SPI K-3 Literacy Project For Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Children
ASL Interpreted Stories Now Final!
Story Preservation Initiative is delighted to announce that production is now final on five of its American Sign Language (ASL) interpreted stories. They will be uploaded to the K-3 Storytelling Learning Lab in early September.
The project was developed for young deaf and hard-of-hearing children to promote language acquisition and foster ASL proficiency as well as social and emotional learning. And captions offer great reading support. A giant bonus: the stories are equally valuable for hearing kids to view as a fun and imaginative introduction to ASL. They may just get hooked!
Art by Connie Clanton for SPI
The interpreted stories, which are largely folktales, are enchanting works based on spoken-word stories found in SPI’s K-3 Storytelling Learning Lab. Through the genius of ASL storysigner Ian Sanborn, an eight-year veteran of the National Theatre of the Deaf, they are brought to life visually. Whether those watching are deaf, hard-of-hearing, or hearing, Ian’s ASL storysigning is magic – breaking down barriers and reaching across cultural and linguistic divides.
Watch Ian perform Jay O’Callahan’s story “The Bubble,” here.
Other ASL interpreted stories include:
Odds Bodkin’s “The Evergreens”
Charlotte Blake Alston’s “Anansi’s Children” and “Starfish”
And the SPI original story “Vidaga’s Horn”
ASL is at the heart of Deaf Culture and the Deaf Community. It is a recognized language with all of the complexity, structure, syntax, and storytelling found in spoken languages. As with all languages, the earlier it is learned, the better. These stories are small tools that SPI hopes will be well viewed and loved. We hope to add more to the collection soon. As always, feedback is welcome - click here to contact.
Story Preservation Initiative makes its work available to all, free of charge. We are a small non-profit whose mission is to positively impact the lives of young people through the sharing of ideas, the transformative power of story, and the development of educational materials that engage the hearts as well as the minds of children of all ages and all backgrounds.
Please consider making a donation - in any amount - to help us keep the stories coming. To make a tax-deductible donation, click here.
www.storypreservation.org
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