Jana Smith

Hello!  My name is Jana Smith.  I currently work as a special education teacher in the public school system.  My belief is that communication barriers between hearing and Deaf individuals can change through active learning.  It is also important to note that not all deaf individuals use ASL.  Although, it is the preferred and primary language of American Deaf people. There is a comparative ASL/English Language Continuum that I call the “Sign Banana.”  You will see ASL on one end and English on the opposite end.  In the middle you will see other variations such as: Signed English, Seeing Essential English, Signing Exact English, Linguistics of Visual English, Rochester Method, and Cued Speech.  When you sign using a mixture of ASL and English this is called Pidgin Signed English (PSE).  PSE is frequently used by deaf or hard of hearing individuals who learn signing later in life.  As a matter of fact, it is probably the most widely used communication mode between deaf and hearing individuals in the United States.  You and your child will learn basic ASL vocabulary in all of my classes.  It will be fun and easy with a lot of signs, songs, and first words from the Baby Signing Time video collection! You might be wondering, “How can sign language benefit my hearing child?”  It is a visual, gestural language that babies and children can easily mimic before learning to speak.  Cognitively it promotes brain development for early language acquisition.  And your child will not only grow in his or her language acquisition but also in his or her ability to view people with disabilities as just like them.  It also creates a closer parental bond which greatly increases their social-emotional development.  Thus, a child’s ability to learn new information is influenced by their ability to interact with others and their ability to control his or her immediate impulses.   I look forward to working with your family!  There are a wide variety of digital products you can purchase from my store to watch and use immediately on your IOS or Android device with the My Signing Time app, as well as your Kindle. Jana Smith, M.Ed Interpretation for the Deaf, B.S.