Reflective Posting

Writing about the issue of the importance of adding sign language to the preschool classroom, was worthwhile project to write about because of my passion for sign language.  This semester long blog project was a wonderful experience that took me on an emotional and intellectual journey to tell the audience about one aspect of my life as a preschool music teacher.  

I thoroughly enjoyed learning how to set up a blog and writing about my work as a music teacher.  I feel like I accomplished a project that I was at first very nervous to take on.  I found it rewarding to go and find information that validated what I had learned about in workshops, in books and from watching videos about the importance of teaching preschoolers sign language.  Researching and recording my findings was exciting because all of the information that I found, I could tie into real life experiences from teaching the children sign language at my school.  I enjoyed showing the audience some of the pictures of my children and some of the activities that I use and how it benefits them. 

Writing the blog was a positive experience for me because I think when you teach others about what you know, it makes you a stronger teacher.  It made me proud that my preschool is on the cutting edge of trying to teach the children in different ways to reach all of the learning styles.   I am thinking about continuing posting to my blog, as an educational record and to use it as an avenue for other teachers throughout the country to get ideas from for their classroom. 

It’s Spring Program Time!

Singing to our families!

Spring is in the air at our preschool, and the children have grown so much since they first arrived in September.  Not only have they gotten taller, learned to communicate better, they have learned so many new songs from music class.  So what better way to show off what they have learned, but through a Spring Program that will be held the first week of May.  The five three year old classes will sing to their parents on Tuesday, May 3 and the five four year old classes will present on Thursday night, May 5 at 7:00 p.m.

The children have been learning songs all year long from the Spanish curriculum, religious songs and songs with sign language.  The children have enjoyed learning these all of these songs, and they have enjoyed singing with movements.  For some of the younger children, learning all of the words to the songs has been difficult because they are still exploring new vocabulary.  This is a great opportunity to use sign language.  The children still feel like they can participate in the song, even if developmentally, they are not able to form all of the words necessary to sing. By the spring most of the children have not only mastered the signs for the songs, they have also gained confidence in their singing.  These children are belting out the words to the songs with all of their heart.  Teaching sign language with the song improves the child’s ability to learn their spoken language even better and helps them gain language skills earlier and faster that those who did not learn signing (Benitez, 2006).

Clapping to the beat!

 The children will be singing a total of twelve songs to their parents and friends on the night of the Spring Program.  Some of the songs are religious songs that we have sung in chapel using sign language while they sing.  The children will also have the opportunity to show off what they have learned through their Spanish through music class.

 Not only have the children learned Spanish through song and movement, they have learned the sign for each word that they have learned in Spanish.  The children are really becoming tri-lingual, learning and reinforcing a word in English, Spanish and American Sign Language.  Sign Language enables a child to grow up “bi-lingual” with abilities to learn to communicate from different sources, one based on hearing and the spoken word; one based on physical movement  (Benitez, 2006). 

The preschool children that will be singing in the Spring Program will have been introduced to many of the colors, animals, body parts, family members in English, Spanish and American Sign Language.  Not every child will remember all the Spanish words or sign language for the English words, but what is most important is that they have been exposed and tried these new words or motions.  Those trials help set the stage in the brain for future language studies.  Studies have shown that teaching sign language to preschoolers, increases I.Q. points by between eight and thirteen points (Benitez, 2006).

Another positive aspect of including Sign Language in the Spring Program is keeps the children busy, who might otherwise be scared singing in front of the audience.  The children are moving instead of just standing at attention for 30 minutes.  Sign Language is considered a source of a fun physical activity, which can create a sense of pride and self-esteem among the children (Benitez, 2006).  The children all agree that their proudest moment of the Spring Program is when they sing and sign, God Bless America to the audience.  To see these little children signing almost all of the words to this song and singing with all of their heart, there is not a dry eye in the audience.  The feeling of great satisfaction and accomplishment is felt by all of the children and teachers.

Benitez, T. (June, 2006) Talk with your hands. Playthings. Retrieved from the Associates Program database.