Miss-Delectable
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Silence is golden learning opportunity at Burger Middle School - Henrietta, NY - Henrietta Post
Colleen Jones-Bingham has the quietest class at Burger Middle School.
As a teacher of American Sign Language, or ASL, she immerses her students in the language by asking them not to talk from the moment they enter the classroom until the moment they leave at the end of the period.
“We turn off our voices when we walk in the room and learn a way to communicate with each other,” said Jones-Bingham, who teaches seventh- and eight-grades classes at the school through the Board of Cooperative Educational Services.
It takes some time getting used to not being able to talk, but it’s an interesting challenge, said seventh grader Marissa Watts.
“It’s a different way of communicating,” she said. “I don’t (always) understand what a sign is, but there are always context clues to figure out what is trying to be said. I knew it was the only language where you don’t talk, and you can’t write ASL, but it’s still a language itself.”
ASL is a very visual language, said Jones-Bingham, and students who learn best visually often excel in the class.
“It’s really nice to be in a class that is really quiet,” added seventh grader Nick Laury. “There aren’t many distractions. People who are easily distracted should take the ASL class.”
He said he decided to take the class because he has a parent who is deaf.
“I thought I’d take ASL, that it might improve my ASL,” he said. “I’ve been taught ASL my whole life. ... I just learn more sign language in this class.”
Students at Rush-Henrietta are offered ASL courses all the way through high school.
“I think any program that exposes children to a language — especially ASL or deaf culture — is great because you can meet a deaf person anywhere in Rochester,” said Jones-Bingham, adding that some of her students have a parent, sibling or friend who is deaf.
She added, “I tell my students all the time, they could have a deaf friend, a deaf coworker, even a deaf child. You never know.”
She herself began learning ASL in second grade because she had a friend who was deaf. Ever since, she has been intrigued by the language and deaf culture.
“Through school, all I wanted to do was sign,” she said. “It was fascinating to learn a different way to communicate with individuals other than talking.”
She tries to expose her students to the culture as much as possible, by keeping up with current events on the issue and bringing in guests who are deaf. One of the biggest lessons she wants her students to take away from her class is that deaf people are no different than hearing people, besides the fact that they cannot hear.
She added, “Every deaf person has a different story.”
Colleen Jones-Bingham has the quietest class at Burger Middle School.
As a teacher of American Sign Language, or ASL, she immerses her students in the language by asking them not to talk from the moment they enter the classroom until the moment they leave at the end of the period.
“We turn off our voices when we walk in the room and learn a way to communicate with each other,” said Jones-Bingham, who teaches seventh- and eight-grades classes at the school through the Board of Cooperative Educational Services.
It takes some time getting used to not being able to talk, but it’s an interesting challenge, said seventh grader Marissa Watts.
“It’s a different way of communicating,” she said. “I don’t (always) understand what a sign is, but there are always context clues to figure out what is trying to be said. I knew it was the only language where you don’t talk, and you can’t write ASL, but it’s still a language itself.”
ASL is a very visual language, said Jones-Bingham, and students who learn best visually often excel in the class.
“It’s really nice to be in a class that is really quiet,” added seventh grader Nick Laury. “There aren’t many distractions. People who are easily distracted should take the ASL class.”
He said he decided to take the class because he has a parent who is deaf.
“I thought I’d take ASL, that it might improve my ASL,” he said. “I’ve been taught ASL my whole life. ... I just learn more sign language in this class.”
Students at Rush-Henrietta are offered ASL courses all the way through high school.
“I think any program that exposes children to a language — especially ASL or deaf culture — is great because you can meet a deaf person anywhere in Rochester,” said Jones-Bingham, adding that some of her students have a parent, sibling or friend who is deaf.
She added, “I tell my students all the time, they could have a deaf friend, a deaf coworker, even a deaf child. You never know.”
She herself began learning ASL in second grade because she had a friend who was deaf. Ever since, she has been intrigued by the language and deaf culture.
“Through school, all I wanted to do was sign,” she said. “It was fascinating to learn a different way to communicate with individuals other than talking.”
She tries to expose her students to the culture as much as possible, by keeping up with current events on the issue and bringing in guests who are deaf. One of the biggest lessons she wants her students to take away from her class is that deaf people are no different than hearing people, besides the fact that they cannot hear.
She added, “Every deaf person has a different story.”