ASLII Deaf experience paper
On Wednesday October 24, I had the opportunity to have my first deaf experience with deaf children. Thanks to my ASL teacher name, I had the opportunity to visit the Elementary school speech therapist. The feeling of being with deaf kids outside of my area of school and friends is like knowing that the language not only exists within the walls of school or classroom but that there is a whole other world full of it. Talking to the deaf kids in their own language was great, I wasn’t as nervous as I would be in front of a teacher or classmates, although the kids where sort of shy at first. I felt freer to just flow, and let the language take over; it was really rewarding. In my attendance, I discovered the world of a speech therapist who works with deaf kids; how she helped them vocalize and find their voice and understanding of the world of English and hearing people. This is my dream job, the ability to help deaf kids for a future; I absolutely loved having been a part of this experience. I have learned a lot, such as the ways of testing in special to the FCAT. Many times deaf kids are required to take the FCAT depending on their academic level. These kids have their own learning environment the have special hearing aids used to hear teachers better. While in the sessions I noticed Speech Therapist, Nancy Peduzzi , handling the loudness of her microphone which was directed to the child’s hearing aid. I found that fascinating, she explained to me that, they were specialized for that reason, and that each classroom with deaf children has a speaker used to make noises louder so the kids can hear better. I absolutely loved the experience and hope to return soon for another