day we will be able to adopt a Deaf child. We started ASL classes back in 95 and have been taking turns attended the classes so the other parent can be home with the kids. We have even hosted sign workshops in our home. We love the language, and our new Deaf friends. I stumbled across the SignWriting home page while searching for proof that ASL is what my daughter needed educationally( the schools out here all use S.E.E.). I was so happy to find it and Valarie is always so sweet and helpful. So now i am in the proccess of learning to SignWrite, and teaching it to all three of my children. I homeschool them. All three of my children are bright and a joy to teach. My husband works very hard so that i can stay home and teach them. We feel very lucky to be together. I have known my husband since i was 11 years old, when we met at church youth camp. Well that is about my family in a nut shell. This is very exciting for me. I feel as if I finally have found something that will not only benefit my daughter educationally, but that will benefit her emotionally as well. I have encountered so few hearing parents that feel the same as I do regarding deafness and ASL. Thank you so much for allowing me and my daughter this opportunity. Valerie Sutton and the Deaf Action Committee For SignWriting have our full permission to post this report to the SignWriting List, and on the SignWriting Web Site. Name: Melissa Benson Position: Teacher Date: 5-21-98 _____________________________ Valerie Sutton :-) https://www.SignWriting.org Sutton at the DAC Deaf Action Committee For SignWriting Box 517, La Jolla, CA, 92038-0517, USA (619)456-0098 voice (619)456-0010 tty (619)456-0020 fax |
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