The Role of Sign Language Narratives in Developing Identity for Deaf Children

This article describes the role of sign language narratives in the development of Deaf identity in children. By analyzing interviews with British Deaf teachers and other Deaf adults as well as stories told to children using British Sign Language, we can see the elements of language and culture that adults believe should be passed on to the next generation of Deaf people. Deaf children are rarely born into the Deaf community and usually do not learn sign language from their parents, but through signed stories they are introduced to linguistic and cultural traditions present in mainstream British society and in the British Deaf community. I argue that storytelling in schools by Deaf teachers plays an essential role in deaf children's development of identity.