American Sign Language

as you learn ASL use it while you talk that way you dont forget it my sister in laws mom is deaf so i learned sign. what helped me is when i was "talking of thinking to my self" i would sing everything out.

 

I love ASL, ive been learning some too. I like how new york and subway are like the reverse of eachother.

 

From what I've heard from Deaf people, this isn't actually that good an idea. Apparently you end up garbling the grammar or something. Just because you can physically do both at once doesn't mean your brain can handle essentially speaking two languages at once.

But I wouldn't be an expert in this.

 

I love ASL and I love signing songs, it's really fun and you can get really creative too.

The easiest way to learn ASL is to attend a class. I actually used this site ASLPro.com Home to help when I didn't know how to sign a word or just randomly clicked words to see how to sign them. You can use that as a starting point. I hope you'll be able to learn ASL and learn about deaf culture, it's very interesting.

 

the lady thats deaf that i talk to can also read lips so it helps if i mess up or forget a word but im use to speaking two languages at once

 

Hello, I am a ASL-2 student with a deaf teacher. ASL and English don't mix together as a single language. Some things in true ASL can leave out entire words and communicate the same thing. Also, there are subtle differences from English like shoulder shifting and not using "and" to describe multiple things. In short, you cannot try to sign in exact English or it will simply not make sense in either language. What you described seems like PSE or SEE which are not true ASL.

To also show how different English and ASL are here is an example- An English sentence ends with the subject IE "When does the movie start?" while the equivalent in ASL is "Movie starts when?". I will admit than when you start this learning curve is hard to get past but it becomes progressively easier.

Next, I would get into a class to learn and then attending some deaf events in your area (where deaf people meet up hang out sometimes). Just make shure you get educated in ASL before attending an event (they're there to have fun, not teach you a language) and announce to them that you are hearing and an ASL student right off the bat (it will make them aware to sign slow and prevent confusion later). Yet again take some ASL first to get started and get a moderate vocabulary going.

Also, I may not stress this enough- I you see someone signing don't approach them and ask anything. Not only is this amazingly rude just think if someone came out of the blue and asked you somewhere to teach them how to do gymnastics or something. Awkward.

Someone also said to use ASL pro, I haven't clicked the link yet but if there is not video to teach you it will be really hard to learn. With pictures you miss out on facial movements, the directionalities are sometimes confusing or off, there is no mouth morphing, and many other aspects are missed out on. Remember, it is a language and languages are complex.

Well, this is just becoming a giant wall so...If you'd like further info, want clarification, would like some help, or anything else feel free to message me. ^_^

 

The only thing I would add is try to see if any of your friends would want to learn with you. It would be really helpful to have someone to practice with. I have a friend who wanted to learn ASL, so he started a club, which I'm a part of, so that he and anyone else who wanted to could learn ASL together (our school doesn't offer ASL classes, sadly). We also get involved in the local deaf community, which is a great opportunity to practice as well as learn about Deaf culture and make friends.

 

I learned a bit of ASL when I was younger because my twin brothers had impaired speech development, and we used it to both help them communicate and teach them to speak better. They don't need it anymore, but it's still a very useful skill and I'm glad I have it! Hopefully next semester I'll be able to sign up for the advanced ASL class and get more practice in application.

 

Hiya! You totally made me smile today. I study ASL, as well. <3 There are these workbooks you can check out called "Signing Naturally." They are a little dated, but they will help you learn more about the "language" part of signing as well as actual signs. There's also another book called "American Sign Language Green Books: A Teacher's Resource Text on Grammar and Culture." That one is really helpful as well. My teachers call it a "sign language bible."

Most importantly just have fun learning. Enjoy it and it'll come naturally as you continue to practice. You can go to this social site called "AllDeaf" if you want to make some friends and practice over Skype and the like. So it is possible to meet other signers, Hearing, Deaf or Hard of Hearing without them being in your town. I see people doing that a lot on there. Oh and there's also "Sign Savvy," which is a good dictionary. I use that one the most.

Also, I have to disagree with Spitfire a little, only because I'm not sure what they're saying. I've heard stuff like that before from snobby buttholes at my Uni and I didn't know what they were getting at either listen. It's not like some secret society where you gotta know the handshake. :lol: If you see someone signing and you want to introduce yourself and have a chat with them, I don't see why that would be bad unless it was bad timing, like they're busy or you're busy or if they personally aren't in the mood for a chat. There have been times when I'll be out signing with my friends (Deaf, Hearing, and HOH) and people who sign a little or not at all will start a conversation with us and we have a nice little time. And if the person doesn't have a lot of experience or is curious about stuff, they'll ask where we learned, how long we've been doing it, etc. There's nothing wrong with those questions, they're just ordinary conversation points you would ask anyone who you're sharing a common interest with. It's not like there's some kind of special conduct with how you're supposed to approach a signer or even a Deaf person is what I mean. Just act like a regular person. It's really not that serious. You treat them and the situation like you would any normal interaction. You see a stranger doing something that interest you and you spark up a chat about it. I'm sure you know how to conduct yourself in a non-rude or ridiculous way with strangers in general, so if you're the type that doesn't mind approaching a person and you can do this non awkwardly in general (like in a situation where someone is wearing a band T-shirt you like and go over and talk to them about the band without embarassing yourself) then yeah, you should go for it. Or better yet to use Spitfire's gymnastics example. If you see a gymnasts and want to talk to them, it wouldn't be rude to go over and talk to them, introduce yourself, say you notice they were a gymnast and have a nice little chat about it. Of course you wouldn't ask them to show you how to do gymnastics right there in the streets, that's just common sense and sign language isn't gymnastics, so it wouldn't be so out of the ordinary to ask how to sign something at an appropriate point in a conversation like it would to ask a gymnast to show you how to stand on your hands. :lol: If you're having a nice chat with some signers and then ask them the signs for some things, I'm positive they'll be happy to show you. Most of the time, unless they're personally having a bad day or something, people are encouraging and supportive of other people who are learning, so it's really okay for you to approach someone you see signing if you feel inclined to talk to them. It's not like you'd go over to them and say "hey what's the sign for this?" just randomly without saying the usual "hello, I'm suchandsuch, noticed you were signing, always been interested, yada yada." Replace "you were signing" with any other thing and it would still just be a regular interaction regarding a common interest. And honestly if you did make that little faux pas out of over zealousness (which is usually the case), then that would just be potentially embarassing for you, but still not a big deal, definitely not amazingly rude as if you've just ruined their whole day because you dared approach them in such a manner. :roflmao: So not that deep for most people.

And you also definitely do not need to well versed in ASL before attending events. Goodness gracious. :rolle: Most people are patient enough and events are always chill and welcoming of students of all skill levels. If you feel like you're skilled enough to just have a few small chats, it's totally cool and no one will dismiss you because you don't know much. The majority feelings won't be "ugh, go away, I'm not your teacher!" And if anyone does have that attitude, you don't have to talk to that person and definitely don't have to re-evaluate yourself to meet their signing standard. I know I wouldn't bother. Sign language is one of those languages that you continue to learn, no matter how long you're been at it, and everyone there has been a newb at some point, so most people will get what you're going through. Going to the events is a part of the learning because it's not about just being able to do the signs, but about understanding others and having others understand you (receptive skills and the like is a major part more so that just making the correct handshape.) So intergrating, picking the language up, acquiring it through person to person interaction is actually better than books and a classroom. (Though, those are good as well.) So you don't have to first learn the language in full, then go talk to people. Of course you don't bring a textbook to a party, :lol:, but it's totally fine to go to an event at whatever skill level you're at, if you feel comfortable doing so. Definitely don't think you need to be fluent first. A part of becoming fluent is mingling and learning through signing with other people, so yeah sorry have to disagree with Spitfire on that as well. Again, the community isn't widely The Skulls of Sign Language. There are some people who may take it that seriously, but I just ignore them. It's just regular people at a gathering, you make you friends, you get in some practice while doing so.

Anywho, good luck with your studies. You don't have to take classes if you don't want or can't afford to right now. I made a friend at Uni who learned completely on her own while I was taking classes and she knew things I didn't even know, so just whichever way is good for you. I just love languages period., spoken and signed. The process of learning any language is the fun part, so make sure you have fun and don't put any unnecessary pressure on yourself. Byeee.