Special thanks to our Mayfest`s sponsors
Transcription
Special thanks to our Mayfest`s sponsors
Spring 2011 Special points of interest: Deaf Canada Conference July 2012 Promoting Deaf Children’s Emergent Literacy in ASL by Dr. Kristin Snoddon DOP Update Mayfest 2011 Special thanks to our Mayfest’s sponsors Page 2 Deaf Ontario News Editor’s note Hello Loyal Members: We are hard at work preparing for Mayfest on Friday May 13th! Looking forward to seeing you there in the Queen Elizabeth building at Exhibition Place from 9-4! Come on and see our smiles. We are looking for anyone editor for our future newsletters. OAD will pay an honorarium fee. Please mail us your resume. We hope that you will be more than glad to volunteer for OAD and DOP. Mayfest on May 13, 2011 OAD Knickers Golf on Aug 4th 2011 OAD 125th Anniversary – Belleville in November 11 and 12 2011. More information on OAD’s website. A friendly reminder of OAD’s events: interested in volunteering as We are hard at work planning our big event… OAD’s 125th Anniversary! We are excited to host the 125th with Belleville Association of the Deaf in Belleville on November 11 & 12, 2011. The opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect the policy of Ontario Association of the Deaf. Articles from OAD NEWS may be reprinted with permission from the editor and authors. Submissions may be edited for length and clarity. We reserve this right. © 2011 Ontario Association of the Deaf Inside Board of Directors Directors at Large Staff President Jackie Plant Georgetown Robert Eller Mississauga Executive Director Dean Walker Vice President/Treasurer (acting) John Mans Mississauga Shelley Ryall Oshawa Educator/Planner Kevin Canning Communications Coordinator Lori Archer Secretary NA Gilbert Guerin Sudbury Past President Christine Ehrlich-Brady Belleville Michael Zagozdzon Milton HIV Health Promotion Director Jeff Panasuik News for today Contact us Co-Editor and Layout/ Design: Dean Walker Co– Editor and Copy Editor Lori Archer Office: 2395 Bayview Avenue Toronto, Ontario M2L 1A2 [email protected] “Let OAD grow Ontario Association of the Deaf www.deafontario.ca tty 416.513.1893 fax 416.413.4822 voice 416.413.9191 Deaf Outreach Program www.deafontario.ca/dop tty 416.413.1093 fax 416.413.4822 keep working Contributors: Dean Walker Lori Archer Jackie Plant Kevin Canning John Mans Jeff Panasuik strong as we all hard and grow stronger! “ Page 3 President’s note Dear OAD members, Time sure flies fast doesn’t it? Vanita Dama has resigned from the board, however we want to work for OAD projects. We need your help in order to The spring is here now and we all enjoy the warmer climate. say thank you for your time being on the board for the past 2 years. Good luck Vanita. hire 1 or 2 staff just to work for OAD as OAD staff. This will benefit OAD and the I wanted to share with you that we are working closely with We do have a new board Deaf communities out there, emergency funds for example John Hemmingway, he is the president of Ontario Deaf member. Robert Eller just joined the board as a director helping in the needs of the Deaf community. With your Foundation. O.D.F. is truly an organization and it is not a fraud. I was told that some peo- at large. Welcome Robert!! As you know we will be having help, it will succeed!! You will get the newsletter 4 times a year. ple think it was fraudulent or were upset when they present Mayfest next week on Friday, May 13, 2011. Remember it’s We are also working to- a booth. I want to let you know it is safe and they are located at Exhibition Place, see you there. I'll be at the booth gether with Belleville Association of the Deaf for their honest people. ODF supports organizations and we support with OAD, come and stop by at the booth to say hello. 25th year anniversary with our 125th year anniversary. them. The people on theirboard are all deaf. Good people. Please be careful with hack- As for the membership fee, we NEED your support with mem- The anniversaries are combined together to celebrate our history of OAD and ers on face book. They were using Dean Walker’s name say- bership. This will help us to use for emergency funds and BAD. The BAD committee are wonderful people that we ing that you won $100,000. That is a scam. We have had a hiring OAD staff to run OAD itself. As you know OAD has 4 are fortunate to work together with. few incidents, and however do NOT accept it. The scammer was using OAD to lure inno- staff working at the office, their funding comes from Ministry of Health. They focus on DOP as We will have Sign Language Rights here in BRCD on Sept cent people. Keep your eyes peeled! in Deaf Outreach Program. With limited member- 23, 2011. We will be contacting other agencies to join ship fees, we are limited to with us to celebrate this spe- Jackie Plant OAD President cial day! At last, on Friday May 13, 2011 at Mayfest at 1:30pm, we will have a live TV in honouring Gary Malkowski while he is in Gallaudet getting his honourary doctoral degree. Let us congratulate him for all the hard work he he has done for the Deaf communitiy and for his timeless enegry. He has provided a great amount of support to our organzation of OAD. We want to say thank you Gary, and congratulations on your award.! Wave hands!!! OADly yours, Jackie Plant Deaf Canada Conference 2012 by John Mans I want to share the news with you and all Deaf Ontarians that OAD will proudly be hosting the Deaf Canada Conference 2012. Again I want to tell you that more volunteers are still needed for DCC 2012! There will be mini workshops and luncheon awards over a three day period. I am sure that you know that Marc Noble is Co-chairperson, Christine Nelson is Treasurer. I am still looking for volunteers for the entertainment committee, hospitality committee, book program committee, call for papers committee, and grant committee. Feel free to contact me or Marc Noble. Come to our booth in Mayfest and sign up for the team! . ([email protected]) The Website will coming soon. Page 4 Deaf Ontario News Executive Director’s note Dean Walker Executive Director Greetings my fellow members and citizens, I hope that you have had a good spring. There was a lot more rain in Toronto. This year is even more exciting than last year with so much happening! It is over for the Federal election. It is finally a majority so we will not worry about another election for awhile, but make sure that we must work with people in Canada. We will also have the election for the Ontario government this coming fall. Check your home riding and make sure that your favorite candidate supports what you want, and then vote for him/her. I would like to tell you more news of what we having been working on. Of course it is up and down. I received some letters from different areas from Queens Park. Last March I received an overwhelming negative reaction to the news that the Ontario government is providing $5.9 million to cut in half the waiting list for people to get cochlear implants. We are very disappointed to learn that substantial funding is being focused on cochlear implants especially for children. The long term effects of this will be a nightmare! With overwhelming phone calls from all over Ontario, the people’s reaction is they are disappointed in Dalton’s government. Why are hearing people trying to make us hear? You know that we received many sad stories about this, not success stories. It is not a good health investment in the long term. Deb Matthews Minister of Health and LongTerm Care stated ―Cochlear implants greatly improve the quality of life for peo- ple with severe hearing loss. Our government is taking action so that children and particular first languages is a valuable building block for thinking, problem- adults can receive these life-changing implants sooner." Does she mean that Deaf children and Deaf Adults have no quality of solving, and assisting to form relationships with others. Ministry of Education – all schools in life? Deaf professionals who have PhDs have no quality of life? The former first Ontario must provide ASL immersion. All students would benefit from learning to sign. Deaf MPP has no quality of life? I have no quality of life? The Ontario government Ministry of Training, Colleges and stated ―about 10% of Ontarians with severe hearing loss are able to benefit from the cochlear implant procedure‖. We have Universities – All Colleges and Universities must provide the students with ASL the same as other languages like Danish, Finnish, Polish, Spanish, no proof about the benefits. I raise a simple question. What about the other 90% of Ontarians with severe hearing loss? Are they happy? Or, are they becoming vic- Chinese, Russian etc. Learning ASL would be a priceless tims? Will the Ontario government be responsible to them? We fear for Deaf benefit for everyone. For example: People can work or chat with the Children. We always know that Non-Deaf communities and doctors are advising politicians who have no knowledge of the Deaf Deaf without interpreters. They can use the signs in any sports, big factories, big events, any noisy environment, and in issues of National De- community while they benefit from the profits of unnecessary surgical procedures. fense when it is hard to hear, Seniors can use signs when their hearing loss This is not for the Deaf child’s benefit. We try to tell the Deaf community not to progresses with age, and they can’t afford to buy hearing aids. Taxpayers should be willing to encourage chil- blame the government. With understanding, we want the government to consult with the experts - Deaf adults who grew dren to learn to sign early as a valuable investment! up as Deaf children. We must require that the government pay attention to us now, and truly help provide a better future for Deaf Children. Here is our recommendation which I wrote in a letter to Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty. Our recommendations are as follows: Ministry of Children and Youth Services – all Day care programs in Ontario must provide ASL to all children. Research has shown that acquisition of a strong foundation in a language during pre-school years is a requirement for future literacy development in English. ASL like any language and in Read Kristin’s comment on page 17. I mailed a letter to the Ministry of Children and Youth Services in regard to the Ministry’s Infant Hearing Program that restricts Deaf children’s learning of signed language. We did try our best to explain about many issues and concerns relating to Deaf infants and children. We will have a meeting with the Ministry of Children and Youth Services soon. OAD will try to set up a new program under the Early Years Program Unit for Deaf infants. OAD will take the lead on this. continued to page 5 continued from page 4 Page 5 Wait and see what they can do for us. We need your support. We also wrote a let- I received draft documents from the Ministry of Community Safety and Correc- best for you all. It looks good for our Mayfest. It is a much bigger and better space ter regarding the hiring of a new Consultant for the Speech Language Pathology, Audiology for the Ministry’s Early Years tional Services. I reviewed and changed the words The purpose of the Accessibility Roundtable was for participants to with a lot of available inexpensive parking. It will also be good for school field trips. We will be creative and hold mini work- Programs Unit. Unfortunately they already hired a person who is not related to, or advise the Deputy Minister and senior management on the barriers and chal- shops, art and culture displays and more. Other good news, Bell will also be a spon- has background knowledge of the Deaf community. I am not satisfied with this. lenges that persons with disabilities face when interacting with the Corrections sor, in particular as they would like to promote their new IP Relay system. Our Keep you posted. system. They stated that they learned a lot about the Deaf community from my presentation. They will mail us the final docu- board and our staff and I would like to thank the many exhibitors who will come to our important event. We have more ments soon. They may contact us for visiting the office and warden. exhibitors than last year! We hope you will meet the exhibitors, staff, board and Also my staff Lori and I had a good meeting with Adam Nowina, Special Assistant in Policy from the Minister of Community and Social Services. He will try to assist us friends. We would like you to give us the important feedback for next year. with regards to accessing additional funding for new programs. He will keep in The tireless staff at OAD and I are still busy completing our spring work. You touch with me, and I will update you when I have news to report. know that we hired Kim Wasser last January; however she got another job offer so I just finished the Human Resource policy and by-laws (updated) and the board ap- she left here. We hired another candidate for HIV Health Promotion Director in the Deaf Outreach Program last March. His proved it. I will work on the financial policy later. You can come and look at them. We did not receive feedback from you to name is Jeff Panasuik. We are glad that he is knowledgeable of HIV and AIDS issues. choose one choice for either printed or electronic newsletter. Let us know soon. He looks forward to the opportunity to promote health awareness and public rela- If no response, then we will mail you the printed newsletter. We continue to work tions in the HIV field. Come here and meet him anytime. Let us welcome Jeff to our team! I am always busy with OAD/ on whom to approach for core funding for OAD’s operations and much needed new programs. Finally, the VRS Feasibility Study Advisory Committee is progressing. John Mans and I went to Bell’s boardroom with other representatives from CHS, CAD and Centre québécois de la déficience auditive with Bell Canada and Mission Consulting staff. We all focus on the phases. I think it is very positive, and I must make sure that we follow the timeline. We expect that we will need to attend several more meetings till late summer. We received news from Bell Canada and the Canadian Radiotelevision Telecommunications Commission. They approved the first phase of Bell’s deferral account proposal to improve the accessibility of mobile devices and services. So, I will attend the meeting DOP staff and with DOP volunteers, buddies and clients. DOP has not been quiet these past couple of months either, especially while Lori, Jeff and Kevin were busy preparing for the big plan for workshops this year. In other issues, we continue to work on DOP’s strategic plan. Kevincent had meetings with Lori and the committee members. The volunteer steering committee helped us a lot, and we are excited to continue to work with them. Jeff will start to work on DOP’s website soon including an ASL video. Let him know if you feel that something is important for people to You know that we have booked August 4th, 2011 for our second annual Knickers golf tournament. Come on out and join us for the fun! Look at OAD’s website for more information. I am glad that I updated if for you! John and I volunteered for doing our ASL news on OAD’s website. It looks great and we received many positive comments. We will continue with it for you. Some people are interested to be involved as anchor, editor, filming and other. Looking forward to it. know. That is all for now. Please visit us in our Lori and I still have a pretty difficult situa- office anytime. here. later this summer. That is all for now, and we will advise you when we have more tion with the Queen Elizabeth Building at Exhibition Place for Mayfest 2011. How- news from Bell or CRTC. ever, we must move on. We will try our Thank you for reading Deaf Ontario News Page 6 Lori Archer - Communications Coordinator Hello OAD Members and Friends I know Dean’s report has informed you of all the latest news and happenings here at OAD since the winter. What can I tell you that is new and exciting? Well let’s see now, how about the fact that I believe our 37th Annual Mayfest at Exhibition Place’s Queen Elizabeth building will be bigger, better, and more entertaining and enjoyable than ever! If all goes as we have relentlessly planned, you will see: Our main sponsor – TD’s generous contributions especially to the children’s activities More exhibitors than last year [email protected] New exhibitors 5,000 square feet more area than last year Better accessibility with wider aisles More rest areas Great entertainment and presentations planned for on stage Ample and less expensive parking When Mayfest is over, we would really welcome your feedback and input. TD’s live ASL interpreted presentation on RDSP’s Please email us and tell us what you liked, what you didn’t like and any ideas/ suggestions Our sponsor – Bell with the latest video demo on IP Relay and handouts for improvement. You can send all complaints to Dean….just joking….you can email either me, Dean, or We value your input and we would also like volunteers for next year to join a Mayfest committee to help in planning Mayfest 2012. Looking forward to seeing you on ―Friday the 13th‖ and hoping it will be a ―good luck‖ day! OAD’ly Darren Holst and Lori Archer Kevin Canning - DOP Educator / Planner Howdy! After my 10 years working with the Deaf Outreach Program, do I ever have some new information for you? YES, I do ;-) I have seen so much work internally and externally and our DPHA (Deaf Persons Living with HIV/AIDS) facing issues on a daily basis, and I must tell you that it's never easy.. dom, and this trained staff is able to get free condoms every year or anytime. We usually provide Female condoms at our booth throughout the year at different events. DOP is always grateful for those who shared A new colleague was hired last March - at last! We are thrilled to hire a new colleague working with DOP specifically. The position is HIV Promotion Director and the person's name who was hired is Jeff Panasuik. He had been on the Board in the past, and had helped with DOP's vlogs on the website, which was very helpful. We are pleased of having Jeff working with DOP now. Female Condoms Female Condoms are provided F R E E at DOP. There is only one current staff who had trained on Female Con- their feedback, experiences, opinions regarding Female condoms. I'd like to add that I had attended the 7th Annual Gay Men Sexual Health. They mentioned that it is also called Interible Concontinued to page 7 continued from page 6 dom. There are always challenges talking about HIV or Female Condoms, even simple condoms! So Please don't feel intimidated when you stop by our office. DOP ensures that all staff have full respect for you as an individual for taking condoms or simply talking about HIV issues. The box consisting of condoms and female condoms are in the open area and in the hidden room where you can feel comfortable taking as many as you want. In any case, in the possibility that some of you don't like condoms, what can you do about preventing yourself from getting HIV or a sexually transmitted infection (STI) ? Well, there is new information that might be helpful for you to consider and prevent you from getting HIV or STI. Please believe me, it's not worth getting or having HIV. Not worthwhile at all. I have faced personally and professionally about HIV stuff so much and that's a burden for sure. if you happen to be living with HIV, please feel comfortable and be aware that DOP keeps confidential. Gay Men's Sexual Health Summit 2011 What I have learned a great deal is...so many things. There is one thing that I think is very important for you to know. I didn't know before then. I'm more than happy to share with you. (The new kind of Lube (lubricant) that prevents HIV by 35% from transmitting HIV to others. Many doctors and nurses were very happy when they found out the proven outcomes. It's worthwhile to look into this subject, as I understand that some, if not too many of you are still resistant about using condoms, or don't think that you need condoms, anyway. Here's a tip - to think about. What are Rectal Microbicicdes? Currently in development, a rectal microbicide is a product that could be available as a lubricant gel, douche, or an enema and used rectally to reduce a person's risk of HIV infection. R.M. could offer both primary protection in the absensce of condoms and back-up protection if a condom breaks or slips off during anal intercourse. Men, Women and Transgender individuals demand R.M. You can make a difference. Look at the website for more detailed information. Visit IRMA - International Rectal Microbicide Advocates at www.rectalmicrobicides.org Page 7 LGBT's first-ever "Volunteer Fair" Jeff, HIV Health Promotion Director, and I as an Educator were at the booth displaying DOP, as well as OAD. We had a good turn out; getting people's attention and they came to our booth asking some questions. We had sign-up for volunteers, and that will be at the same time more challenges and excitment ;-) We are always pleased and grateful to our past volunteers. Come back, and do your best volunteering with DOP. You are our "Keys" to help spreading out to the deaf communities across Ontario about DOP. You never know what will happen in the future. ViiV funding Anyone is interested in doing some vlogs that DOP has some ideas already, but need new beautiful faces. Be proud of yourself if you are doing a worthwhile cause for DOP and your community. Right? So, then feel free to contact me or Lori Archer who is a leading on this project. We are here to support this project. Come on, contact us and we will set up a schedule videotaping your signing on which subjects you would feel comfortable with, sharing with the world! It sounds easy?, yes, that's right. well. in some ways. It's unacceptable that more deaf people worldwide are victims of HIV and AIDS. Help us ENSURE infinite possibilities for all deaf people, by speaking out or signing out against HIV infection. For your experiment and supporting DOP and its DPHA (Deaf People Living with HIV/AIDS) to changing that statistics. Together we can change lives" Kevin Canning - DOP Educator / Planner Page 8 Deaf Ontario News Dear Friends; Ottawa Mayfest is an annual cultural event in the Deaf and Hard of Hearing community. This celebration has taken place in Ottawa since 1991. We are a non-profit organization. This event draws attendees from across Ontario. Family, friends and supporters in the community come together to recognize their culture, provide community awareness and raise funds to support program initiatives. The Ottawa Mayfest Planning Committee is a group of representative stakeholders. These people are from various agencies and clubs that work with Deaf, Deafened and the Hard of Hearing. Our traditional day event consists of games for the children and information booths from the different organizations, Your presence at our event will help raise awareness in the community about your services. We hope that you will purchase a demonstration booth for our day activities. The event will be at Ron Kolbus Lakeside Center at 102 Greenview (Britannia Park Area, West Ottawa) from 9:00am to 4:00pm on Saturday May 28 th, 2011. Proceeds are donated to the community such as Deaf and Hard of Hearing Children’s camp and other local projects. We are hoping that we will be able to work together and support this wonderful event. Thank you in advance for your time and consideration. Please do not hesitate to contact us for any questions you may have. Kind Regards, Kari English Ottawa Mayfest 2011 [email protected] Where: The Ron Kolbus Lake(102 Greenview, Ottawa) For who: Any age!! Day Time: 9:00am to 4:00pm Price: $5.00 (age 18 & up) $3.00 (age 13 – 17) 13 & under free Where: side Centre Centre Jules (281 Lanark Avenue, Ottawa) Léger For who: Any age!! Night Time: 7:00pm to 11:00pm (Movie starts 8:00pm) Price: $15 (Age 1 and under - Free) Black Sand (ASL Film) Page 9 2197 Riverside Drive Suite 600, Ottawa ONT K1H 7X3 BOOTH REGISTRATION FORM Please complete this form with a cheque payable to ―Ottawa Mayfest‖ and mail it to the following address: Kari English For more information, email: Ottawa Mayfest Committee 2011 [email protected] 2197 Riverside Dr. Suite 600 Ottawa, ONT K1H 7X3 Name of Organization: ________________________________________________ Contact Person: ________________________________________________ Address: ________________________________________________ ________________________________________________ ________________________________________________ ________________________________________________ Telephone: ________________________________________________ Email address: ________________________________________________ Fee for Ottawa Mayfest 2011 Display Booths Please circle: Business, for profit organization or institution…………………………………....$ 125.00 Non-profit organizations……………………………...…………………………..$ 75.00 Individuals…………………………………………………………………..……..$ 50.00 Prices are based on one individual 2.75 x 6 floor table Please indicate the total amount enclosed ______________________________________ *Please advise us if you need access to an electrical outlet* Note: The venue will be available at 8:30am on Saturday, May 28th, 2011 at the Ron Kolbus Lakeside Centre at 102 Greenview (Britannia Park Area, West Ottawa) to set up your display booth. We will not provide tablecloths, dividers, extension cords or duct tape. The locations of the booth in the hall will be set up well in advance. If you have any preferences, let us know. Deadline for applications is May 13th 2011 Page 10 Deaf Ontario News New Staff Onboard! Today is the era of the Information Age and that is when people depend on technology to get more variety of information with less work. In the past, people got information in a few ways which was usually reading the newspaper, watching television, being involved with conversation with friends, co-workers, and families; or even writing and mailing letters. As of today, we now have different ways that we did not have in the past using technology to get information, but, faster. For example, e-mails, Google database, ejournals, and much more and most information is available by the internet. We already know that the internet is very powerful and many people depend on it. The DOP knows that it is important that we should take advantage of the power of the internet. For the last 25 years, our program’s goal is to give resources to deaf communities, interpreters, medical service providers, professionals, family and friends, businesses, schools, organizations, and much more. But with internet—it is wonderful and also a ―new stage‖ to share information about HIV to everybody as much as we can. In old times – it was difficult to make information and materials in ASL, because of limited technology, but today, the internet allows us to distribute resources, offer educational and information materials (presentations, DVDs, any video clips). It is our goal to have all of our information accessible as much as possible, in our own natural language. DOP’s goal is to use our website as our central point for any information that is related to DOP and issues on HIV. We are excited that this will allow DOP to use the website as part of on-going educational tools to reach as many people as we can. This spring we are working on making plans to set up a system on our website for all video clips for our library (i.e. DVDs and videos) and to create presentations and information in ASL . We look forward to a new stage in promoting important information on how to prevent the transmission of HIV. With materials available in ASL AND on the internet—it is a great tool to spread out information and support each other. Stay tuned! Hi folks! As DOP and OAD has mentioned in this newsletter and on the website that a new staff has been hired to fill the vacancy of HIV Health Promotion Director. That’s me! My name is Jeff Panasuik. I have been living in Toronto for last 6 years and probably some of you recognize my face as I used to serve as a board member during the year of 2006. So, now I am hired to work for this great organization. What does that position mean, you probably will wonder? Yep, folks—it means that any media or informational material such as website, brochures, posters, and any material for people to spread throughout the community about our program and our educational work on how to prevent HIV transmission and all of the issues around HIV. My goal for this year is to prepare resources and information to be available in ASL and turn our website into an online video library that would be accessible to anybody globally. This is a big project however, we will start with the first phase: planning. From my hard lessons in past: To make this goal successful, it is important to plan and set schedules for the rolling out of this project. Please do feel free to share your feedback or input by emailing me at [email protected]. DOPly yours! Page 11 Deaf Ontario News Page 12 Page 13 Mayfest 2011- FAQ Why did OAD Mayfest move to the Queen Elizabeth building at Exhibition Place this year? Two reasons. First – the St Lawrence Market had planned renovations. We were not allowed to book it in advance for 2011. We needed to find an alternate location. We had to book in advance at Exhibition Place. Second, the St Lawrence would not allow OAD to use the building on the Friday night because the farmers market needed to set up for next day. (Originally we were hoping to book it for the evening also). Will Mayfest be back at the St Lawrence Market next year? It depends on the St Lawrence’s plans. We don’t know at this time. The Exhibition Place manager hopes that we will continue there for the long term. If they make a good deal for us, we may use there for day and night in the fu- ture. Are we aware it is more expensive than the St .Lawrence? We expected that there would be changes for our business one day. We have to prepare for this situation. Yes we know, and we are working with this as best we can. We must learn to live with it while doing our best especially for non profit organizations like ours. Must the exhibitor pay the electrical and internet? We know that it is very expensive but it is up to you. If you can manage without electrical you can save your money. Exhibition Place is now offering a 10% discount on electrical service costs to non profits that provide their charitable registration number. If you bring a laptop, you need three extra batteries for the laptop, For internet, you could try to check your service provider (Bell, Rogers, TELUS etc) to buy the wireless continued to page 24 Page 14 Deaf Ontario News 125th Anniversary 1886 to 2011 We are excited to share the news. Belleville Association of the Deaf are very motivated to host the big event for their organization and our organization. They work so hard for their organization’s 25th anniversary. BAD is also glad to work with us for hosting the OAD125th . The committee have many ideas for the events and hope that you will enjoy everything, and that it will be one of the best memories in your life. Unofficial Schedule (May be changed without notice) Friday, November 11 - BAD’s 25th Anniversary Celebration at Ramada Inn 6:00 pm – 10:00 pm: Registration 7:00 pm – 11:00 pm: Wine and Cheese Saturday, November 12 – OAD-BAD at SJW Main Building 7:30 am – 3:00 pm: Registration 8:30 am – 11:00 am: OAD General Meeting We will seek funding and sponsorship for our event, For example, I asked someone from the Ministry to support Senior citizen’s transportation and hotels. 9:00 am – 4:00 pm: Exhibitions We will have a general meeting as usual, but it will be brief and we will need you to approval the financial statement and minutes. Also we will release our report. We want you to have more time to meet your old and new friends and go to see the exhibitions. Celebration (Gala) 11:00 am – 4:30 pm: Workshops and panel discussion Evening at Ramada Inn - OAD 125th Anniversary Door opens at 5:00 pm (Ramada Inn) 5:30 pm – 6:30 pm: Cocktail 6:30 pm: Dinner ASL Performance 9:00 pm – 1:00 am: Dance Early Bird Combo (includes registration, wine &cheese, workshops & banquet) $80.00 (before June 30) for Senior Citizens Reservation: (Special Rate) $100.00 (before June 30) for Adults Cost: $92.00 + HST $95.00 (after June 30) for Senior Citizens $115.00 (after June 30) for Adults Ramada Inn 11 Bay Bridge Road Belleville, Ontario K8P 3P6 (613) 968-3411 Fax (613) 968-5036 www.bellevilleramada.com Please issue a cheque payable to BAD/OAD 2011 and mail to : Tim Kelly, Treasurer 98 McFarland Drive, Belleville, Ontario K8N 2X5 For more information, check on OAD’s website. Page 15 Page 16 Deaf Ontario News Promoting Deaf Children's Emergent Literacy in American Sign Language Canada and supervised by assistant professor Kathryn Underwood, involves a program for teaching hearing parents of young deaf children how to read books using ASL. Snoddon cites enhanced language and literacy development in ASL and English, improved parent-child communication, and strengthened community involvement as preliminary findings of the project. By Dr. Kristin Snoddon, Postdoctoral Fellow, ECE March 2, 2011 According to a Ryerson researcher, young deaf and hard of hearing children and their families have much to gain when early intervention and education services promote a bilingual approach that includes American Sign Language (ASL). Dr. Kristin Snoddon, the first-ever postdoctoral fellow to study with the School of Early Childhood Education, focuses on initiatives for supporting ASL and emergent literacy in deaf children and their families. Her postdoctoral work, funded by the Social Sciences Humanities Research Council of Snoddon's previous research has identified gaps in early intervention programming for young deaf children and their families in terms of promoting bilingualism in ASL and English. Her forthcoming book, American Sign Language and Early Literacy, is based on her Ph.D. study of parents and children participating in the ASL Parent-Child Mother Goose Program. Like her postdoctoral work, this book features an ASL literacy program for young children and their parents--in this case, a program for teaching parents AS rhymes and stories that enhance parents and children's communications and literacy interactions. Clinical professionals in Ontario frequently fail to support young deaf children's learning of ASL. As Snoddon argues, this opposition is rooted in the perception that ASL will restrict deaf children's ability to acquire spoken and written English--a position that is refuted by research studies from around the world. In addition, Snoddon says, her own research shows that access to ASL literacy experiences is linked to the development of metalinguistic and phonological awareness, vocabulary, and language skills that are precursors to print literacy. Her current 10-month study involves a series of workshops for parents and preschool-age children that are taught by bilingual deaf adult instructors. The instructors read a broad range of children's picture books and support parents' learning of strategies for shared reading. These strategies include tactics for retaining children’s visual attention, asking questions and eliciting children's contributions to the reading process, and discussing illustrations and background information in order to promote children's vocabulary and world knowledge. Most importantly, the workshops aim to show parents how English texts can be conveyed through ASL in a way that supports the development of literacy in both languages. According to Snoddon, programs for supporting shared reading with ASL have seldom been offered in a Canadian context. In order to support the goals of young deaf children's emergent literacy and hearing parents' learning of ASL as a second language, it is crucial to involve ASLfluent deaf adult professionals throughout the early intervention process. Deaf adults can work in tandem with parents from early childhood and beyond to facilitate children and parents' access to firstlanguage models of ASL and to the deaf community as a rich culture. Copy from http://www.ryerson.ca/ece/news/news/General_Public/snoddon_kristin.html © 2011 Ryerson University | 350 Victoria Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5B 2K3 Page 17 Published On Fri Mar 11 2011 Ear implant decision raises questions Re: Wait time halved for hearing implant -March 8 2011 Health Minister Deb Matthews’ recent announcement that an additional $5.9 million is being provided for cochlear implants should lead to increased scrutiny of Ontario government policy regarding deaf children’s access to sign language. The Ontario Infant Hearing Program will not fund American Sign Language (ASL) services to deaf children who receive cochlear implants and auditoryverbal therapy, and children’s hospitals in Ontario explicitly forbid cochlear implant recipients from learning ASL. There is no research basis for not allowing deaf children access to ASL. In fact, a strong case can be made for the overall cognitive, affective, and educational benefits of bilingualism in a signed and a spoken/written language and of deaf children’s access to the ASL community. This is particularly true in light of the fact that results of cochlear implant surgery in congenitally deaf children remain uneven and unpredictable. Furthermore, Dr. Blake Papsin’s comment that a Flashback... cochlear implant ―increases the ability of its recipients to become educated and employed‖ is offensive to educated, employed deaf members of the ASL community such as myself. The deaf ASL community of Ontario includes medical doctors, lawyers, university professors, CEOs and various other professionals who contribute to our economy. The fact that parents of deaf children are not routinely informed of the ASL community’s accomplishments speaks not only to the unbalanced information provided by medical professionals but also to our society’s failure to celebrate diversity and promote true inclusion for deaf people. Kristin Snoddon, PhD, SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellow, School of Early Childhood Education, Ryerson University http://www.thestar.com/opinion/letters/ article/952943--ear-implant-decision-raises-questions OAD wants to thank Kristin for doing this for us. Page 18 Deaf Ontario News OAD proudly sells our products here. OAD must fundraise for our important operations. We try to provide products for everyone to buy. We will be thrilled if you show your support by buying one or more. The order form is on the next page. In the Store for sale DOP T- Shirts - Sign Hands “D” “O” “P” Book - SAMUEL GREENE By Clifton Carbin On sale - $20.00 each. On sale - $29.95 each. DVD - Classic Ontario ASL Name Signs By John Hemingway On sale - $40.00 each. Golf Divot On sale - $25.00 each. 2011 Calendar Deaf Ontario Now On sale - $25.00 each. On sale - $14.00 each. Check on http://www.deafontario.ca/products.html for more information and details Page 19 Deaf Ontario News Media Information Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Deaf Ontario News WE WANT YOUR FEEDBACK! OAD has a new website layout. Please take some time to check out our new format. Do you feel it is an improvement? Is there better communication? Do you find it easy to order products? We want your opinions! Please email us at [email protected] and tell us what you think. All suggestions welcome. Thank you! At the AGM, the motion was made that members will have two choices for subscribing to Deaf Ontario News. The choices are email or regular mail. Please let us know which you prefer. Next issue, we will send an enewsletter either to your email account, or mail a newsletter to your home address based on your choice. Please advise us by Email to [email protected] Thank you. Page 23 Ontario Association of the Deaf OAD Knickers Tournament Royal Ontario Golf Club 6378 Trafalgar Road Milton, ON, Canada The board and staff are excited to host our 2nd Annual Golf Event on August 4, 2011. We hope you will join us for a fun day at our OAD Knickers Tournament! We think you will enjoy golfing and wearing the unique knickers yourself. We are encouraging everyone to wear the Knickers clothing. There will be awards for low score, longest drive etc. and BEST CLOTHES! To assist outfitting you with the knickers clothing we have arranged some good discounts and special deals for your team. Contact our representative Allan Hume from Golfknickers.ca at golfknickers@nor -del.com Thursday, August 4, 2011 1:30 - Shotgun Start 7:00 p.m. Dinner and Awards The guys wear the Knickers clothes The 2010 OAD Knickers continued from page 13 Where can the exhibitor find motels? stick plus data plan. There are several hotels and motels about 5 km to the west on Lake Shore Blvd. Will people pay for the parking pass? No, parking passes are only for exhibitors who will unload and What about transit? load their stuff. Other people can pay for parking anywhere in Yes there is the Go Train, TTC (street car and bus) See the CNE. Will there be better accessibility and lots of parking in CNE? detailed information with the Absolutely! It is a lot better than the St Lawrence. Wheelchairs will be glad for the extra space. There will be more space for www.deafontario.ca/ map on our website. mayfest.html everyone to chat. Also the school bus drivers will enjoy the parking lot. Will someone provide/sell the refreshments inside? We must use the on site services of Exhibition Place. They are working out a menu for us. We will post more information when we have it. SPONSORED BY
Similar documents
Why are the Deaf Schools closing? WAD DOP Update Mayfest 2011
our second annual Knickers Golf tournament. Come on out and join us for the fun! Look at OAD’s site for more information. That is all for now. Please visit us in our office anytime. Thank you for
More informationSpecial points of interest - Ontario Association of the Deaf
authors. Submissions may be edited for length and clarity.
More information