Vocabulary
Science and Social Studies are two subjects with a lot of
vocabulary. In order for students with a hearing loss to be successful with
these subjects a lot of pre-teaching of vocabulary may need to happen. This can
be done in a variety of ways. One way
that I believe is helpful for students is flashcards. Flashcards can be very useful for students to
have quick access to when looking for a definition and a great tool for
reviewing and studying. Another way a
student can learn vocabulary is through graphic organizers. Students can be responsible for completing an
organizer on a specific vocabulary word which will help them gather information
on the word. For science there is a lot
of vocabulary that can be covered by watching videos. Videos help give these students a visual of
what is happening and what something may look like. There is also the option of making a model of
the terms used in science for example, a model of a cell. Students can always
be encouraged to use these words when writing to help enhance their
understanding of the word.
How will I prepare to teach science and social studies?
I will need to take a lot of preparation to teach these
subject areas. In order to effectively
teach these subjects I will need to look at the material ahead of time. It will be important to look up how to sign
various words for the student to understand.
I want to be knowledgeable on the subject as much as possible so I will
be able to answer any questions the students may have. When it comes to vocabulary I will need to
think about other ways I can explain it to the student in case they do not
understand the definition in the books.
Similarities/Differences to Metaphors/Analogies
The most common way for students to organize similarities
and differences among a topic is through a graphic organizer- Venn diagram. This is a great strategy for student to have
a visual on what is different between two things and what they have in
common. In order to take it to the next
step, I believe students need to incorporate it into writing. They need to be prompted with questions that
encourage them to relate information to other things. This is where the higher level critical
thinking questions should be used. It will
take a lot of modeling and examples to get these students to think outside the box.
I feel these are two areas that I worry about when it comes to my sign skills. There are many big/long words that must be fingerspelled and do not have a sign for. Brandi informed us of an app that does teach these signs for the different subject areas. I hope that I can convince my school to purchase this app for me, the interpreters, and the students. I've seen first hand how well graphic organizers work with teaching students new vocabulary words during my practicum this semester. I like how you mentioned using videos as well-this is a great visual way for our DHH students to learn the word and or concept. I feel part of our plan time we use during the week must be used to gather the materials that are used in the regular classroom and we must teach ourselves the material so we can be prepared to fully teach our students. From experiences told to us, this may not always be the easiest task of gathering those materials from the regular education teacher. During one of my observations, the school using a tool called "Drop Box"- all the teachers place their lesson plans and class materials on this online resource and any teach can access it. This would be so beneficial to us! Good job!
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