This week I have decided to look more into strategies teachers are using to teach the ASL alphabet to their students. The alphabet is a foundational skill in ASL and is a great place for teachers to begin introducing ASL into their classroom. Using ASL alphabet cards or alphabet puzzles could be a great addition to learning centres as well!
ASL Alphabet Cards
Using printable cards with depictions of each letter in ASL is a great way to introduce the ASL alphabet to students. If teachers introduce a new letter each day (or even each week!), students will get a great handle on the ASL alphabet and eventually be able to sign the entire alphabet on their own! Once students have learned how to sign each letter they can move on to sign their names or simple words, using the alphabet cards if they get stuck or forget a letter. A free printable version of these ASL alphabet cards are available on the Look! We’re Learning website.
ASL Alphabet Puzzles
Once students have learned some (or all) of the ASL alphabet we can check their understanding using alphabet puzzles. These puzzles are simply pictures of both a letter and its sign for students to match up. This is a great way for students to show what they have learned and work in small groups!
ASL Alphabet song
Singing the alphabet song while signing is a great way to both learn and review the ASL alphabet. Below is a slow version of the alphabet song from the Laura Berg Life YouTube Channel. It is perfect for students who are just starting to learn the ASL alphabet because it is slow and the hand placements are very clear. This channel has other videos teaching the ASL alphabet without the song that could be very beneficial as well.
Thanks for reading, come back to follow my progress!
rachelroses
Hi Hailey, great job on all these resources, it’s so great to have them all available to me! I like that you start with the basic alphabet for all of your resources, since that’s such a great jumping off point to start learning a new language. Also I like that you used different styles of teaching ASL: cards, puzzles, and a song, since students will respond better to different ways of learning. Good job!
jessicaliebe
Hi Hailey! As always, I greatly appreciate how many resources you provide each week! I really liked your thoughts on alphabet cards for learning ASL. I agree that it could be a very simple and easy way to get students to start learning some ASL. I also think that learning a song alongside the signs for the alphabet would definitely make it easier to remember. Thanks for sharing!