From the Director

DATES TO REMEMBER:

April 20—Spring Fling April 22-29—School Closed for Spring Break

April 20—K– 5 Family Night May 3—car wash at DSD to benefit the junior class

APRIL 2011 Delaware School for the Deaf

STATEWIDE PROGRAMS FOR THE DEAF, HARD OF HEARING AND DEAF-BL IND

A Letter to our DSD Community:

Life is about choices. From the most rudimentary thoughts and ideas as infants to the more sophisticated critical

thinking skills we possess as adults, we make hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions of choices in our lifetime. You

have heard me reference to you in the past the goal of DSD and Statewide Programs to help parents make informed deci-

sions regarding their child’s education. We do this through family education programs for newly diagnosed families,

through spoken language workshops and ASL classes for families, through family nights and family weekends spon-

sored by our various programs and last but not least, through the IEP team. Partnerships with our families is VITAL

to ensure that we are meeting the needs of the whole child, not just focusing on his/her language and communica-

tion needs.

At DSD/Statewide Programs, we see the whole child, not just his ears, not just his mouth, we see him for who

he is, and encourage all domains to grow and develop to the best of his ability. We support the development of both

signed and spoken language, written and read language and more importantly, we encourage each child to find his/her

own voice and be able to express himself as HE wants. Language and communication looks different for each child, and

we work to help that child/family find their individual path. To learn more about the research basis behind our educa-

tional approaches for deaf/hard of hearing students, please read page 3.

On May 14th, a symposium sponsored by the Delaware Academy of Medicine, the Delaware Academy of Oto-

laryngology as well as CHOICES Delaware entitled “Update 2011: Managing Listening, Language and Educational

Outcomes for Today’s Children with Hearing Loss” will be held in Newark, DE. This symposium focuses on the bene-

fits of a listening and spoken language approach to deaf education. It does not appear to address in depth the benefits of a

bilingual approach to education. In fact, this symposium was planned with no input from the curricular leadership at

DSD, nor from any other group that supports bilingual education for deaf students. Coincidentally, this symposium was

scheduled on the same day as our Community Day in Cape Henlopen.

As I said, life is about choices. In order to make sure we have enough representation at this symposium,

we have decided to CANCEL the Community Day for this year. We feel that we cannot sit by while this seminar

advocates only one view of education of deaf and hard of hearing students. We cannot sit by and watch while the medi-

cal/clinical view of deafness is promoted as the best way for deaf students to learn.

In lieu of a day at the beach, we will put our efforts toward attendance at the symposium. If you and your fam-

ily would like to attend, I encourage you to register at no charge - http://tinyurl.com/3dcjgzy . Other states have seen

their communities torn apart by this debate. We will not allow this to happen. DSD/Statewide programs has instituted a

number of innovative approaches in the last few years and will continue to provide parents with the full educational op-

portunities that their child needs. If you, the parents of students who are receiving a bilingual education, would like to

make your feelings known about the 360-degree program your child receives, I encourage you to take a seat next to us at

the symposium.

Let me know if you have any questions or would like to talk more about this topic.

APR IL 2011 PAGE 2

At DSD, we truly individualize each

students’ program. As you may or

may not know, there are currently 17

students who receive part of their edu-cation at DSD, but who also attend

local schools for specialized classes.

There are some DSD students who

attend these programs for the full aca-

demic day, and participate in sports/

activities at DSD only. In order to

make classes accessible for these stu-

dents, they are accompanied by certi-

fied educational interpreters. We’d

like to point out recent examples of

how our students have shined. Please read on for a few of those students:

Congratulations to senior Alanna S. for being presented the “Outstanding

Spanish Student” award for the 2nd

marking period at Christiana High

School.

Alanna was

chosen by her Spanish

teacher, Ms.

Katie Sevilla,

for her fan-

tastic work in Spanish 3. Alanna was

recognized for her Spanish skills at an

awards breakfast at Christiana High

School. Way to go Alanna!

Taylor C. has been placed on the

Distinguished Honor Roll list for the

second straight semester at Hodgson

Voc Tech.

Scott B recently participated in the

Get SET job skills competition and placed 3rd in the bussing/setting ta-

bles completion through Networks

Following the demonstration by

Professor Rocco, Professor Jimmy

Musto and his percussion ensemble

delighted students with a variety of

instruments, ranging from tympanys

to marimbas, a complete drum set

and bass guitar. Featuring the mu-

sic of Beethoven, the Kean Univer-

sity music ensemble performed

twice - to the PreK-5 and 6-12

grade students. DSD students had

been studying Beethoven's life and

works in their classes and this con-

cert was a wonderful illustration of

the maestro's magic. To see our

photo gallery of the day's events,

click here.

Families of DSD students,

students from other districts in

Delaware, and visitors from

the Newark community all

took part in this fantastic

event. Students were given the

opportunity to try their hands

at playing instruments and for

Kean University's music program

visited the Delaware School for the

Deaf and Statewide Programs for

the Deaf, HH and Deaf-Blind on

Wednesday, March 30th. The radio

baton of Professor Rocco intro-

duced students to the rhythm of

music as students were able to

watch a video while trying to keep

the beat. The radio baton for Kean

is a key component in that it can

control a wide range of sounds and

vibrations and it allows students

with hearing loss who may have no

musical training actually conduct

the performance.

DSD students shine in all local school district skies

Kean University “Rocks” DSD/Statewide Programs

a while made music of their own.

The concert, made possible by a grant to Kean

University as well as support of our local com-

munity, not only enriched student's lives, but

opened their eyes to the world of classical

music. Thank you to Kean University for

making this experience possible and thank you

to the teachers and

parents in the state

who made the trip to

Newark so that stu-

dents could partici-

pate in the experi-

ence!

School for Entrepreneurial Services.

Josh B-Y was selected to participate

in the Christina School District art

show housed at Guager Cobbs Mid-

dle School

Tamar G has been selected “student

of the month” for her class at Jennie

Smith elementary and will be an honored guest at a luncheon with the

principal.

DELAWARE SCHOOL FOR THE DEAF PAGE 3

Funnel Cakes ... Courtesy of the Residence Program

DSD Recycles! Congratulations to our high school depart-ment who won our recycling competi-

tion. They collected magazines and

newspapers that when piled up, reached over 101 inches! All together the school made a pile equivalent to 18

feet high! Keep up the good work every-one. Even though the contest is over, the school is still collecting all paper items to be recycled for money! We collect almost

2 tons of paper every month! You can send it in to school with your child or just drop it off in the green and yellow dump-ster in the corner of the parking

lot. Thanks again!

Whoever said that men can’t cook have

never met the aspiring chefs who live in

Dorm A of the Residence Hall. As part

of their activity for the week, the boys

shopped for their ingredients, and

planned out the lesson to teach students in

Dorms C and D how to make the delecta-

ble treat of funnel cakes. The boys in

Dorm A made the activity fun for all, and

even

taught the

girls a

thing or

two about

these deli-

cious

treats!

We realize that many of us do not have the time nor the inclination to read lengthy articles or abstracts about the latest re-search. However, research is a very im-

portant piece of our curriculum develop-ment and approach to education. Please read a very brief highlight of research that we feel is pertinent to educating students

who have hearing loss:

Laura Ann Petito (e al) writes that

the language development milestones are the same for any language in any mode, therefore all young children have the innate ability to learn lan-

guages regardless of modality

Tijsseling shared with us that full cognitive development for children depends on the stimulation of the five senses—and that students with hearing loss have unlimited potential

to develop visual language

Grosjean has stated that when look-ing at what a deaf child must do with language, bilingualism (the use of American Sign Language,

Written English and Spoken Eng-lish) is the only way to meet all of the tasks: “communicate early with his/her parents, develop his/her cognitive abilities, acquire knowl-edge of the world, communicate fully with the surrounding world of the hearing and of the deaf” Each

child uses each language for differ-

ent purposes at different times.

If you have questions regarding the re-search stated here or other research that applies to deaf/hard of hearing students,

contact Karen Martin, Literacy Specialist martink@christina.k12.de.us or 302-454-

2301.

Make your own funnel

cakes!

1 Beat one large egg in a large mixing bowl with a wire whisk. Stir in 2/3 cup milk slowly, stirring

constantly .

2 Combine 1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour, 1/4 tsp. salt, 2 tbsp. granu-lated sugar and 3/4 tsp. baking powder in a separate large mixing

bowl.

3 Add the flour mixture to the egg mixture slowly, beating constantly with the wire whisk. Continue beat-ing until the funnel cake batter is

smooth.

4 Pour vegetable oil into a large, deep skillet to a 1-inch depth. Heat the oil to approximately 375 de-grees F, using a food thermometer

to check the temperature.

5 Place your finger over the hole in the bottom of a medium-sized fun-nel. Fill the funnel with one large ladle of batter and remove your finger, allowing the batter to run out into the hot oil. Move the fun-

nel from the center of the pan out-ward in a circular motion to create

a round funnel cake.

6 Fry the homemade funnel cake for two to three minutes in the oil

or until golden brown. Turn the cake over using metal tongs, and fry for two to three minutes on the

opposite side, until golden brown.

7 Remove the funnel cake from the

oil with the tongs, and place on paper towels to drain. Sprinkle the cake with powdered sugar while it's

still warm, and serve immediately.

IF…….Recycling one ton (about 2,000

pounds) of paper saves 17 trees, two bar-

rels of oil (enough to run the average car

for 1,260 miles), 4,100 kilowatts of energy

(enough power for the average home for six months), 3.2 cubic yards of landfill

space, and 60 pounds of pollution.

THEN….DSD saves 34 trees, 4 barrels of

oil, 8,200 kilowatts of energy, 6.4 cubic

yards of landfill space and 120 pounds of

pollution EVERY MONTH !!!

Research drives the education at DSD

APR IL 2011 PAGE 4

As part of the Middle School's ongo-

ing series of guest speakers who come

in to talk about their voca-

tions, Johnny Wu, a junior at DSD, presented a well thought out

program to our stu-

dents. Johnny attends school at the

Hodgson Vocational Technical

School (HVT), in Glasgow, in the

Masonry field.

Johnny held the attention of the 23

students by sharing information about

the successes and frustrations of going

to school with hearing peers, the type

of work he does in masonry and the

tools he uses. He also taught students

about the soft skills one needs to

achieve (never giving up and persisting

in your work despite challenges).

He was able to speak about the pro-

gramming available to other students at

HVT, working with an interpreter, and

getting chosen to compete, for the first

time, in the statewide Skills USA com-

petitons between the vocational techni-

cal schools in Delaware.

We are fortunate to have a student such

as Johnny set an example for our mid-

dle school students to follow. Way to

go Johnny!

He fell out

of the car

and cracked

(see picture

left)

We named

our second

person, Lucy, who is wearing a seatbelt

(by taping her to the car). We rolled her

down the ramp and she did not fall out of

the car.

We looked at the difference between the

two persons. We realized that if we did

This March we were learning about

transportation. In this activity we dis-

cussed the importance of wearing seat-

belts. We used two hard-boiled eggs,

a car, tape, and a ramp. Egg 1—who is

not wearing a seatbelt is John Ghost.

He

sat in

the car

and

went

down

the

ramp.

Finding vocational success in our own backyard

ECD3 Classes learn that seat belts are “egg -stra” important!

not wear a seatbelt, we could suffer multiple

injuries. The students were quite happy that

John Ghost did not “break his face”.

DSD End of Year/Summer Program Schedule

Thanks to good old Mother Nature,

the end of year schedule as printed

in all district calendars has needed a

bit of tweaking. That has also influ-

enced our ESY/Summer Program experiences. Please read on for the

most up-to-date information regard-

ing the schedule over the next few

months.

June 9—DSD Graduation, 7pm Kirk

Auditorium

June 15—last day for students (prek-

K)

June 16—last day for students (grades

1-12

June 17—last

teacher/paraprofessional day

June 20/21—ESY/Summer programming

professional development/set-up days

June 22—ESY/Summer programs begin for

students

July 7—Preschool summer program ends

July 21— ESY ends

For the most up to date information, please visit the Christina School District website:

http://www.christina.k12.de.us/

DELAWARE SCHOOL FOR THE DEAF PAGE 5

May 24th Ribbon Cutting Announced

April is National Poetry Month

Inaugurated by the Academy of American Poets

in 1996, National Poetry Month is now held

every April.

The high school English/Language Arts classes

are celebrating all month, by enjoying poetry in

all its forms. Just to name a few: some students

are creating ASL poems using vocabulary words; some are translating written po-

etry into ASL; and others are using art media to illustrate poetry.

Follow this link to find “30 Ways To Celebrate” poetry in your home this month.

http://www.poets.org/page.php/prmID/94

Learn more about ..

These ASL Poets !!!

Clayton Valli

Ella Mae Lentz

Peter Cook

Ben Bahan

Spread the word—the moment we’ve been waiting for has finally arrived! On May 24th

at 2:30pm, the Delaware School for the Deaf/Statewide Programs for the Deaf, Hard of

Hearing and Deaf-Blind will host a ribbon cutting ceremony at its new home

630 E. Chestnut Hill Rd., Newark.

In conjunction with the Deaf Treasure performances, this

ribbon cutting will symbolize the beginning of a new era

of statewide Deaf education in Delaware.

Please, mark your calendars and consider this an open in-

vitation to join us as we celebrate the potential and the

promise that this new building will afford deaf, hard of

hearing and deaf-blind children in the state

Spanish as well as ASL interpreters will be provided.

Early Childhood 2 Class Visits Newark Fire Station #9

Every year the Newark Fire Station on Academy Street

welcomes our youngest children into their fire house and gives

them a hands on tour. This year the children learned about lad-

der trucks, pumper trucks, fire safety and even got to “drive”

the huge, brand new, never used truck. We tried on real fire-

fighter gear and even put on the oxygen masks so we won’t be

afraid if we see a real firefighter wearing a mask. On subsequent

days we turned our classroom into a fire station. Some children

prepared meals for their fellow fire fighters while others were

more interested in responding to fire calls. We had to use our

imaginations to create fire trucks as well as fire in the classroom

and we had to work in teams, just like real firefighters do.

620 E. Chestnut Hill Rd

Newark, DE 19713

Delaware School for the Deaf and

Statewide Programs for the Deaf, Hard

of Hearing and Deaf-Blind

Phone: 302-454-2301

Fax: 302-454-3493

E-mail: thomasd@christina.k12.de.us

Building for our Future

Visit our website:

http://www.christina

.k12.de.us/dspdhh/

The Mission of the

Delaware School for the Deaf

The mission of the Delaware School for the Deaf, a pro-gram serving deaf and hard

of hearing students birth through twenty-one years of age, is to educate students with rigorous achievement standards, to develop their

linguistic competence in both ASL and English, and to pre-pare them to be contributing citizens, by providing access to language and information

in a safe and supportive learning environment.

Elementary ASL/ELA “Goes Fishin’”

After studying the ocean in ASL/ELA class, Mary Hick’s class decided to make their very own Cup 0’ Fish recipe. Utilizing pragmatic opportunities to read paired with real-life experiences is a cor-

nerstone to the ASL/ELA class at this level. Read on to make your very own “cup o’ fish”

Make blue jello according to the directions on the box

Pour the jello into plastic cups

Let the jello cool in the refrigerator until partially set—about one hour

When the cups are partially set, place a few gummy fish in each

Leave in the refrigerator until they are fully set

Eat and enjoy!

Join us for the 3rd Annual DSD Community Day:

When: Saturday, May 14, 2011 12-5pm

Where: Cape Henlopen State Park - Main Beach Pavilion (15099 Cape Henlopen Drive, Lewes, DE 19958)

Who: All DSD Community Members are invited

(DSD Students & their families, DSD Staff & their families, DSD alumni & their families, DE Deaf Community members,

Deaf & HOH students from other DE school districts & their families, Itinerant Teachers, Special Education Directors…)

Admission*: FREE for Deaf / HOH students (from DSD and other DE Schools) and their families For other community

members, the admission fee is $5.00 per family; $2.00 for individuals

*The park entrance fee will be waived for our attendees. You must identify yourself as attending the DSD Community Day

Event at the park entrance booth.

From March 10th—12th, 2011 four students from DSD em-

barked on an adventure—to walk the walk of college stu-dents at the National Technical Institute for the Deaf (NTID) in Rochester, NY for the week-

Secondary students visit NTID

end. The 4 juniors, Rianna W., Robert L., Johnny W and Unique R. had a wonderful experience getting a better

understanding of what “college

life” is all about.

Alongside chaperones Candy Yoder and Mary Donnelly the students

toured the campus, dorms, dining halls, class-rooms, and met many won-derful people. The stu-dents could not believe how many deaf people

actually attend NTID.

NTID offers a wide array of classes/majors and is a perfect opportunity for any deaf/hard of hearing student to go after

he/she graduates from high

school