DVD teaches sign language to kids
In Barbara Granoff’s business model, sign language is not only for
the hearing impaired.
“The Big Surprise” is the first DVD in what Granoff hopes will be
a series called “Sign-A-Lot.” The 30-minute program features a cast
of ebullient children who are joined by two animated gloves named
“Lulu Lefty” and “Ronnie Righty.”
The DVD was released Sept. 12 by Granoff’s Newport Beach-based
company, See Me Sign LLC. In the first weeks since the video’s
release, Granoff said she has been relying on word-of-mouth
marketing.
“We’re very grass-roots,” she said.
The DVD was designed to teach sign-language skills to children who
are not hearing impaired. See Me Sign’s concept is similar to that of
ABC Me Sign, another of Granoff’s enterprises. ABC Me Sign offers
sign language classes to small children who have not yet learned to
talk.
Tracy Desmond, who teaches ABC Me Sign classes, was also an
advisor for the DVD. Desmond said children who are taught sign
language -- whether they’re old enough to speak or not -- can gain a
head start in understanding language or communication.
“Their brains are just firing left and right,” Desmond said.
The DVD is for children who are already speaking.
“It’s really to get the benefits of sign language to hearing
children that are older than 3,” Granoff said.
Granoff said the benefits of learning sign language can include
improved reading skills and higher self-esteem.
“Sign language is a second-language and it increases IQ scores,”
she said.
Costa Mesa-based Avant Productions produced the DVD. Clark
Siverson, who supervised the project, said Avant worked on the video
from February to the beginning of September.
The Costa Mesa company developed the program’s visual scheme from
Granoff’s script.
“We came up with the animation and the green screen and the idea
of putting it in a 3-D environment,” Siverson said.
In many shots, the cast is shown in a make-believe animated
environment. Sets have names like Opposites Playground and Music
Meadow.
When cast members show how to make a sign for a word, an animated
representation of that word pops up on screen. For example, when a
child shows how to say “butterfly” in sign language, a cartoon
butterfly appears.
In “The Big Surprise,” cast members show signs for words related
to food, movement, feelings, musical instruments and opposites,
Granoff said. She is already planning sequels to teach the alphabet
and colors.
When children watch the video, Granoff hopes they play along as
the kids on screen demonstrate various words.
“It’s very interactive. It will ask the kids at home to shout out
the answer or sign with them,” she said.
* ANDREW EDWARDS covers business and the environment. He can be
reached at (714) 966-4624 or by e-mail at
o7andrew.edwards@latimes.comf7.
All the latest on Orange County from Orange County.
Get our free TimesOC newsletter.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Daily Pilot.