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ASL for St. Patrick’s Day

Depending on which set of statistics you look at, ASL, or American Sign Language, is the 3rd or 4th most popular used language in this country. Many people are unaware of this. Pretty amazing, huh?

While it is predominantly used by the Deaf community, teaching sign language to babies and toddlers has become increasingly popular among modern parents. Both of my sons could use a few signs before they had verbal words.

sign language for st patrick's day

As families and schools celebrate the many holidays in this country, why not make your holidays more inclusive? I have always celebrated dozens of holidays, or at least acknowledged them in my household even if they are not a part of my family’s historic cultural heritage.

For example, I’ve never even been to New Orleans or Rio, but we have a special dinner every Mardi Gras. I’m not Mexican, but we have always acknowledged and talked about Cinco de Mayo and frequently attend the festival in my town.

But when it comes to celebrating St. Patrick’s Day, we are actually quite Irish. This is my family.

my irish ancestors

As you can likely tell, that is 3 generations. The oldest woman in the photo is my great-great-grandmother who came here from Ireland. The couple in the middle are my great-grandparents who were born here in Pennsylvania.

The kids in the photo are my paternal grandfather’s siblings. My grandfather was born in 1906, and since he is not pictured, we assume that this photo pre-dates his birth.

My great-grandmother’s name was Jennie, which I’ve always thought was cool because we tend to think of Jennie as a more modern name.

St. Patrick’s Day Sign Language

Anyway, growing up, our St. Patrick’s Day celebrations included a lot of drinking and not much else. My father certainly lived up to the stereotype, but I am breaking that cycle.

ASL St. Patrick's Day worksheets

We cook Americanized versions of foods like stew and bangers and mash. We talk about St. Patrick’s Day and go through old photos and wonder what it must’ve been like for them.

And now, we’re adding ASL St. Patrick’s Day words, worksheets, and other activities.

Anyway, regardless of how you spend St. Patrick’s Day, here are some fun worksheets that reinforce a variety of skills.

There are two, you’re welcome to download both, for free.

ASL St. Patrick’s Day

Here is the first one.

https://adayinourshoes.com/wp-content/uploads/ASLStPatricksWordsWorksheets.pdf

St. Patrick’s Day Sign Language

Learning relevant words and phrases in sign language for St. Patrick’s day is great for inclusivity. It also can help develop language skills. St. Patrick’s Day activities may include words that your child does not often use or hear.

And here is the free workbook.

There’s a lot of talk around St. Patrick’s day about abstract concepts such as luck.

These are things that our kids often struggle with, and it can be a good opportunity to learn. Happy Signing!

How to Say It in American Sign Language

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Don’t miss the other resources we have on the site about autism.

Don’t miss the other resources we have on the site for St. Patrick’s Day.

Don’t miss the other resources we have on the site about behavior. Behavior, when done correctly, is a large and sometimes overwhelming concept. But, if done incorrectly, the child will not change and in fact, behaviors could increase and psychological damage can occur.

Don’t miss the other resources we have on the site to help your family have an awesome summer!

Special Education Advocate

I'm an IEP/Special Education Advocate who has attended 100s of IEP meetings. I live in Chester County, PA with my husband and two boys, one is disabled. My goal is to make your IEP process easier. When I'm not here, I'm probably in Harrisburg or DC lobbying for systems change for our kids.