1. Maida Ahmad
AP Lit/Comp
1st Period/Corbett
April 9, 2012
Senior Project Speech
10 million: that is the number of people that are currently hard of hearing in the
world. 1 million of them are completely deaf. With the younger generation’s use of
excessively loud music, these numbers can only skyrocket from here. The escalating
percentage of the deaf population is also linked to the rapid rise in the use of American
Sign Language. Every day, sign language is climbing in popularity, not only in the
United States, but all over the globe.
Hello, my name is Maida Ahmad and for my senior project, I learned sign
language and I taught what I learned to Ashley Bridges, a student who was interested in
learning the language.
I chose to learn sign language for my senior project because it’s a language that
has fascinated me for a long time. The intricate hand gestures remind me of a beautiful
dance that holds a deep meaning. At the time that I was choosing a research topic in the
beginning of the year, I had a desire to become a hearing specialist. Therefore, I supposed
that in order to become a hearing specialist, I must first understand my patients, their
lifestyle, and the language that unites them so remarkably.
Since the best way to learn something is to test what you know by teaching it to
someone else, that’s exactly what I did. Once I was confident in my ability to sign, I
began to teach what I had already learned to Ashley. For my product, I created a

2. scrapbook to document the sign language lessons I gave Ashley. In the beginning, I went
through a rough time wondering what I could use as a product. Technology never works
out for me, so a video was out of the picture. Also, I have very little artistic ability, so it
would have been almost impossible to draw something sophisticated and eye-catching.
Luckily, a scrapbook required neither technology nor artistic ability. I was able to use
ribbons, glitter, stickers, and other decorations to illuminate my creative side. After every
lesson I gave Ashley, I would document what we reviewed or learned and save a page in
my scrapbook for it. I also took an abundant number of pictures to record the wonderful
lessons Ashley and I had.
Some problems I encountered during my process of creating a scrapbook was my
extreme focus on cleanness and clarity. Since I’m a major perfectionist, there were points
during the process when I would spend hours on one page in an attempt to achieve
precision. I also didn’t realize how small the pages were, so I had to trim most of the
pictures. Nevertheless, I’m satisfied with my choice of creating a scrapbook. Although it
took longer than I expected, the end result proved it to be worthwhile.
My scrapbook relates to my research paper very significantly. After all, my
research paper is what confirmed my decision to teach Ashley sign language, which
would later lead to my product. Also, it was my research paper that led me to some of the
best techniques in teaching sign language to others. Some of these techniques include
pointing to what you need a sign for and starting from the basics of sign language and,
with a slow pace, working your way up. If it wasn’t for the simple techniques I
encountered, I doubt I could have taught so much sign language to Ashley in such a short
period of time without having her forget any signs.

3. My project facilitator, Andy Davis, was actually the person who influenced me to
teach sign language to Ashley for my senior project. I met Andy over the summer while
volunteering at a local daycare. The children we looked after were all under the age of 7,
but a majority of them were infants. Because of this, they hadn’t learned to speak yet.
One day, I noticed Andy using sign language to communicate to Emma, a 2-year old girl.
As soon as she did the sign for “no biting”, Emma quickly backed off of Liam, an infant
who was lying on the ground. I was shocked, but extremely intrigued at how Emma
comprehended Andy’s gestures in a heartbeat. I was even more fascinated when Andy
told me her grandmother worked as a professional interpreter in California and has signed
for some of the biggest celebrities in the world. It was Andy’s grandmother that got her
interested in sign language, and eventually, taught her the language that has become so
monumental throughout the globe. Since Andy is a single mother with a job and two
young girls, it became difficult to meet up regularly. However, Andy introduced me to
several books and websites that assisted me in learning sign language. Also, when we
couldn’t meet up, we stayed in touch through texts, calls, Facebook, and emails.
At the beginning of the year, I began my senior project by talking. By this, I mean
talking to absolutely everyone about how I could successfully learn sign language. My
teachers showed me websites, my friends introduced me to videos, my project facilitator
gave me plenty of helpful books, and my family provided me with all the support,
encouragement, and words of wisdom I needed to get me through the year.
Throughout the year, I used www.lifeprint.com to learn sign language. The
website was so beneficial and it consisted of videos that performed signs in a very simple
and accurate manner. I began by first learning the alphabet and then continued into the

4. first 100 signs for beginners and worked my way through all the sections ranging from
“family” terms all the way to “food” terms. Once I felt I had learned enough sign
language to proceed to the next step, I began to create sentences and phrases with the
vocabulary I had learned. This is also around the time I began to teach sign language to
Ashley. I taught sign language to Ashley the same way I taught myself, by starting at the
bottom and gradually working our way up.
An obstacle I faced was my decision to choose a topic that was so demanding and
time-consuming. I am already fluent in two languages, English and Urdu, so I assumed
that learning an additional language wouldn’t be too difficult. However, the grueling
workload from three AP courses and the process of applying to colleges and scholarship
programs began to take a toll on me. Learning an entire language in just a couple of
months is no easy feat and although I chose quite a complicated topic for my senior
project, my desire to become fluent in sign language pushed me continuously throughout
the year. Since my topic was so bulky, I spent more time on my senior project than I
intended to. However, it was the long hours I spent on learning sign language that has
brought me success in completing it today.
After completing this entire senior project, I have learned that when I put my
mind to something, I can do absolutely anything. There were times during the year when
I became so stressed over school, college applications, and my senior project that I
simply wanted to stop working so hard. It was my motivation to exceed and my
dedication to achieve success that provided me with boosts of energy and determination
throughout the year. Although I have not become completely fluent in sign language, I
have learned so many diverse signs and phrases that I know I wouldn’t be able to forget

5. them even if I tried. In fact, I hope to take a sign language course in college to continue
my journey in becoming fluent.
Another fact I have learned about myself is that I no longer want to become a
hearing specialist. I will continue to learn sign language for the rest of my life, but I want
to explore more diverse regions of medicine. The senior project also exposed that I have
an unbreakable drive to become a respected doctor in the medical field. One of my
biggest and most ambitious goals is to become a successful doctor and make an impact
on lives all around me. I hope to begin my journey in changing and saving lives in the fall
at the University of Georgia, while majoring in pre-dentistry.
At this time, I would like to thank you all so much for your time and I will now
answer any questions that you have for me.