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For the past six years, I have been creating
baby sign language videos that teach parents and children American Sign
Language (ASL). With nearly 25 Million views on my You Tube channel it's
become clear to me how popular baby signing has become.
I love
making videos with my children and now I want to take those videos to
the next level and create a professionally produced video series. My
daughter, Fireese, has helped children all over the world learn how to
sign and is excited to continue her teaching through her own show.
The
other exciting part of our project is our music. Our music is all
written, recorded and produced by Moe Berg, former singer, songwriter
and front man of Indie Hall of Fame and Platinum record recording
artists The
Pursuit of Happiness (TPOH).
Here is an example of the show idea
we have. Keep in mind this is a rough version that we made in our
living room with one camera and no external mics. Imagine what type of
show we can make with a producer and some extra video equipment!
What We Need & What You Get
Our budget is based on $2000/video - our plan is to make 10 episodes if we receive the full funding amount. We have the following costs - Producer (we are hiring an outside producer to work on the videos with us.) Studio, camera, lights and mic rental costs. Costs associate with recording the music.
The Impact
Over the years I have received numerous emails
from parents sharing stories of how signing has affected their lives.
These heartwarming stories have motivated me to continue to create
content for parents around the world.
Here are just a few stories that I want to share with you to show you how great signing can be!
“Hi Laura and Fireese!
I wanted to let you know how much you've helped me with my
son, A.
A is almost 4 years old now. He is a high-functioning
autistic child. At age 2 1/2, he had not slept for six months more than
2-3 hours at a time. Neither was I, of course! You can imagine how that sleep
deprivation, coupled with a child who couldn't speak intelligibly anyway, had
my husband and I at our wit's end.
One day in September 2007, I was browsing the Internet, when
I came across the video of Fireese at 12 months old, doing all these signs! I
called A over and together we watched the video several times. He LOVED it!
Within 45 minutes, my son was able to start communicating with me like never
before! I could understand him when he needed a drink, or a diaper change, or
his favorite toy (a pink monkey!), or to be left alone.
I realize that you may not realize this, or believe you're
just using your own talents, but you and your beautiful daughter are angels to
me!
A ended up getting a speech therapist who provided us
tons of flash cards with signs on them to learn. He will be 4 years old in
June, and I'm now looking to find ASL classes to keep up with him!
I don't know where we'd be today if we hadn't found your
video online - I really don't.
Thank you so much for taking the time to put it up and share
it. I will always appreciate it!
W.M.
“Hi Laura & Fireese.
My daughter E lost her hearing in her right ear
completely, and has moderate loss in her left ear due to a nearly deadly bout
of meningitis when she was 13 mo old. She was an early talker- speaking in
sentences before she got sick. Because the hearing loss is in her right ear she
almost completely lost her ability to talk all together. She is now 2 and we
have started her in speech therapy. She had become SO frustrated because she
had full sentences in her head that she couldn't access. She would try to talk
and actually end up crying, screaming and even biting her own arms out of frustration.
In speech therapy we are teaching her to sign. It amazing how the physicality
of signing the words is allowing her to "tap in" to her language
pathways. Using sign has actually made it possible for her to talk. She only
has therapy once per week, but she often runs to my laptop and says
"baby" and makes her sign for "signing" at the same
time...that means she wants to watch Fireese on YouTube. We don't know anyone
else that signs- I took a course in it when I was in highschool but I don't use
or remember much of it anymore. I think watching Fireese has helped E to
feel okay and "normal" so she likes it and uses it more. It also has
reminded me of signs I already knew so I can use it more around the house so it
feels more natural for her. So I guess I just wanted to say thank you and give
you and Fireese some feedback.
Thanks again.
R&E
Laura,
I
just wanted to send you a note and thank you for what you've posted on YouTube
and your website. I am signing with my daughter and we are beginning to see the
fruits of our labor! She is 8 months old and is now signing 'milk'
when she actually wants milk. She is very intent when she watches my hands
and will often look at her hands as if to say "how do I do
that?" I've done a lot of research on signing with young children and I
knew it was something I wanted to do with my daughter. My husband and I
are both elementary school teachers, so helping our daughter to be
successful is a priority for us. At first, some (notably my
mother-in-law) were skeptical. Now that she's seen M sign for milk, I
think (and hope) she realizes how much signing will help M
throughout her life.
I
also have used your ABC phonics song in my classroom. I teach 1st
grade and many of my students did not know their letters or sounds. When I
stumbled across your video on YouTube - I showed it to my class the next day.
My students will actually sing the song out on the playground, and
one of my really low little guys is able to blend phonemic words if I
show him the signs. It's made him feel successful because I can sign (in a
sneaky way so the other kids don't notice) and he can blend simple
words like 'get', 'cat', 'dog', etc. Now we are working on
getting him to connect the sign to the printed letter. I don't know what I
would have done with this little guy without your video. (He is performing
at a pre-school level 3/4 of the way through 1st grade.) My class really jumped
on board with signing and they now know 65 signs (including the alphabet).
They will sign to each other, to me, and are teaching their friends in
other classes. I love that I can give them directions to get their pencils and
go sit at the carpet without saying a word.
Again,
thanks so much for what you do. The area I live in doesn't have much in the way
of sign language resources, so your videos combined with several websites and
books have been a great help.
Thanks,
T
Other Ways You Can Help
Share the link on Facebook and Twitter Email the link to your friends and family Tell anyone you know that would be interested in supporting us!
Looking for more information?Check the project
FAQ
You will get an autographed copy of a DVD of the Web Series we are making. There will be 5 shows for sure and hopefully 10 episodes if we get our full funding.
5 out of 200 of claimed
Good Karma!
$1 USD
Put a smile on our face and be a part of making this great project happen.
A big thank you for all who contribute!
2 claimed
Good Karma + Name
$3 USD
Get your name listed on our site as a funder for this project! At the same time you'll get some pretty great karma ;)
0 claimed
ABC Songs Download
$5 USD
With this perk you will get 2 free ABC song downloads:
ABC ASL song
ABC phonics song
(Note there is an option to download the American version that sings 'zee' and the Canadian/British version that sings 'zed')
Here are the songs:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMQHd1UBkeI
and
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OlMPQ-Lr2_Y
0 claimed
Name on Website & $5 perk
$10 USD
With this perk you get the $5 perk as well as your name listed on our website as a thank you for contributing to our project.
9 claimed
Digital Download
$15 USD
You will receive a digital download of 7 or our My Smart Hands songs that were recorded by Fireese and Moe Berg.
You will also get a mention on our website
1 claimed
Big Digital Download
$20 USD
You will receive all 15 of our My Smart Hands songs that have been professionally written and recorded by Fireese and Moe Berg.
4 claimed
Signed My Smart Hands CD
$25 USD
You will be mailed an autographed My Smart Hands CD that has 15 songs recorded by Fireese and Moe Berg.
(non-North American countries add $5 for extra shipping costs)
2 out of 100 of claimed
The Green Room
$35 USD
A collection of short stories written by Moe Berg. You will receive an autographed copy of the book. This book is no longer available in stores and is a rare find.
5 claimed
15 Min Skype With Laura
$50 USD
You will get a 15 minute Skype session with Laura. You can talk about baby sign language or you tube, the choice is yours!
0 out of 50 of claimed
30 Min Skype With Laura
$90 USD
You will get a 30 minute Skype session with Laura. You can talk about baby sign language or you tube, the choice is yours!
Have questions about how to sign with your baby? Now is your opportunity to pick the brain of the founder of My Smart Hands and author of the Baby Signing Bible.
Or
Are you trying to get a you tube channel up and running? Do you want help figuring out all the tips and tricks youtube has to offer? You can get invaluable advice from Laura on building a brand on youtube!
0 out of 50 of claimed
60 Min Skype With Laura
$150 USD
You will get a 60 minute Skype session with Laura. You can talk about baby sign language or you tube, the choice is yours!
Have questions about how to sign with your baby? Now is your opportunity to pick the brain of the founder of My Smart Hands and author of the Baby Signing Bible.
Or
Are you trying to get a you tube channel up and running? Do you want help figuring out all the tips and tricks youtube has to offer? You can get invaluable advice from Laura on building a brand on youtube!
0 out of 50 of claimed
Song Advice from Moe Berg
$200 USD
Moe will give you detailed advice on a song demo you send to him. He will offer help with the song and arrangement.
0 out of 10 of claimed
The Star Perk
$2,000 USD
Have your child be in an episode with Fireese!
You can bring your child to the set and have him or her be a part of the show.
You must be in the Toronto Area or be willing to travel to Toronto.
Travel and expenses will be covered by you.
You must be able to work within our shooting schedule. Shooting will begin early January and episodes will be filmed on weekends.
0 out of 5 of claimed
The Big One!
$3,000 USD
Moe Berg will write and record a song with your name in it (or the name of your loved one).
How cool would it be to have a song that was written by one of Canada's most well respected musicians.
This perk is invaluable! You'll have a great keepsake that will be one of a kind - specifically written for you!
There is only one of these perks so snatch it now before it's gone!
