Fireese received her sign name!

[ichliebeshannonmoore]

This is beautiful. I took 2 years of Sign in HS and hope to become fluent. I have been teaching my daughter, who is Hearing, ASL since she was born and it has helped her communicate. She is two now, and loves to watch my friends and I sign to each other; the look on her face is pure amazement. It really is a beautiful thing. Thank you for sharing your videos. :)

[SexnViolence90]

that could NOT be cuter!

[gigi1bokus]

What exactly is a sign name? If its a sign that only a handfull people now you by then how will others now who or what your talking about unless its just like a nickname, an empty gesture for others outside the circle? If one person nicknames you then does everybody have to learn it and go by it, i mean who decides what your signname is going to be and what if you get several?

[SmartHandsCA]

@gigi1bokus A sign name is given to you just like your birth name. When you meet other people who don't know your sign name you would introduce yourself, spell your name and then show your sign name. Just like when you meet people you would introduce yourself and tell them your given name. A Deaf person always assigns you a sign name. It is based on your personality or characteristics.

[123BabyVal]

she is so cute!

[Rockerbella12]

I want sign name!!!!!!

[carperu11]

good logra buenoo !!



[wolfchicgalpal]

is there any possibility that you could do a series of teaching videos for new moms?

my sister wants to be able to sign with her baby for the reasons you have stated in other videos and not because the baby is deaf, she has no knowledge of asl and cant get any information on it, could you possibly post some videos?

her youtube username is therose34xxx

thank you

[SmartHandsCA]

@wolfchicgalpal If you tell her to look at my channel she will find a link to an article on how to sign with your baby that I wrote. Then she can check my channel and be able to look up signs that she wants to use :)

[TheAliciaBartley]

my mother is an interpretor and my grandmother is an interpretor, retired ASL teacher and was on a committee in the 70's to designate technical signs and work on translating scripture for her church. my mother used sign starting at age 3 and taught me the same way that you are teaching your children =] its wonderful and has a positive effect on my life. now I am in college and on my way to being a child psychologist for Deaf and HH kids.

[appledumplingpie]

You might've answered already but why did they choose that name for her? I was given purple because of my purple hair haha, I was the first person in my NZSL class to be given a sign name, I was so proud!

[27jkuz]

she is pretty ans smart

[kalebsteen12]

wheres the sound

[SmartHandsCA]

@kalebsteen12 this video was made for my Deaf friend who gave Fireese her sign name. There isn't any sound, just sign language.

[firelilyx8]

She's beautiful :)

[xxoocobraooxx]

God bless her =)

[1996superlover]

so cute

[popsong2009]

love it so much,i watch 100 time

[bestamerica]

'

wow wow she is a so cute pretty smart girl,,,

i love it

[evieforgot]

OMG! This video made me cry, God bless this beautiful child. I hope she gets the opportunity to work with children and people who have speech and hearing disabilities. I don't have any speech or hearing disabilities but I felt so much hope from Fireese, she is a little angel!

[appledumplingpie]

One of my friends has two sign names, one for when she's in the US and one back home in NZ cos her NZSL sign name means 'condom' in ASL hahaha she wasn't too happy with that so her American deaf friends gave her an ASL sign name

[muffin0061]

@smartHandsCA wow and the time does fly my firends mom hade a baby and now she is five and it makes me feel old :)

[muffin0061]

yeah about sign names my friend gave me one her parents are pastors to the death :) and all her videos are sooo cute she is soo smart how old is she now

[SmartHandsCA]

@muffin0061 Thanks. She is now almost 5! How time flies!

[BoulevardeTV]

wow she is soooooooooooo smart and beautiful. Thankyou for these videos as I have started learning lanuage :) and learnt so much in 1 week

[SPIRIDOYLITSA]

oohhhh......so cute....

[jessicahamsterlolz]

she knows better sign language than me and im 12! IM SOOOO INSPIRED BY FIREESE!!!

[Sulekha1920]

Awwwww

[ClaireFrancesa]

Ela é linda!

[DieAlena]

what a beautiful girl.

[saucymare]

Too cute!

[HopeLizard]

i've always wanted a sign name. it means so much...but i have no deaf friends...but this is so cute. congrats fireese! u 2 r beautiful : ) lots of love,

Hope

[2074adavis]

Have you ever thought about doing adult classes. Parents to be only. I would love to teach my son more signs but have to learn them myself.

[SmartHandsCA]

@2074adavis Some of our instructors offer prenatal classes! Where are you located? Feel free to send me an email. Just visit my website found in my channel or by googling My Smart Hands!

[MarbleEyes0o]

AWWWW!

[MouldyProductions]

Wow... Thats amazing I would love to learn how to sign because it opens up barriers which deaf people usually fail at passing but being able to communicate with a deaf person of be his/her "hearer" ( i think ) would be an honour and fun :)

[simplylovely17]

She is adorable and that is a nice sign name

[HopeLizard]

aw i think fireese is the cutest little thing and she is such an inspiration. i have been learning ASL and if i have children i want to sign with them. I love Fireese. you have an amazing little girl. you are truly blessed. have a great wonderful day and enjoy life to its fullest.,

Hope

[sv2evs]

Absolutely perfect ! Hi from Greece.

[SmartHandsCA]

@pookymuffin101 That's such a cute sign name :-)

[pylkje]

@SmartHandsCA

Cool, my signname is L combined with music/sing. My name starts with an L

Im studying Dutch Sigh Languages.

[sakuragurl101]

My friend Tara gave me my signing name 2 yrs ago its a 't' wiggling down the side of my head to my chin, lol she said it was because of my curly hair, My friend Danielles is the sign for music but with a D because of her love of music:D

[tygryss002]

cute:)

[meowkie]

She is just wonderful!

[DeafTuber]

I just watched this video again and it made me teary!!! Fireese, you ROCK!!!!! Your Mom does ok, too. ;-)

[FaithHopeFriendship]

Aw that's lovely! I've learned lots of signs from Fireese and you in the videos! thanks for the help in teaching me sign language :)

[NikitaWill]

She is soooooo cute!!!! I have learn many sign languages from her!!!

[danibell1792]

beautiful!!

[DaveyBabey]

lol, i hope it wasn't MJ as in... yeah, you know..

[bhesck]

Awesome....=D

[BabyRooWho]

My name is Heidi. And I wanted to say that my sister is told she has ADHD and has trouble speaking.. I havent seen her since I was eight, but I learned to speak ALOT of signlanguage and I have a lot to learn still. I may post videos of me speaking in sign language, just because I want to be a sign languge interperter. At our church, there was a deaf boy. I didnt have a lot of signs to talk to him, because he couldnt spell, so I did my best to sign, and was told it was just perfect. :)

[styleken]

hi sorry may i know why it isnt right when a hearing gives me a sign name?

[SmartHandsCA]

hi, I am posting this for you in the hopes that a Deaf person can answer this for you. But from my understanding it is for a few reasons, one, it is an honor to be giving a sign name and it is unique to you... it is their language and therefor they should be the ones to give it to you. Plus, if a hearing person picks a name they may pick something that is already a sign. I know a woman who did this and ended up giving her son the sign for 'lazy' ( but she didn't know) :-)

[DBadvocate]

I am a Culturally Deaf person and in school now for the American Sign Language Literacy Instructor program. Culturally, socially - it is a namesake for the hearing person by the Deaf community- therefore it is for us to namesake the hearing person.

[DeafTuber]

Styleken, I am Deaf, and it's due to within our culture and cultural rites of passages, etc. And all the reasons Laura gave you below are correct, in addition to it's just our cultural 'rule', and respect.

Wouldn't you rather a Chinese person give you or your child a true native Chinese name, rather than a Russian-cultured person creating a made-up "Chinese" name for your child? A true authentic cultural name with true reasoning and meaning.

Hope this explains more for you! :-)

[turtletaubtbear]

OMG she is so amazing good job....and i love her name

[OOokillloOO]

heLLO,... it's like because of you sign language... so much cute...

[evolvedcucumber]

That's so awesome. I am planning on having at least one child with my partner, and we've decided that our child will know as many languages as possible from an early age. And ASL is most definitely included in that. Communication is communication, and the more you can get through to people, the better!

Congrats on the sign name Fireese!

--Kai

[NICEinterpreter]

How adorable!!!

[moocowbellaellasmell]

wowowowowowo! she is so increadibly amazing! its so hard to say how SMART she is!!!!!!!!!!

you are truly Blessed!

[prategirl1995]

Fireese! You're very intelligent! Amazing!

God Bless You Always!

[elchavodelorto10]

beautiful

[karlaq11]

Aww love it!

[RosiLu21]

she's so cute! i admire what u guys are doing! =)

[1997flea]

god bless her

she is soo smart and gorgeous i love her

xxx

[avedderhoon]

LINDA!

SHE IS SO CUTE!

[angelbaby123ful]

omg very good!!!!!!

[ashwinisidhu]

I have got springs in my feet ...yaaaayyy..:)

[kittyrocks944]

sooo cute

[goldenpoodle13]

Bless her little heart :3 <3 u Fireese! Your amazing!

[xXLIGHTINGSTRIKEXx]

she and you are both wonderful smart people and are going to live rich fullfilling lives xox god bless you all

[checkityesit]

lovely lil child god bless her xoxoxo

<3

[pixie1xxx]

wow shes so lovely and so bright bless her.x

[faithwrites]

your daughter is such a wonderful angel :) so smart and pretty!

[diva633]

that was so cute it made my cry :) she is such a cutie

[carlykeenan]

so cute is m.j michel jackson??

[SmartHandsCA]

thanks :-)

And no, it as a woman, not Michael Jackson ;-)

[thundergirl23r]

i thoght the same theing thatperson did

[Mitcheeta]

She will cure cancer when she grows up I bet! Such a smart kid!

[winxfan10000]

i totally agree =D goo fireese !!

[gcchick101]

wow amzzing i no a lil sign:)

[wereboyscout]

Yes! I love sign names. I've been practicing ASL but I've only had the good grace to meet 3 deaf people, and only in passing conversation.

And it's not just to hearing people by the way, deaf people give them to their deaf friends/enemies/family members

They often describe a feature of the person,

For example, My teacher's name is Jennifer.

She has a nice smile. So they took the J and made a smile across their face.

Or it can be for what they ARE.

Obama- O to B, the B waves(flag)

[ctihawa]

cute. i think i'd teach my son.

[missypeanut100]

I have a question, is M.J. Deaf?

Thx 4 the answer, MissyPeanut100

[SmartHandsCA]

yes she is.

[SOMEGOOF]

This just blows my mind, I think it's adorable. I love it :D

[Chrizzya]

So cute :D

[DotterJudee]

I've been trying to get my daughter to sign since she was six months old. We started with milk, but she simply refused to cooperate, despite my being consistent. Now, at fifteen months, it seems she's just starting to get it. How long did it take for Fireese to catch on after you first introduced signing to her?

[SmartHandsCA]

Fireese picked it up at around 9.5 months but I had other babies in my classes who didn't pick the signs up until around the time your daughter did. It's still a really great tool at 15 months! :-)

[joelryton]

Was her sign name because of her pig tails? I know my friend gives people sign names based on a trait or something unique to the person.

I really like her unique name too.

[SmartHandsCA]

You are right that sign names can be based on a trait like that but her sign name was given more because she is a smartie :-) This is what MJ said about her name: "Her name sign signifies intelligence, independence, uniqueness, and the ability to dream and prosper hugely! NO ONE else has her sign name!"

[JessAndAle13]

aww cute!

my sister was borned deaf

so she calls me by my sign name.

my sign name is : cupcake but with my initial a.m.

going up (a) and going down (m)

since i love cupcakes

[noelster4]

shes soo cute

[Annie2220]

Oh she's amazing! and adorable! ♥

[Jinxiness]

That's a cute sign name. My sign name is the letter R tapped on the chin twice like mother. Cause I'm such a mum. Sign names are very important I think, and though I'm not deaf, I am hard of hearing and I'm beginning to have to learn sign language. I cant wait to teach my children this, and maybe I'll even buy Smart Hands to help me do it once they're old enough. =3

Thankyou.

[spoiledgothprincess]

can she talk

[SmartHandsCA]

Yes, she can talk but she was thanking our Deaf friend in this video so she wanted to sign her thanks. If you watch my other views you will hear her talking (and reading and printing words all before the age of 3).

[morenazaspanish]

Amazing!!

[sillymian1234]

My name is Mian and I have loooong hair, so my sign name is the letter "M" from the top of my head down to my shoulder. (M with long hair)

[loseronice]

just wondering...how do you know that fireese is the only one with that sign name. it seems like lots of people would end up with the same sign name, how does it work?

[SmartHandsCA]

Fireese's sign name is unique however it isn't unusual for people to have the same sign name. It's the same as English names go, there are tons of people named Bob, Tim, Kathy etc.

[loseronice]

yay that wonderful that she got her sign name:)

i was wondering if you had a sign name too?

[SmartHandsCA]

Yes I do :-) It's the L hand brushed forward along the cheek.

[ok950429]

That's so awesome ;)

[jul585]

He also has problems with chewing, so we did not realize that his hearing problem was so severe and therefore delaying speach. We were told normal hearing on left, moderate to severe hearing loss on the right - originally.

Would it be inappropriate for a hearing parent to give a deaf child a sign name? If so how should I address my 2 1/2 year old in sign?

[SmartHandsCA]

That's a good question. I posted it in the hopes that a deaf individual would be able to read it and answer it for you. Does your son have any deaf teachers at the ASD? If so, you can ask him/her for a sign name for your son or even ask them this question. Please feel free to email me anytime with questions.

[westcoastcan]

I don't understand why a deaf person has to give you a sign name. Is it just ritual? I am deaf and was given my sign name when I was 2 yrs. I'm pretty sure it was given to me by my teacher who was hearing. For deaf people, a sign name is just as important as a spoken name. I recommend giving your son one regardless, as it is an important part of communication.

[DeafTuber]

Jul585, If you are a parent of a Deaf child, you can use the suggestions that Laura noted, such as asking a Deaf teacher, Deaf church member, etc, or a Deaf person in his/her life.

But until then, s/he can use a 'nickname' until you get the sign name from a culturally Deaf person.

Hope this helps. :-)

[DeafTuber]

Ran out of character space -- Jul585 -

Really, he'd (Deaf child) mostly only need a sign name right now for when you are talking about him to another Deaf person.

If he is Deaf, he's probably not going to hear his name being called out, anyway, unless you are in the habit of signing his name when first talking to him. :-)

For instance, I am Deaf, and when my family members first approach me, they sometimes do sign my name before starting out with what they plan to tell me... :-D

[jul585]

ran out of space - he got more hearing tests this past week, we have to repeat the brainstem auditory evoked response test to confirm that he has auditory neuropathy/ auditory dyssynchrony.

He had seizures (infantile spasms) at 5 months. He is now visually impaired (20/70) with Cortical Visual Impairment...

[jul585]

Thanks so much for this video - I have told some teachers & audiologists at the American School for the Deaf in CT about your you tube videos, movies, lessons & projects!

My son is in the Birth to Three program and has an ASD (American School for the Deaf) Teacher. I asked about how to sign my son's name & she never explained the part about this name coming from the deaf community.

My son is legally considered deaf-blind. He was legally blind for a year - he is now 2 1/2...

[finfin31]

woooooooooooooooooooww

[adfcsumit]

wowow.. I like learn this.. how learn kids & many good..I am happy glad.. love..

[cymbeli]

Aww Fireese got her sign name!! Mine is an L going down my hair because my hair is very long and L is my first initial,. Good job Laura she's awesome!!

[JillyBns89]

That's sooo cute. I got my sign name not too long ago. It's the sign for dance except with the 'J' hand.

[figsar]

Very Cool!!!!!

[angelzrealm]

Fireese is an awesome little girl. Her sign name fits her well.

Mine is:

H hand sign for Heather -- and sign waves down your hair, (b/c i have wavy hair)

given to me by my long-term boyfriend's sister & her husband (whom are both deaf) It IS a special gift. >)

Congrats - I wonder what they would do in public schools if they saw this bright young child, she would probably be put in a gifted class...

[BulletBabe08]

she signs so well!

my grandmother gave me a sign name of K at the mouth, because I'm very outspoken and friendly. Easy to talk to, and talkative, therefore, "talking K" is my name:]

[dcao2]

soo cute!!

[JxWeav6808]

This is correct about a deaf person giving a sign name. My mom and brother are constantly thinking of different sign names for my family. Sometimes we just use a regular letter [my name is Jessica so, J], but like my aunt likes music, and her name starts with D, so we do D, when we do the 'music' sign!

[countrygirljlee83]

She is sooo adorable!! I watch most of her videos and she is smart little girl! When I have kids, I am going to get baby sign language for them to learn like her :) I love it!! Thank!

[Insanityspartner]

Congratulations!

I'm learning asl, too. We have nicknames that we gave each other in our class, but they are by no means name signs. It's just hard to sign "Hello, A-n-n-a-m-a-r-i-a" when you're passing by someone in the hallway. xD

[edwardmoreira]

She's just getting cuter and cuter. I love that she got her sign name!!! And she seems to love it!! I've enjoyed all your videos and I think that what you're doing is great. I wish you all the success with smart hands (though i think you don't need my positive wishes since I'm sure you're doing great)

Cheers

Ed

[SmartHandsCA]

Thank you, Ed!

:-)

[aniram29]

jöööööö^^!!!

[woodyfanon]

It is a matter of respect for a community that have been oppressed for many years. The Deaf community has its own linguistics rules/structures and cultural values which also includes name signs. For a hearing person to take that from the Deaf community is signs of disrespect -- especially even moreso if one do not understand the linguistics structure or the values of the Deaf community.

[woodyfanon]

Hi there, Laura asked me to respond to your question. The issue here is about ownership. American Sign Language and other form of sign languages are used by the Deaf community which has their own linguistic rules and cultural values. For a hearing person to make their own sign name is a form of oppression according to the Deaf community especially if a hearing person make a profit out of a cultural group that they have little or no knowledge about.

In other words, it's a Deaf thing.

[SmartHandsCA]

I have posed your comment in the hopes that a deaf person will take the time to answer you. :-)

Laura

[LAMALCRIADACOM]

oh, this is so nice,i have few deaf friends, and i do want to learn sgning, since i was 13,now i'm 17,but i still want to;this video, made me remember of a friend i have, that is becoming deaf, so she decided to learn signing language 6 years ago,all her family nows signing language, even the little girl nows signing,since she was 1 or 2,but her mother didn't teach her as you did, the girl just learned by herself, and that's good, because they are all surroanded by deaf people,and it is so nice

[DeafTuber]

Hi Fireese! Great job on signing! I am SO happy that you love your new sign name! It fits you so just PERFECTLY!

And look at your signs have improved SO MUCH! I'm impressed, proud, and honored to know you and your Mommy. You both are amazing human beings.

With much love,

MJ :-)

[CreativehandsASL]

Was it MJ Williams? Just curious...

She is adorable. I used to be a Sign2me instructor before I switched gears but I sure do miss teaching the little guys and girls. They are so cute.

Fireese is adorable and her signing is PERFECT!

[Jazzwoman1985]

She was a cute baby and she is growing up to be a beautiful little girl.

[SmartHandsCA]

Thank you! :-)

[mandapanda161819]

very good signing! I love this little girl, she is so cute.

[atheistspwn]

aaww

shes still doing great.

[Haylee6453]

she is so cute

[Cla452]

That was beautiful!

[AllehkinZ]

Very cute! My daughter loves to watch your videos of Fireese! She just turned 1 and I hope that she will sign to me eventually. Right now she is just too wiggly and impatient to learn from me! :) My niece does a couple of signs, though. She's 14 months old and does "cookie", "more", and I think "milk".

[NewspaperBuff]

I love your video!

And while you're right that sign names given to you by deaf people mean more; it isn't incorrect to do a sign name from hearing person to hearing person. If you have a LONG name, usually over 4 letters long, its best to get a sign name. And sometimes, its not plausible to get a deaf person to give you the sign.

But the views are more of a personal basis! I agree that it means much more if a deaf person gives you a sign name.

Great work teaching your cutie signs!

[DeafTuber]

NewspaperBuff - sorry but Deaf people can only give sign names.  Period.

[Existantia]

Sorry, but hearing persons can't give other hearing persons sign names. :)

It's not just about sentiment, it's respect for that community. :) Have a good one!

[krant28]

It says that very thing IN THE DESCRIPTION! why are you getting bent out of shape?

[SmartHandsCA]

I think people are responding to NewspaperBuff who incorrectly assumed if you have a long name that a hearing person can create a sign name. I think there are a lot of people who don't understand this :-)

Thank you for your comment, many people actually don't tend to read the descriptions!

[krant28]

ahhh....that makes a little more sense....but perhaps Existantia could have been more clear with their comment......I thought that Existantia was infering that MJ was a hearing person and thus had no legitimate right to give Fireese a sign name.....

[SmartHandsCA]

I can totally see how it would read that way :-)

besides, it's nice to have the support!

[LifeDuzntGivMeLemons]

that was very cute =]

yay fireese!

maybe you could tell us who MJ is =]

a family friend?

[SmartHandsCA]

Thank you :-)

MJ has become a very close friend over the past few years. I am so lucky to have her in my life!!

[DeafTuber]

Aww, Laura, the feeling is mutual, it's an honour to have your friendship. :-D

I CAN'T WAIT to see Fireese SIGN her name in person!! It's about time for a sign name for Fireese's new brother, yes? ;-)

[SmartHandsCA]

Yes indeed!

Miss you!! I hope you are doing okay my friend! Let's get online soon.

xo

[jangguemfan]

thats so sweet

[CSIAddict]

Congrats

[NiennaSeregon]

Thank you so much for posting! What a cutie ^_^ I can't wait to teach my kids sign language :)

[Sunnygirl3833]

cutie pie!

[qtallstar12]

that made me smile!

[sarofan]

OMG she is totally adorable and so smart!!!

i love the "i love you " part!!!

im gonna use it:P

this video goes directly to my profile!!

[bilong92]

Well done Fireese! She is lucky, I've always wanted a sign name. Her name looks similar to horse, I think, it's very cute.

[ablum0216]

CUTE!!!

[TwoBrokenWyngs]

That's very sweet!

Do you think you could share a little insight into the significance of the sign name? It was also hard to tell exactly what she was doing, more specifically than just scratching her head with her forefinger.

[SmartHandsCA]

Thank you. Her sign name is using an 'L' hand shape (hers doesn't use her first initial). You gently pull the tip of your index finger down the top of your head (slightly off to the side). It came from Fireese being a bright child who uses her mind. She is going to be very very smart :-)

Maybe MJ can share a little more...