ANDERSON COUNTY, S.C. (WSPA) – September is Deaf Awareness Month and school leaders at Starr Elementary said they believe inclusion means everything.

Instead of traditionally reciting the Pledge of Allegiance every morning, Kayla Jordan’s first-grade class has learned to use American Sign Language.

Jordan said they do it in support of their classmate, who is deaf.

“The first week of school, we noticed Zoie and the interpreter, Miss Moose, doing sign language for the Pledge of Allegiance,” said Jordan. “That’s something we do every morning, and my students just quickly seemed interested and want to learn. I said, ‘you know what? So do I. That’s something I would like to learn too.'”

Zoie Goolsby was born deaf and has a full time interpreter.

“The regular classroom uses a phonics based curriculum, and that doesn’t work for her because she’s not hearing the phonics. For her, we’re using a specialized curriculum called Foundations for Literacy that’s developed for deaf children,” said Dawne Shaw, Teacher of the Deaf at the South Carolina School for the Deaf and Blind.

Shaw said she works with Goolsby one-on-one to learn new vocabulary using pictures and writing.

“There’s a lot of stuff involved, but she’s really smart, and she’s going to be fine in public school,” said Shaw.

Goolsby also works alongside her peers, which Jordan said sparked their interest in learning sign language too.

“The children love it. I feel that Zoie just sees the other children trying and learning it alongside, like me and the others, that she feels included and welcome. She’s able to communicate, and she has besties, as she calls it, like friends in the classroom, and it just makes everyone feel like they’re included,” said Jordan.

School leaders said the class has also learned how to recite the alphabet using sign language.

Anderson School District 3

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