ASL – Mom Read It

Boy, by Phil Cummings/Illustrated by Shane Devries, (March 2018, Kane Miller), $12.99, ISBN: 978-1-61067-739-4

Recommended for readers 4-8

A deaf young boy, growing up in a medieval village ravaged by a giant dragon, brings peace to all by simply encouraging them to listen. He speaks with his hands or by drawing pictures in the sand, but not everyone is patient enough to understand Boy – until he wanders into a big fight between the king’s troops and the dragon. He can’t hear everyone screaming for him to be careful, but looks up to see everyone staring at him. He asks them, via written message, why they’re all fighting, which sets off blame and pointing fingers on both sides. Turns out, it was all just a big misunderstanding that grew into years of conflict. The boy has helped bring about peace with his simple question, and teaches the villagers how to speak with their hands: and, most importantly, to listen.

Boy is all about empathy. By introducing a deaf protagonist, readers learn that sometimes, words get in the way; being able to take the time to understand and be understood is the key to brokering a peace between the kingdom and the dragon. I loved the poetic language used to describe how Boy communicates: “he spoke with dancing hands and he drew pictures for people in the sand”. The subdued art is sweet and will appeal to kids who love dragons and knights, just on a calmer scale. Introduce some ASL in this storytime: Jbrary has great tips and songs. I use the Hello and Goodbye songs in my toddler storytimes, and the kids love it. Introduce simple ASL like a fingerplay, and you’re teaching kids how to communicate in a new language.

I had my first storytimes (two sessions, both attended by toddlers) at my new library today, and incorporated quite a few ideas from Storytime Underground’s Social Justice kit. The storytime here runs a little bit longer than my Corona storytimes, so I plumped up the outline with a lot of songs and fingerplays. Since I was a little nervous about storytime to a new crowd, I turned to Jbrary for guidance; sure enough, the ladies have a storytime planning sheet that helped me visualize everything I wanted to do.

I had a great crowd – 35 families, including some of my Corona families, who came to visit! Everyone seemed to enjoy the songs and fingerplays, and happily, the Chinese and Spanish that I incorporated into my stories and songs went over well. Here’s the storytime in full, with links as used.

Hello song (ASL)
Hello, my friends,
Hello, my friends, Hello, my friends,
It’s time to say hello.
Source: Jbrary

Song: We Clap and Sing Hello
We clap and sing hello, We clap and sing hello,
With our friends at storytime,
We clap and sing hello!
We wave and sing hello, We wave and sing hello,
With our friends at storytime,
We clap and sing hello!
We stomp and sing hello, We stomp and sing hello,
With our friends at storytime,
We stomp and sing hello!
Source: Jbrary

Action Rhyme: Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes
Head, shoulders, knees and toes, knees and toes,
Head, shoulders, knees and toes, knees and toes,
And eyes, and ears, and mouth, and nose,
Head, shoulders, knees and toes, knees and toes!

Song: “Yo te amo”
Yo te amo, yo te amo, all day song, I sing this little song to you,
Yo te amo, yo te amo, darling, I love you.

Wo ai ni, wo ai ni, all day song, I sing this little song to you,
Wo ai ni, wo ai ni, darling, I love you.

I love you, I love you, all day long, I sing this little song to you,
I love you, I love you, darling, I love you.
Source: Jbrary

Fingerplay/Song: Zoom, Zoom, Zoom!
Zoom, zoom, zoom
We’re going to the moon.
Zoom, zoom, zoom
We’re going to the moon.
If you want to take a trip
climb aboard my rocket ship.
Zoom, zoom, zoom
We’re going to the moon.
In 5, 4, 3, 2, 1
Blast off!
Source: Jbrary

Song: “The More We Get Together”
The more we get together, together, together,
The more we get together, the happier we’ll be.
Because my friends are your friends, and your friends are my friends,
The more we get together, the happier we’ll be.
Source: http://www.metrolyrics.com/more-we-get-together-lyrics-raffi.html

Song: “If You’re Happy and You Know It”
If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands (clap clap)
If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands (clap clap)
If you’re happy and you know it, then your face will surely show it
If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands. (clap clap)

If you’re happy and you know it, stomp your feet (stomp stomp)
If you’re happy and you know it, stomp your feet (stomp stomp)
If you’re happy and you know it, then your face will surely show it
If you’re happy and you know it, stomp your feet. (stomp stomp)

If you’re happy and you know it, shout “Hurray!” (hoo-ray!)
If you’re happy and you know it, shout “Hurray!” (hoo-ray!)
If you’re happy and you know it, then your face will surely show it
If you’re happy and you know it, shout “Hurray!” (hoo-ray!)

If you’re happy and you know it, do all three (clap-clap, stomp-stomp, hoo-ray!)
If you’re happy and you know it, do all three (clap-clap, stomp-stomp, hoo-ray!)
If you’re happy and you know it, then your face will surely show it
If you’re happy and you know it, do all three. (clap-clap, stomp-stomp, hoo-ray!)

Song: “Skinnamarink”
Skinnamarink-e-dink, e-dink, skinnamarink-e-doo, I love you,
Skinnamarink-e-dink, e-dink, skinnamarink-e-doo, I love you,
I love you in the morning, and in the afternoon,
I love you in the evening, and underneath the moon, oh!
Skinnamarink-e-dink, e-dink, skinnamarink-e-doo, I love you!
Source: Jbrary

Song: “The Itsy Bitsy Spider”
The itsy bitsy spider went up the water spout,
Down came the rain and washed the spider out,
Out came the sun and dried up all the rain,
And the itsy bitsy spider went up the spout again.

Song: We Clap Goodbye
We clap goodbye like this, We clap goodbye like this,
With our friends at storytime,
We clap goodbye like this!
We wave goodbye like this, we wave goodbye like this,
With our friends at storytime,
We wave goodbye like this!
We stomp goodbye like this, We stomp goodbye like this,
With our friends at storytime,
We stomp goodbye like this!

Goodbye song (ASL)
Goodbye, my friends,
Goodbye, my friends,
Goodbye, my friends,
It’s time to say goodbye.

After storytime, I passed out these great alphabet craft bracelets for the kids to color and wear. They went over very well!

Tag: ASL

Boy builds empathy and understanding