Lesson PlanVocabulary American Sign LanguageFood

Context: This lesson is designed for a novice American Sign Language class. Students in the class have varying native languages, so the entire lesson is to be taught in sign. Objective: Students will learn the vocabulary signs for common food items: Food Apple Banana Orange Pizza Spaghetti Taco Sandwich

Hamburger Hot Dog French Fries Milk Ice Cream Cookie Cake

Standards: WIDA ELP PreK-K Standard 5, Speaking/Listening Level 1: Repeat names of different types of food. VA Social Studies SOL K.7: The student will a) recognize that people make choices because they cannot have everything they want; b) explain that people work to earn money to buy the things they want. VA English SOL K.6: The student will demonstrate an understanding that print makes sense. a) Explain that printed materials provide information. b) Identify common signs and logos. c) Read ten high-frequency words. d) Read and explain own writing and drawings. Materials/Resources: -Picture card of each food item (attached) -Whiteboard/marker -Concentration game cards (one set per pair with pictures of food items) (pictures attached) Content and Instructional Strategies: Teaching vocabulary meaning and pronunciation/sign formation (7 minutes) 1. Show picture of food and sign food. Show several other cards, continuing to sign the word, to indicate that all the items are foods. Indicate that the class should repeat the sign. 2. Show the picture of an apple and sign apple. Indicate that the class should repeat the sign. 3. Continue with banana and orange. For orange, draw the letter o on the board to indicate the hand shape of the sign. 4. Review first four words by holding up a picture (out of order), doing the sign, and having the class repeat. 5. Continue the sequence, one by one, of showing the picture, doing the sign, and having the class copy the sign for pizza, spaghetti, taco, and sandwich. Point out each hand shape and motion explicitly,

especially for pizza by showing the shape and then writing a z on the board to indicate the motion of the hand. 6. Review the first eight signs out of order. 7. Continue with hamburger, hot dog, and French fries. 8. Review those three signs. 9. Continue with milk, ice cream, cookie, and cake. 10. Review the last seven signs out of order. Confirm understanding (4 minutes) 1. Mime instructions for the next activity: sign one word then hold up that picture card, then indicate that students should repeat that sign. 2. Pass out picture cards to students. Each student should have two or three cards. 3. Sign a word, one at a time, and indicate that the student with that picture should hold it up. Students should then copy the sign. Evaluate students hand shapes and signs, correcting as necessary. 4. Repeat with each word. If students are still hesitating with identifying pictures and signs, repeat each word a second time. If students seem confident, move to the next activity. Partner practice (4 minutes) 1. Mime instructions for the next activity: using one set of Concentration cards, mime laying out the cards and choosing a pair. Sign each word as the picture is flipped over. If the pair matches, the cards are removed from the game; if not, new cards are chosen. 2. Divide students into pairs and give each pair a Concentration game (ten pairs of words each). 3. Monitor students comprehension and signing, correcting as necessary. 4. If students have extra time, have pairs switch sets of cards. Evaluation: During group practice and partner practice, informally assess each students level of understanding and competence. Adjust instruction accordingly. Differentiation and Adaptations: This lesson is designed for novice language users who have no prior knowledge of the language. If some students have prior knowledge of the language, they can serve as facilitators for those who do not. If all students and the teacher share a native language, the teacher can facilitate instruction by describing the appropriate hand shapes and motions in the native language and providing mnemonics to help remember signs (for example, pizza is the shape of a z because of the word). Reflection: What I liked about this lesson: The students seemed to enjoy learning about food vocabulary. The words were relevant to their lives. I think I paced the lesson well. Students had time to practice each small set of vocabulary before moving on to more complicated words. This increased comprehension. What I would change about this lesson: I would have used bigger pictures. I would have put the pictures on a poster so I could hang one visual instead of having to fumble with magnets, which took my attention away from students and made me turn my back to them. I would have taught students (earlier) to say I like so they could talk about their food vocabulary in an authentic context. They could have practiced with a partner to say I like _____. The students seemed to enjoy the concentration game, but it took too long. I would have divided the words into even smaller chunks to make games with fewer cards so they finished faster (then switched sets of games so all students had practice with all words). I would have liked to individually assess students knowledge of the vocabulary. I would have made sure all students could see all the signs.