9/11-Inspired DVD Teaches Rescue Workers to Use Sign Language to Help Victims

Her brother escaped the chaos of the event of September 11, 2001 but the thought stayed with Louise Sattler that among the people who needed help that day, many were unable to communicate because they spoke a different language – the 4^th most spoken language in our country – sign language.

“I also knew that many deaf individuals resided in NYC and wondered how terrified were they on that fateful and tragic day when communication was minimum at best and fear was at an all time high.” New York native Sattler writes in a recent blog post  about her new DVD.    

In a completely un-served market, Sattler found a niche for her passion for sign language by creating Sign Language for Emergency Situations, the first DVD devoted solely to educate first responders, health care professionals, and school personnel to help facilitate communication with individuals who use Sign Language or Spanish during an emergency or medical situation, according to the product description on her website SigningFamilies.com.

The DVD includes some of the most commonly used signs during emergency or medical situations such as “Pain?” “Help?” and “Interpreter?” as well as commands such as “Evacuate” and “Go Indoors” and conditions such as “Hurricane” and ”Fire.” The DVD is first presented in English and then the same signs are shown with a Spanish interpreter. Sattler intends for viewers to stop the DVD and practice so many signs are presented during the program.  

Also included with the DVD is a bonus sign expressions mini-chart. So far, Sattler can’t keep these mini-charts in stock. They are very popular not just with fire and police departments but also educators, medical offices and parents. The chart is tri-lingual, including English, Spanish and Sign Language.

The DVD and mini-chart have scored two important endorsements- Alison Rhodes also known as the Safety Mom and Mackenzie Kelly of NORCAL Ambulance, as well.

This is not Louise’s first product to be recognized by others. Her DVD Baby, Toddler, and Preschool Sign Language was recently awarded Wendy Young’s Kidlutions Preferred Product award. This DVD is meant for parents to teach them the signs that they then teach their children.

Sattler tells Family First the DVD is not an entertainment video for your toddler; it’s instructional. She also notes they tried very hard to make the signs practical. Her example is “clock”, a sign included in many baby sign DVDs, means nothing to a very young child but “Time For” makes sense – “Time for Nap” or “Time for Bath” for example.  The signs are developmentally appropriate for young ages.

Sattler has made sure the order of the signs goes along with a child’s development. So, for example, the courtesy and safety signs come first followed by the behavioral signs such as sharing and taking turns, which are difficult concepts for babies and toddlers but appropriate for preschoolers. Sattler suggests teaching your child 5 signs at a time so they are not overwhelmed and begin signing to your child when he is 3-4 months old.

In the DVD, Sattler shows variations of the sign that your child may use. She also shows the progression of signs to use according to your child’s age. For babies, you sign just one sign “bath.” For toddlers, you may sign “time for bath”- two signs. For a preschooler or older child, you might sign “time to go to bath” – three signs. I watched her video with my 2 year old, with whom I’ve signed since he was 7 months, and he signed right along with her, even new signs he hadn’t seen. It was fantastic!

Besides the videos, Sattler also offers seminars all over the country, which she customizes for the specific group. Educators would get a different series than parents. Parents with children with special needs would get a different seminar than parents of children who are developing typically.

She keeps the seminars short – 2 to 3 hours – because many parents are challenged to find a sitter for a long period of time and that’s expensive. She also mentioned two outreach organizations that offer in-home mentors – ProjectNadine.org, which offers links to regional resources and Deaf Family Literacy  which is in Florida.

If you are in the first responder industry or know people in it, you should check out Sattler’s cutting-edge DVD. If you have young children, you will find her instructional DVDs and other products very helpful in communicating with your little one. Also, check out her seminar schedule on the website to see if she has one coming to a town near you. Sattler has generously offered readers of Family First a 10% discount if they mention this article when placing their order.

You can also find  Signing Families on Facebook here and follow her on Twitter at @louiseasl. You can also listen to Sattler’s on-line radio show on Toginet.

About Louise Sattler

(from Signing Families website) Louise is a Nationally Certified School Psychologist with specializations in linguistics and multi-cultural education. She has been teaching American Sign Language for more than 20 years to families with hearing and non-hearing children, college students, staff at public and private school systems and businesses. Louise resides in Maryland with her husband, Marc and their two children (who started signing as infants!).