Sue’s Focus Travels
LQ: 7.95
Recommended Age: 4+
Skills Used: Focus, Time Management, Mathematics, Writing
ASL Kids is an app designed to teach babies and young children the basics of American Sign Language as well as some key signs around relevant topics. Users can see real children sign the alphabet and other signs in real time on their mobile device. Categories available in the app include Animals, Emotions, Colors, Family, Food, and Basic Items. When the user clicks on a category, they will see all the signs available within that category as well as a picture representation of each. When the user clicks on that picture, they will then see a larger picture with an option to hear the word spoken out loud. If they press the play button on the screen, a real person will sign the word in real time. The user can then click the left or right arrows on screen to move to the next word.
The user can also take quizzes to test out their sign language knowledge. These quizzes will present a sign in real time and ask the user to choose the correct answer from a list of three options. The options will have the word spelled out as well as a picture representation, meaning that user who cannot yet read can still take the ASL sign recognition quiz.
ASL Kids is a free app but gaining access to all the signs requires and in-app purchase. It is available now on iOS and Android.
Focus: Getting started and then maintaining attention and effort to tasks.
Just like learning any foreign language, American Sign Language requires the user to have good focusing skills. The user needs to pay attention to how the signs are done in order to practice them correctly. For users who struggle with focus, starting with fun signs about animals or foods can be a way to slowly build up their focusing skills before tackling more complex tasks like putting sentences together using ASL.
Working Memory: Recalling and retaining information in our minds while working.
When learning ASL, users need to keep the word they want to sign in their minds while simultaneously performing an action with their hands. This becomes more complex as the user needs to spell out words using the ASL alphabet or put longer sentences together. The user needs to use their working memory skills to keep this information in their head while they are signing. For users who struggle with this skill, starting with simple signs or the alphabet and working up to more complicated words can help them become comfortable with the process before trying something new.
All membership plans come with full access to our entire suite of tools learning guides, and resources. Here are a few of the ones we think you’ll like the most: