ASL Poetry || Blog Post #6

For this blog post I will be learning and reciting this poem in sign + speaking in English 

Poem by : 

Amy Ludwig Vanderwater

Interviewing My Mentor || Blog Post #5

Before I start to really use sign, I would like to know the basic perspective of the community that uses this language. Language is more than words, it is a culture as well.

Here are some of the questions I will be asking my mentor, Teri Voorhes.

Personal Questions:

• How did you become associated with learning and teaching sign?
• Do you remember the moment you decided to learn sign? What was it like and what helped your decision?
• How has ASL impacted your life and family?
• Has there been any obstacles in the past learning and or teaching sign? 
• What is your favorite thing about sign language?

Opinionated Questions:

• Do you think it is important for people to learn this specific language? Why or why not? 
• Do you think that people in important professions should learn a few signs in order to understand their clients/patients?
• For example, should a doctor learn a few signs for the body, temperature, and emotions to understand their patients in order to give better care?
• Do you think the deaf community has any limitations when it comes to doing basic tasks in their everyday lives? Why or why not? 
•  If yes, what is an example of one of their limitations?
• In your opinion, what do deaf people or people who use their hands to express themselves excel at more than people who can hear?

Factual Questions: 

• Is there other groups of people, other than the deaf community, who uses sign to express themselves?
• Why are there different versions of sign language in different countries?
• When your deaf, are your other scenes heightened?* 
• How do hearing ads work? *
• Whats the standard for being legally deaf?* 
• How do people become deaf? Illness?Something happened when they were born?
• Why can someone deaf people talk and others can't?

Other (questions random people have asked):

• How do deaf people wake up in the morning if they can't hear an alarm clock? 
• How do they know when someones knocking on their door or ringing the doorbell?
• How do deaf musicians know what their doing and if they're doing it correctly?*
• Is it safe for the deaf community to drive if they can not hear other cars? *
• How does the deaf community have internal conversations with themselves if they don't know what an inner voice sounds like? Do they imagine hands signing to them?*
• What's signing grammar like?
• What does it feel like when deaf people talk?
• Are there any signs that have more than one meaning? 

This is the video: 

Learning sentence structures / how to sign basic sentences in ASL || Blog Post #4

"Grammar" is a set of rules for using a language. These rules guide users in the correct speaking or signing of a language. Now that I know basic vocabulary, today I will learn the basic grammar for ASL to put the words I've learned together. 

"ASL follows several different "word orders" depending on what is needed. Which word order you choose depends on your audience's familiarity with the topic and what you are trying to do: explain, remind, confirm, negate, cause to consider. 

A.    If you use the subject as your topic, then you are using an active voice.

BOY THROW BALL.                   The boy threw the ball.

B.     If you use the object as your topic, then you are using a passive voice.

BALL, BOY THROW.                  The ball was thrown by the boy.

Note that the active voice is in Subject-Verb-Object word order:   BOY THROW BALL.  The passive voice is in Object, Subject-Verb word order:  BALL BOY THROW. 

Both of the aforementioned sentences are in Topic-Comment format.  As we’ve already established, the topic is what you are talking about and the comment makes observations about that topic.  Topic is for the first item mentioned in a sentence (whether it is the subject or object) and the comment is the latter, and it makes a comment about the topic.  So let’s take a look at those sentences again:

A.    Active Voice, using the subject as your topic.

BOY THROW BALL.                   Topic: BOY  Comment:  THROW BALL

What is the topic?  Boy What is the comment saying about the boy?  He threw the ball.

B.     Passive Voice, using the object as your topic.

BALL, BOY THROW.                  Topic: BALL Comment:  BOY THROW

What is the topic?  Ball What is the comment saying about the ball?  It was thrown by the boy.

So, as you can see, the topic can be either a subject or an object.  Now that we’ve established the topic can be a "BOY" or it can be the "BALL" he is throwing, and it can either be the subject or object of the sentence.  

A.    The BOY can be:

·        The subject of the sentence:  BOY THROW BALL.

·        The object of the sentence: BALL, HIT BOY.

`

B.     The BALL can be:

·        The subject of the sentence:  BALL, HIT BOY.

·        The object of the sentence: BOY THROW BALL."

I found this information at this link : http://www.lifeprint.com/asl101/pages-layout/grammar.htm

I also used this video:

Basic Greetings / Goodbyes, Questions (5 W's), and Family and Friend's in ASL || Blog Post #3

This week I will be learning basic greetings / goodbyes, family and friends signs, and questions in American Sign Language. I will also be learning the 5 w's : where, what, when, why, and who. I came up with a vocab list to follow below and the links I will use to learn the vocab:

Basic Greetings / Goodbyes : 

• Hello!
• Hello my name is ...
• Good morning!
• What's up?
• How are you? 
• Goodbye!
• See you later!
• Yes
• No

The link I used to learn this information: 

http://theaslapp.com/#about

Questions (5 w's) : 

• How are you?
• Do you feel okay?
• How was your day?
• Can I help?
• Where?
• Where are you going?
• Where is the bathroom?
• What?
• What are you up to/ doing?
• When?
• When did that happen?
• When is that?
• Why?
• Why did you do that?
• Who?
• Who is that?

Links I used to learn this information: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7RTXVJUbByE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k9cFqNYlV1A

http://theaslapp.com/#about

Family and friends : 

• Mom 
• Dad
• Uncle 
• Aunt 
• Daughter 
• Son
• Sister 
• Brother 
• Grandmother 
• Grandfather
• Best friend / friend 
• Girlfriend / Boyfriend 

Links I used to learn this information: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6DlXs0TQSwM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ianCxd71xIo

ASL's ABC's and Family Signs || Blog Post #2

A couple weeks ago I started teaching myself the ABC' s in American Sign Language.

These lessons I will be teaching myself independently, but the last 2 posts I will be learning with and from my mentor Teri Voorhes. 

The source I used to learn ASL's ABC's was from an app called The ASL App, which had a motion video for each sign in the alphabet. 

This is a video of me using what I learned to sign the alphabet :

Video link here

Using the same app, The ASL App, I also learned the signs for family members and loved ones.

The words I learned are:

Genius Project Expectations || Blog Post #1

What am I excited about for this project? 

                                                                      -My  to do list : 

• First start out with the basics of American sign language such as :
• The ABC’ s
• Family
• Write blog entry #2
• Basic questions / 5 w's : who, what, when, where, and why
• Basic greetings / Goodbyes
• Write blog entry #3  
• Then learn basic sentences in American sign language
• Write blog entry #4
• Interview my mentor on how American sign language has affected her students and her life.
• Ask her parts of my Inquiry question.
• Use THIS resource to add anything that she did not mention or to help her mention
• Make sure she is comfortable with this
• Write blog entry #5
• Pick a piece of poetry or song lyric to recite
• practice until I memorize it  
• Write blog entry #6
• If I have more time learn more pieces of poetry/songs
• Create final presentation
• Practice final presentation

-I am very excited to start leaning the basic greetings/sentence structures and learning a song or poem in sign.
-I am also very excited to be working with my mentor Teri Voorhes (Teaches American sign language for a living, has a son in my grade named Max Voorhes, and lives in my neighborhood!).

What I am wondering about this project?

-My Inquiry questions: 

• How has general sign language impacted disabled people’s way of communication?
• How does ASL differ and compare to the English language?

-I'm also wondering if I'll actually remember all these signs in the future and be able to help people communicate.

What idea's interest me right now?

-My basic interests/ideas for this project were: learning a song in ukulele, making a huge art project for the school, learning the basics of ASL (American Sign Language), and learning the basics in physiology.
-In the end I pick learning the basics of ASL as my Genius Project because I thought It suited me and the project the most.