Auslan will become a formal part of the curriculum in New South Wales from next year. But some schools are already teaching sign language to their students. In the northern New South Wales town of Uki a pair of twins with deaf parents are now signing at home and in the classroom.
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00:00These six-year-old twins are signing their names, using gestures both long and short.
00:13They use a mix of Auslan and tactile signing to interact with their parents.
00:18Hi, my name's Kirstie and this is my sign name, Kirstie.
00:24Hi, my name is Jex and my sign name is Jex. I'm a deafblind person.
00:31The twins are hearing children of deaf adults, also referred to as CODA.
00:37The language Nikita and Aaliyah use to communicate at home is also being used at school.
00:43What's next?
00:44The monkey.
00:46Their class at UKI Public is already learning Auslan.
00:49Giraffes!
00:52They're to the language joining the official state syllabus next year.
00:56I like how we can talk to deaf people.
01:00Whether it's their own name, a favourite colour or something more functional.
01:05What's your favourite word in sign, mate?
01:07Toilet.
01:09Toilet! Can you show us how to do that?
01:13These kids are embracing the basics of Auslan.
01:17I think it's wonderful but I would really like one other thing to be included
01:21and that's hand-over-hand tactile sign language for deafblind people.
01:27It's also given Jex and Kirstie the chance to play a bigger role in their daughters' school lives.
01:33I think it's great. I think it's wonderful that the kids are learning
01:38so I can know what the kids are talking about.
01:41But that doesn't mean they're free of challenges at home.
01:45They can be a little bit cheeky sometimes because they know that we can't hear them talking
01:51and, you know, every now and then we might catch them out.
01:54Monkey poo!
01:56Cheeky and chatty, no matter the language.