Creative Communities - BC Library Conference 2015

Research reveals that children who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing (HOH) are more likely to struggle with reading than their age peers who can hear. Children in Deaf/HOH families may need alternate, multimodal routes to literacy in their early years, yet many librarians do not know how to best support them. This session explores a family storytime model designed in partnership with Family and Community Services and Provincial Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services at the Ministry of Children and Family Development. In this model - piloted at Vancouver Public Library and recently introduced at Burnaby Public Library - stories, songs and rhymes are simultaneously presented in ASL and English. The program is lead by a Deaf storyteller from Family and Community Services and a children's librarian, along with two sign language interpreters. It celebrates linguistic and cultural diversity, and is inclusive of Deaf, Hard of Hearing and hearing families. This session will provide attendees with a compelling rationale for ASL/English storytimes, as well as practical how-tos for implementation in your own communities. We will include a demonstration with visual props, a slide show of actual programs, and handouts of sample program plans. Attendees will also have the opportunity to learn some ASL rhymes that can immediately be integrated into all kinds of storytime programs. The session will be presented in both English and American Sign Language.