- Amanda McKinney
Meet Josue and Deysi!

Say hello to Josue and Deysi! They are our two 2nd graders! They are such fun to work with!
Josue is 7 and is actually repeating 2nd grade this year. He is the second of 5 kids in his family, 4 of which all attend Refugio. He has an older brother in 6th grade, a younger sister in 1st grade, a younger brother in preschool, and a baby brother as well. He absolutely adores his big brother and tags along with him everywhere. His older brother is constantly looking out for him. Josue is a fun-loving little boy and always keeps trying even when he doesn’t understand something. He is profoundly deaf as far as we can tell. We are all pretty convinced he has a learning disability as well because he really struggles to retain information. Unfortunately, due to his family’s poverty, he has not been officially examined, tested, etc., to find out his level of hearing loss, if he does indeed have a learning disability, or any other issues that may be present. When I first started teaching back in April, Josue didn’t know his letters, numbers, but did know the signs for animals and a few other things. He can now sign all of the letters while looking at flash cards, numbers 1-10(mostly), fruit signs, a few location signs, more name signs for the other deaf kids and his teachers. You can definitely be praying for Josue and his family.
Deysi is also 7 and such a happy little girl! She is deaf and is a little person. She absolutely loves to learn and learns quickly! She is so diligent to complete her assignments and copy the homework, even though she currently doesn’t understand any of it. When I first started teaching, she knew a few letters and numbers in sign language and a few other random signs. She now knows all of her letters, numbers 1-10, and has begun to learn animal signs. Unfortunately, her dad was in a moto accident and afterwards she stopped attending school a while ago. Please pray for this awesome little girl that she will be able to come back to school next year and that her dad recovers fully from his accident.