--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If the students didn’t understand the…" description: "\"“If the students didn’t understand the charade, I’d turn and write on the blackboard, but I tried to avoid even that. I didn’t want the students automa..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ec/lou-ann-walker-11436_quote_if-the-students-didn-t-understand-the-ch_1122204.jpg" --- # If the students didn’t understand the charade, I’d turn… ![“If the students didn’t understand the charade, I’d turn and write on the blackboard, but I tried to avoid even that. I didn’t want the students automatically translating everything from sign to English—that slowed the process.” quote by Lou Ann Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ec/lou-ann-walker-11436_quote_if-the-students-didn-t-understand-the-ch_1122204.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ec/lou-ann-walker-11436_quote_if-the-students-didn-t-understand-the-ch_1122204.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ec/lou-ann-walker-11436_quote_if-the-students-didn-t-understand-the-ch_1122204.jpg) > ““If the students didn’t understand the charade, I’d turn and write on the blackboard, but I tried to avoid even that. I didn’t want the students automatically translating everything from sign to English—that slowed the process.”” [Lou Ann Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-ann-walker/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The teacher avoided writing on the board to prevent students from translating sign language directly to English, as it would slow learning. **In simple terms:** Avoiding literal translation speeds language learning. Key Takeaway Use immersive methods for sign language instruction. Themes education language acquisition sign language Mood thoughtful analytical Type instructional practical When to use this quote - classroom teaching - interpreting services - language immersion programs Key Concepts pedagogy communication theory Questions to Reflect On - How can teachers balance immersion with comprehension? - What strategies reduce reliance on translation? 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More and more we were curiosities.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-ann-walker/less-and-less-we-were-freaks-more-and-more-we-were-curiosities/) [Lou Ann Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-ann-walker/) > [“By the time we got back to his house, Grandpa couldn’t reproduce the two signs he’d learned, but he hurried inside to describe to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-ann-walker/by-the-time-we-got-back-to-his-house-grandpa-couldn-t-reproduce-the/) [Lou Ann Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-ann-walker/) > [“her parents had no way of telling her she was going away to school.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-ann-walker/her-parents-had-no-way-of-telling-her-she-was-going-away-to-school/) [Lou Ann Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-ann-walker/) > [“And then she made a sign that sent a chill up my spine. It was a slang sign meaning “I’m deaf,” but it’s crudely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-ann-walker/and-then-she-made-a-sign-that-sent-a-chill-up-my-spine-it-was-a-slang/) [Lou Ann Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-ann-walker/) > [“Like virtually all schools for the deaf at that time, the Indiana State School emphasized oral skills: speaking and lipreading.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-ann-walker/like-virtually-all-schools-for-the-deaf-at-that-time-the-indiana/) [Lou Ann Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-ann-walker/) > [“So much had been lost.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-ann-walker/so-much-had-been-lost/) [Lou Ann Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-ann-walker/) > [“Over the centuries people have blamed everything from eating a green chestnut to being cursed by a gypsy. Others have cited being frightened by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-ann-walker/over-the-centuries-people-have-blamed-everything-from-eating-a-green/) [Lou Ann Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-ann-walker/) > [“to leave a child without language for a moment longer than is absolutely necessary seems cruel to me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-ann-walker/to-leave-a-child-without-language-for-a-moment-longer-than-is/) [Lou Ann Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-ann-walker/) > [“This work was throwing me into the intimate functioning of people’s lives.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-ann-walker/this-work-was-throwing-me-into-the-intimate-functioning-of-people-s/) [Lou Ann Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-ann-walker/) [Explore all 60 Lou Ann Walker quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-ann-walker/) ## More Blackboard quotes > [I was trouble - and always in trouble. Aged eight I still couldn't read. 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