Learning Activity

Create a Fun, Fictional Family

Subject Area

World Languages

Grade(s)

7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12

Overview

Create a fun, fictional family in the classroom. This should be a humorous activity. View the family signs and pronoun video, then proceed with the activity. The whole class will be involved as the family members attending a wedding. They will be trying to identify family members and relationships by asking yes/no and ‘wh’ questions with personal and possessive pronouns and answering factual information.

This activity was created as a result of the World Languages COS Resource Development Summit.

World Languages (2017) Grade(s): 07-12 - American Sign Language

WL17.ASL.L2.1

Communicate and share using American Sign Language on familiar topics with a variety of words, phrases, and simple sentences in the past time frame.

Unpacked Content

UP:WL17.ASL.L2.1

Knowledge

Students know:
  • strategies to expressively ask for and receptively understand directions.
  • strategies to communicate using phrases and simple topic/comment sentences.
  • strategies for asking and answering yes/no and 'wh' questions.
  • strategies to communicate about daily activities and personal preferences using phrases, simple sentences, and/or listing.
  • strategies to describe an event in the past time frame.

Skills

Students are able to:
  • use ASL to gain information to meet basic survival needs, such as locating a bathroom or a place to eat.
  • expressively and receptively communicate on familiar topics using a variety of phrases and simple sentences.
  • ask and answer questions on factual information using the appropriate ASL sentence type with the correct non-manual markers.
  • communicate about their daily activities and personal preferences.
  • describe an event in the past time frame with the correct ASL word order.

Understanding

Students understand that:
  • effective communication requires knowing how when and why to say what to whom.
  • the purpose of language study is to communicate so one can understand others and be understood.
  • ASL can be used to engage in conversations to share information.
  • interpersonal communication requires the knowledge of linguistic elements.
World Languages (2017) Grade(s): 07-12 - American Sign Language

WL17.ASL.L2.6

Use American Sign Language to connect with other disciplines.

Unpacked Content

UP:WL17.ASL.L2.6

Knowledge

Students know:
  • vocabulary used to discuss subject-specific content such as math, science, geography, and history .
  • vocabulary used to identify family members and family relationships.
  • vocabulary used to identify community information.

Skills

Students are able to:
  • discuss topics from other school subjects using appropriate ASL vocabulary and grammar.
  • identify family members by fingerspelling the names or showing the personal name signs, and describing the relationships between family members.
  • identify community locations, such as schools, and libraries using the appropriate vocabulary.
  • identify community emergency services and personnel using the appropriate vocabulary.
  • identify community transportation types used in the local area with the appropriate vocabulary and classifiers.

Understanding

Students understand that:
  • Proficiency in ASL is a vehicle to gaining knowledge that can only be acquired through that language and its culture.
  • ASL can be used to learn all school subjects.
  • By engaging in one-to-one conversation about other school subject material using ASL, students reinforce their knowledge of those subjects.
World Languages (2017) Grade(s): 07-12 - American Sign Language

WL17.ASL.L2.8

Compare characteristics of American Sign Language and their own language.

Unpacked Content

UP:WL17.ASL.L2.8

Knowledge

Students know:
  • ASL has linguistic features which are not present in English.
  • strategies to identify ASL parameters.
  • strategies to identify meaning changes with parameter changes.
  • strategies to create facial expressions to match the non-manual markers.
  • strategies to use non-manual markers to create questions.
  • strategies to use non-manual markers (basic mouth morphemes) to add descriptive meaning.
  • strategies to differentiate personal and possessive pronouns.
  • when to use personal and possessive pronouns.

Skills

Students are able to:
  • identify the ASL parameters of location, movement, and non-manual markers.
  • show how to use non-manual markers for questions and descriptive meanings.
  • demonstrate the appropriate use of personal and possessive pronouns in ASL.

Understanding

Students understand that:
  • by learning another language one can better understand how the native language works.
  • other understandings will depend on theme taught.
  • American Sign Language has linguistic features which have no equal in English.
  • ASL is a visual language which uses facial expressions for grammar.

Phase

During/Explore/Explain
Learning Objectives

Learning Objectives

Student will:

  • identify family members and relationships using the target language.

  • ask and answer questions using past tense.

  • use personal and possessive pronouns.

Activity Details

*Create a fun, fictional family in the classroom. This should be humorous.

*Students will view the family signs video to support their vocabulary and signing knowledge.

*Ask for two volunteers, one male and one female. They meet, fall in love, get engaged and get married. This is done with mime and signs.

*At the wedding, the whole family shows up. Students choose an index card or the teacher can assign a specific family member position to a student. Cousins, in-laws, aunts, uncles, grandparents, step-mothers, and even the ex-boyfriend can show up. Several cards should tell the student to only give relationship information, such as ‘HIS MOTHER BROTHER’ or ‘HER SISTER DAUGHTER’. This will help students practice comprehension of the family signs and the relationships.

*The students should move around the room and practice expressive and receptive signing skills with their classmates as they try to figure out ‘who’ each person in the wedding party and each person in attendance is supposed to be.

*The teacher or a student can be the person presiding during the ceremony. This can end with the wedding or you can extend it to the reception. Students should be signing in character during this activity; no voicing. The teacher can lead the questioning and discussions so that the past tense is used.

*After the activity, a receptive assessment can be given to assess the students’ abilities to identify family members and relationships. The teacher can sign the family signs, and the students can write the meanings in English. The teacher can also sign relationships, for example, ‘YOUR MOTHER BROTHER WHO?’ to get the answer of UNCLE. Therefore, the family vocabulary, family relationships, questioning words, and pronouns will all be assessed receptively. The students would have expressively practiced the family vocabulary and questioning during the activity.

Assessment Strategies

Assessment Strategies

The teacher will assess the students’ written answers to the receptive assessment.

Variation Tips

This activity can be expanded to include pets and information and descriptions about the fictitious family members.

Background and Preparation

Background / Preparation

Teach family signs, personal and possessive pronouns, yes/no and ‘wh’ questions before this activity. Create index cards with family member vocabulary or family relationships for students to choose.

Review of pronouns and possessives can be done using this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N9ilanrNFe8
 

Digital Tools / Resources

Family Signs Video Resource
http:/www.youtube.com/watch?v=XUg1eKl65p4

Approved Date

Owner (Author)

cmurray
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