A sign of acceptance: Country Heights students learn ASL through school club
Apr. 1—Students at Country Heights Elementary School are able to learn American Sign Language (ASL) in support of their deaf and hard of hearing peers through the sign language club at the school.
Crystal Corum, teacher for deaf and hard of hearing students in Daviess County Public Schools, said she works with five students at Country Heights who are deaf and hard of hearing.
"I also co-teach in the classroom," she said. "If there's a deaf student in the classroom, then I'm also in there and all the students are learning sign language."
Corum said many classrooms incorporate ASL into routines for students to help with classroom management as well as easy communication with all students.
"I am a teacher for the deaf and hard of hearing, but I also have an interpreter with me," she said. "The interpreter goes into the classroom with the student to interpret for them."
The Country Heights sign language club was offered to students this year during the third nine-weeks.
"It was still limited because we could only do it in the mornings when the gym was open," she said. "Primary was on Tuesday mornings and intermediate was on Thursday mornings, but it wasn't every Tuesday and Thursday."
The club is open to any student who wants to join, including those who are deaf and hard of hearing.
"My students are young so they come and participate," she said. "They're not quite ready to teach. It's nice for them to have peers around them signing together."
The deaf and hard of hearing students at Country Heights are excited that their fellow students are learning ASL.
"I asked one of my students how she feels about it and she said it made her feel happy," Corum said.
ASL is considered a different language from English, Corum said.
"When we write in English, it's a different language from when we sign," she said. "They're learning two different languages at a time."
In the club, students learned how to sign their ABCs, their name, conversational introductions and facial expressions. Corum said the entire school also signs the "school pledge" before school every day.
Third-grader Jase Corum said he wanted to begin learning ASL to have conversations with his mother and his deaf and hard of hearing friends. He has been learning sign language since he was a baby.
"It makes it easier to talk to them," he said. "I think others should learn it because if there are others in their class that are deaf and no one talks to them, you can learn and talk to them."
Fifth-grader Millie Lewis said she has been learning ASL for five months.
"I wanted to talk to other people at the school," she said. "I learn at home and at school."
Lewis said she has used phone apps and YouTube videos to advance her ASL knowledge.
Country Heights secretary Nea Cowan has a daughter, Tinsley, who is deaf and attends the school.
"It's indescribable because it's a huge thing as a parent to worry about; you want your child to have friends; you want them to be able to communicate," she said. "To know there's kids willing to take that extra step, there's no way to describe how amazing that is."
Cowan still she'll never forget the day she found out Tinsley was deaf.
"I remember what I wore; I remember what I ate; I remember what time her appointment was," she said. "It was such a huge moment. The first thought I had when they said she was deaf was how was I supposed to communicate with my daughter?"
Cowan said the experience was scary and overwhelming.
"To see where we were then to where we are now, it's just amazing," she said. "She talks, she signs, she's doing amazing in school, she has amazing friendships. She's just this awesome human."
