Standing at the sidelines of Children’s Health Stadium, among the choir setting up, the students and families in the stands, football on the field, stretching and getting ready, is the advanced American Sign Language class preparing to sign the National Anthem for the first game of the season.
ASL four class is not just regular signing. The interpreters receive privileges that no other level does, including signing at games.
In the class periods leading up to game day, Ms. Singletary, the ASL teacher, has the students do a few specific things. First, they watch the National Anthem being signed. Then sign with the video. Once they get comfortable, they turn around and face the wall, signing from memory.
“[As we] stopped the video and talked about where your hands go for each section of the National Anthem,” Ms Singletary said. “I asked them what are [their] facial expressions? Are they serious, are they sad, happy?”
After weeks of preparation and endless signing, the day finally comes—Sept. 4th, the first football game of the year. American Sign Language students stand near the choir watching the stands. They look at each other, take a breath, and as the choir begins to sing, they start to sign along.
“The timing of matching them up, then everybody else with me,” senior Aly Fallwell said. “I think that was the hardest part.”
The group practices in and outside of class to prepare. Class periods fly by till it’s game day. They looked at each other as they walked onto the sidelines.
“We have to make sure that we’re signing together, so looking at each other without making it obvious that we’re looking at each other,” senior Jayden Howeth said.
The song ends, and the group smiles. They finished signing and made it through the first game.
“You can see on all our faces, it’s very much ‘Oh, we just did that,’ Howeth said. “I was very happy at that moment.”
