Building communication

Pre-kindergarten deaf education teacher Clarissa Funk considers it a sign.

The gift she and other teachers with ECISD's Ector County Regional Day School Program for the Deaf received Wednesday was a present they weren't expecting but one they can use for years to come.

In fact, they can build on it.

Paul Geers, the 52-year-old father of former ECISD deaf student, Keifer Geers, recently created plastic sign language blocks after 17 years in the making.

And the Ector County Independent School District's pre-kindergarten deaf program students are some of the first ones to get a feel for them.

One set, which is marketed to a 3-year-old and older audience, displays the individual 26 sign language letters, pictures for each letter and colors.

Funk said her students would be able to relate to the blocks by feeling them and seeing the signs.

"This is - wow - a blessing from God," she said.

Nineteen-year-old Keifer Geers graduated from Odessa High in 2007 and learned the foundations of signing as young as 17 months old with the help of his parents and deaf program teachers in the Ector County Independent School District.

But, it was Keifer's dad who showed him how to build onto his foundation. Keifer's now a sophomore at Texas A&M University studying biomedical engineering.

Paul Geers first created sign language blocks out of carved clay for Keifer when he was younger and it helped his son shape communication skills.

"I knew that if he could read the whole world would be open to him," Paul Geers said.

He said he hopes the blocks help deaf children overcome barriers when learning to read and communicate.

A set of blocks, which cost $150 a set, was recently shipped to the Alabama School for the Deaf, he said, noting he hopes more schools decide to also use the tool.

He also hopes parents of deaf children would want to use the blocks at home to keep their own sign language skills fresh while working with their kids.

After all, it proved to be beneficial for communication with his son.

"You find that it's a joy and a privilege to teach them to read," he said.