Help translating some books.....

[chrisspargo]

Hi! My neighbor and I volunteered to do story time (read and sign) at our local library and Barnes and Noble. Noone was doing this so the response was great! Barnes and Noble is going to print flyers and the library actually wants us to "try-out" first. (If we aren't "engaging" enough for the children, they won't put us on their calendar!!!!!) So now I'm nervous! We are doing "Head To Toe" by Eric Carle at the library and our appointment to try-out is Thursday. So, being the beginner that I am.... I think I can only accomplish SEE and of course I want ASL. Any help would be greatly appreciated! I have a great dictionary as well as a link to an on-line dictionary but it's the word order, etc. I have trouble with. At the book store we are doing "Brown Bear, Brown Bear" Thankfully they are both simple books, but I really don't want to mess up!
Thank You! :)

[dmmetler]

With young, hearing children, I'd suggest either PSE or SEE-probably PSE, because if you sign ASL, the word order will not match the book, and as a result, the children won't have any prayer of picking up the sign for "RED CAR, LOOK" when hearing "Look at the red car". If you look at how Rachel does the songs, usually the word signed does match the word sung, and that's what you want to strive for. However, if you sign every word, you'll be moving FAR, FAR slower than most preschoolers and toddlers want you to go unless you're signing at the rate that native ASL speakers sign to each other-in which case, all they'll see is a flurry of hands unless they know ASL already.

When I do Signing Stories in my classes, I tend to go even slower and pick only a few key signs. So, if the text is "Elephant can stomp with heavy feet, Watch me stomp with heavy feet!" I'll sign "ELEPHANT STEP FEET, I STOMP FEET"-and then join the children stomping all around the room.

(Text here is from "Watch ME", which is similar to Head to Toe, but I don't have Head to toe memorized offhand, while I've done "Watch Me" so many times I can do the book in my sleep :) ).

[Teresa Jo]

I have done several signing story times and since I am speaking and signing at the same time (to hearing children), I use PSE. If you need some help with planning content for future presentations, let me know. I can give you some completed program outlines that I have used.

Teresa Jo

[Teresa Jo]

I have Head to Toe and am looking at it now. If I were going to use this for a signing story time, here is what I would do:

I am a PENGUIN.
and I turn my head. (do action while reading)
CAN YOU DO it?
I CAN DO it? (while nodding head "yes")

[aligreat]

In "Brown Bear" if you were using SEE you would literally sign each word you said. Instead of that we use a more ASL translation.
BROWN BEAR, BROWN BEAR
WHAT SEE?
I SEE RED BIRD
"Looking at me" is done using the directional verb "SEE" like in Zoo Train when the animals are looking at me. It's like you are pointing at yourself using the V handshape.
It is one of our favorite books to sign.

My favorite book as a child was "Hand, Hand, Fingers, Thumb." When I sign it, I sometimes borrow my sisters big wooden drum to add to the effect. It has a nice rhythm that lends itself well to signing. The hardest part is the roll-shifting between Jack and Jake because I have to fingerspell the two names back and forth a couple of times, and I do one of them left handed. It's lots of fun.

We also like "Green Eggs and Ham." My DH and I do it back and forth with one of us as Sam and the other of us as the guy who eats. Instead of resigning "Sam I am" at the end of each phrase, we sign "You know that!" because in English using a persons name repeatedly in that manner is done for emphasis.

Hope this helps. Let us know how it goes.

[chrisspargo]

Thank you everyone!! This is a tremendous help! :)

[chrisspargo]

Hi Teresa, Thanks for your help with Head to Toe. I know all of the other animal signs.... but do I have to fingerspell buffaloe? Do you want to e-mail me to talk about the program outlines? I'm really interested in what you have done.
chrisspargo@yahoo.com



I have done several signing story times and since I am speaking and signing at the same time (to hearing children), I use PSE. If you need some help with planning content for future presentations, let me know. I can give you some completed program outlines that I have used.

Teresa Jo

[Teresa Jo]

You can see a video clip of "buffalo" on ASL Browser. (http://commtechlab.msu.edu/sites/aslweb/browser.htm)
"Y" hand shape slightly off center on the forehead represents the buffalo horns.

I'll send you some outlines as soon as I get them typed up properly. I spent my day practicing for a mother's theme program I am doing Monday. I think I'm all set and ready to go!

[alices_dad]

Brown Bear, Brown Bear is one of Alice's favorite books. It's pretty easy to do signs along with reading. The hardest part really is taking a deep breath to do the last page.

By the by, how do you read and sign at the same time if one hand is holding the book?

[chrisspargo]

Hi, thankfully my neighbor and I are doing story-time together so one reads while the other signs!



Brown Bear, Brown Bear is one of Alice's favorite books. It's pretty easy to do signs along with reading. The hardest part really is taking a deep breath to do the last page.

By the by, how do you read and sign at the same time if one hand is holding the book?

[aligreat]

By the by, how do you read and sign at the same time if one hand is holding the book?
At story time you can usually get someone to be your helper. At home we get creative. If I'm alone reading to the kids and the book is a dialog (like Green Eggs and Ham) I use roll shifting. When I am acting as Sam I hold the book in my right hand and sign with the left, and when I switch personalities the book is in my left hand so that I sign with the right. With Hand Hand Fingers Thumb, I usually hold the book with my chin, pinning it to my chest so that the pictures and signs are easily seen. I can't actually read the book from this point of view, but I have it memorized. My little ones are getting big enough so that they want to hold the book, but they still don't have the idea down that pages go in order and that I have to read what is on them. When they hold the book I mostly describe the picture shown.

[dmmetler]

In my experience, the first step to "reading" a book to young children is to come very close to memorizing the book yourself. Usually, with my daughter, she holds the books and turns the pages, while I say the words and sign the book. In my classes, I tend to use larger books which I either hold on my lap, with the book facing out and read/sign or have on an easel or floor-stand, so my hands are free. Either way, I don't really get to see the text-I just have to go based on glimpses of the picture and my memory. You know your kids are truly reading when they start correcting your misremembered versions of a book. For example, in "The Seals on the Bus", instead of being
"All Through the Town, it's All around the Town-something I hadn't realized until a 4 yr old pointed it out to me about the 5th time I'd read the book that week.

[chrisspargo]

Ok.... I have learned 2 signs for "what"..... one is to simply move your open palms (facing up) in front of you and the other is to use your dominant pointer finger to "slice" through your non-dominant palm (facing towards the dominant)
For the story time (Brown Bear, Brown Bear) When I sign "What do you see" which sign should I use?
And can I simply sign "What see?" (I liked that suggestion!) or should I point for "you" what about "do"? It seems I should skip the "do".
Believe it or not I actually took an on-line ASL course, but clearly I need much more! :)

[alices_dad]

Think streamlining.

If you're trying to do SEE, you could put in every single word, but that's cumbersome. Personally, we sign it as, "brown bear brown bear what see?" "see red bird look me". We use the palms up what just because it seems natural.

[chrisspargo]

I just wanted to thank you all for your help. We had our "interview" at the local library for signing story time and they really enjoyed it! It's so funny that we had to basically try-out for volunteer story time! Our audience was 5 librarians and they were all signing with us "I can do it" from the book "Head To Toe" and they loved that the children would be invited to come act out the motions of the animals and at the end demonstrate different things they can do. They hope to put us on their calendar on a monthly basis. :)

[c01dunlap]

How great is that?? Congratulations! Those lucky kids.. ;)