HIGH SCHOOL

Monique Dobbelaere

Studentsʼ completed plaster hands were mounted on canvas boards with an additional board displaying the ASL letter below.

The hallmark of an inclusive school community is evident in the various ways diversity and demographics are celebrated, including how people are greeted when they enter a building. Imagine a Deaf student entering a school for the first time and seeing an ASL alphabet mural on the wall. The arts have the power to create a warm and friendly atmosphere for populations that are often marginalized in society.

American Sign Language (ASL) is kindred to the arts as it is a visual language.  Combining the arts and ASL is one of many ways you can create an inclusive climate in your school community while celebrating school spirit.

Our ASL murals evolved from a unit on plaster wrap and artist George Segal. With a goal to fully engage students, I selected a young adult fluent in ASL on TikTok as our primary resource to introduce the alphabet. After practicing the alphabet with the visual aids, students were assigned to a letter and placed in small groups where they practiced again.

Preparation
If plaster wrap is a new media for your class, select a willing student to be a hand model for a class demonstration. Because using plaster wrap can be messy, I suggest using plastic tablecloths in your work areas.

Assign students to demonstrate various tasks like cutting the plaster wrap roll into roughly twelve 3 x 2" (7.5 x 5 cm) strips (some can be cut to smaller sizes as needed), applying Vaseline, and assisting with details using a plastic knife. You will also need warm water.

Demonstration and Procedures
Having a student demonstration team will give you a chance to go over the essentials of creating a lifelike cast. Students seem to enjoy the spa-like technique of wrapping hands, and I enhance the experience by playing music that suits this mood.

An ASL-based arts project can create or enhance an inclusive climate in your classroom, and on a larger scale, in your wider school community.

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