ASL

[Zailen]

So, I'm curious. After reading KS, has anyone wanted to start learning ASL? (American Sign Language?) I admit, I didn't start learning BECAUSE of KS, but I will admit that KS gave me the balls to go out and do it, among going to school again at all! I'm going back to school in the fall, and I'll be taking ASL along with my major, to help with the career finding process AFTER graduation. I want to teach History :3
I've actually wanted to teach History specifically since I was around 15 years old. I'm turning 22 now. I still have that love for both teaching children, and the days of olde. hah. But I digress. I was just curious if anyone else had any ASL stories to tell about how, or why they started learning! ORRR if that had any tips on the beginning process. Because I'm only a few weeks into it myself. (I'm teaching myself until september, but ironically my manager at my current job has been helping me. She's awesome!) I'm personally loving the learning process. It's SO much fun! And you feel so good when you can string something decent together for the first time. The ONLY problem...When I practice at work, I can only use one hand. Since the other is always holding onto a rescue tube. i'm a lifeguard. Doesnt sound like much of an issue right? WRONG! My hand! So much pain. So much. Eight straight hours of spelling stuff while guarding. Now it wont move...totally worth it.

[Kutagh]

Myself I've been considering Dutch sign language prior to playing ks and this year I'm doing a minor in it (so it counts for my bachelor as well, it is more intensive and better than self study or small courses).

Also, signing shouldn't hurt your arms. Please take sufficient breaks once you start feeling your arms hurting.

[Carighan]

I've been learning ASL for a bit over a month now, currently in the process of expanding the vocabulary.
I will probably sign up for a proper ASL course soon-ish, right now I'm just practising with my GF by signing a bit between us. And I try to always think how I'd sign something when I'm talking, and then look up whatever I'm still missing.

[BlackWaltzTheThird]

Was expecting Age/Sex/Location. Was pleasantly surprised.

I learned a bit of Auslan after encountering a few deaf people on the train a while ago (there's a topic about it somewhere around here). I can fingerspell, plus say a few basic phrases, but a lack of commitment on my part means I haven't learned anything more.

[Zailen]

@Katagh: Yeah, I know. It's not the arms, its just the finger joints. I guess I should have mentioned that I have terrible joins all 'round for my age. It's mainly my lower body (I'll be on a cane in the next 5-10 years) but its my hands and shoulders too, so...ehh you live with it. Thanks for the tip though! I practice at work when I'm not being bothered so...Breaks never really happen, haha. I'll be sure to start!

And to everyone else. I'm glad you all have reasons and such! Keep at it! I can finger spell pretty good, and I know some greetings, goodbyes, and common phrases I'd need for my job, but as a beginner...I've got much to learn. Taking this alongside another language class in the fall too.

Sadly, my REASONING for learning sort of falls a bit flatter than all of you, however. I just woke up one day and said. "Hey. My job needs at least ONE person who knows it. It should be me. I'm going to learn, and it will be fun." ...and it is.

I do have ONE concern though that maybe some of you can field however! I hear the deaf community can be a bit...apprehensive to the hearing community trying to learn ASL. It wouldn't be considered offensive to learn just for the sake of learning right? I have a terrible habit of treating everyone...The same. As in. i could care less what your situation is. To me, in an ideal world, that would be perfect, but I know i've been in trouble multiple times for it too on account of my...less than sensitive nature. I guess what I'm trying to say, is that I'm learning to communicate, not to cater to people. Thats smiled apon, correct? I may not care about people and their situations, but I DO care about their feelings. *shrugs*

[metalangel]

I do have ONE concern though that maybe some of you can field however! I hear the deaf community can be a bit...apprehensive to the hearing community trying to learn ASL. It wouldn't be considered offensive to learn just for the sake of learning right? I have a terrible habit of treating everyone...The same. As in. i could care less what your situation is. To me, in an ideal world, that would be perfect, but I know i've been in trouble multiple times for it too on account of my...less than sensitive nature. I guess what I'm trying to say, is that I'm learning to communicate, not to cater to people. Thats smiled apon, correct? I may not care about people and their situations, but I DO care about their feelings. *shrugs*

I've got just over a week left in my year-long ASL (immersion) course at college... then next year I'm going to try for the ASL-English Interpreter program (I wasn't to the standard they wanted to get in for the one starting this year).

The Deaf community is not apprehensive at all if you're doing it for the right reasons! If you come in blabbing about how you think Switched At Birth is so amazing/sign language is so beautiful/you want to help all those poor Deaf people then that's wrong. But, if you want to learn because you're interested/want to work with Deaf people/become an interpreter/have Deaf family or friends, then that's fine and you will be welcomed.

Your hands might hurt a little bit when you start (some handshapes are a bit unusual and take getting used to) but that should pass! Interpreters are taught exercises to avoid problems from things like carpal tunnel but you're not doing it at high speed for an entire day yet, so don't worry too much. Your arms, meanwhile, shouldn't hurt at all. Loosen up. There's what they call a 'signing space' in front of you, which is basically head to waist, and to the sides if you were to make a chicken flapping motion. Use all of it.

[Auratus]

I actually inspired to learn ASL from KS as other thing beside of Braille, Writing with right hand and left foot as lefty, Push-up and Emi-inspired running. But lack of drive cause me to quit most of them.*

So far, ASL and push-up is not having significant progress. I wish I can "talk" in ASL because sometime I am too lazy to talk, I also read somewhere that it can be used as means of communication with my own baby that usable before verbal one. It would save some trouble raising the child/children. (I actually never have a girlfriend, yet)


* I lost 7 kg from whatever I do while I am running, being half-baked ambidextrous and understand basic braille, Yay.

[metalangel]

You're thinking of Baby Sign, which is derived from ASL. It's just to communicate some basic wants or needs, you won't be able to discuss the 6 o'clock news with the baby.

[Auratus]

You're thinking of Baby Sign, which is derived from ASL. It's just to communicate some basic wants or needs, you won't be able to discuss the 6 o'clock news with the baby.

Of course, I wish i could correct that before you saw that. I also recall that Baby Sign can improve child's learning, and as I said would ease the communication.
By the way, I would prefer discuss about discipline and world economy if I can do so with news.

[Zailen]

@Metalangel. Thanks for the response. Yeeeaahhh no. I don't operate like that. ...ever. However, the area I live in DOES. hence why I was confused. I'm literally only learning so that I can communicate with as many people as i can in life (also a reason why im learning German at the same time), to assist with my current job, and to assist with my future job. And if fun counts as a reason, that too. Because man...It -is- fun. I've also never heard of switched at birth. But I've heard the term thrown around. I have no idea how to begin to decifer what that is...A book? Movie? Ehh.

And I hope you're right! I've been practicing a bit more than spelling today. Greetings, introduction stuff, and goodbyes. My hand doesn't hurt as much. This makes me happy.

[metalangel]

@Metalangel. Thanks for the response. Yeeeaahhh no. I don't operate like that. ...ever. However, the area I live in DOES. hence why I was confused. I'm literally only learning so that I can communicate with as many people as i can in life (also a reason why im learning German at the same time), to assist with my current job, and to assist with my future job. And if fun counts as a reason, that too. Because man...It -is- fun. I've also never heard of switched at birth. But I've heard the term thrown around. I have no idea how to begin to decifer what that is...A book? Movie? Ehh.

What job are you planning to use ASL in? I'm not saying it's not an asset to anyone who happens to know it, just curious. It is fun, though. If you have a sense of humour and a good imagination it can be absolutely hilarious. A big part of Deaf culture is storytelling, and a well-told ASL story will have you laughing until your sides split. I regularly make my teachers laugh so I think I'm on the right track!

And I hope you're right! I've been practicing a bit more than spelling today. Greetings, introduction stuff, and goodbyes. My hand doesn't hurt as much. This makes me happy.

Practice your fingerspelling! Some of the shapes (specifically M, N and T, but also E and R) aren't natural shapes and will take some practice to get your hand into the right shape. Keep at it, though - if you watch native signers on Youtube you'll see how fast they can fingerspell stuff. And a little tip: you aren't hand modelling for a fingerspelling chart. For M N and T, you don't have to fold your fingers down hard over your thumb.

There's a lot more tricks to it but don't bounce while signing, don't 'flick' each letter towards the other person.

[Xanatos]

Hm...How to learn sign with my shitty control-lacking palsy hand...Dilemmas, dilemmas...

[Zailen]

Haha You'll get it Xan.

And I can see how M,N, and T could be difficult in a faster paced situation. I always had more issues with P and Q though. For no reason other than flow. It's a weird shape. Haha. I'll take your advice though! I came up with some fun names for them too, actually. for my own memory banks. Like...Say. "I" Thats "When in doubt, pinky out" Or "J" ...thats "Doctor evil." Or my favorite... "K" "Upside-down boy." ...For obvious reasons...bahah! Oh! And for Dragonball fans. "E" "Wolf Fang Fist" =D! Those little tricks helped me learn a whole lot.

And YES! I love telling stories. I'm a very...animated person. As you may be able to tell from my general typing style. haha. That ACTUALLY is one of the reasons why im going for my specific career! Especially fun stories. I currently work as a lifeguard at an indoor resort/waterpark, and alot of my job is to say spiels and speeches that are required by our attraction manufacturers for us to say, so ASL could really help me with that, because I've been in a tight spot a couple of times...But what I'm going to be going to school for is teaching! History specifically! I've always had a passion for children, and History itself too. There is no better feeling than when you tell a kid something about history, and it sticks with them, and they learned something. The other day i quizzed a kid on slides. "In 1492, WHO SAILED THE OCEAN BLUE?!" "I...Dont know." "Come on. You get the day off of school, and theres a country named after him." "COLUMBUS!" "THATS RIGHT! Can you name one of his ships?" "Yes! The Santa Maria! AND THE MAYFLOWER!" Meanwhile...I'm like "=D". I may not be able to tell you much on mathematics, but if you want to know ANYTHING about George S Patton, World war 1 and 2, Or heck, I'm even dabbling in feudal Japan stuff at the moment. I'm your guy. I'm literally that guy who stays home on a saturday night, making popcorn to watch that monotoned narrator talk over stock footage. *gasp* I digress...because its a slippery slope before I go all history major on you. haha.

So. ASL may not be SPECIFICALLY corrallated with this career choice, but I'd rather know it, and be able to use it if the need arises, than not know it, and need it.

As for learning German, its for similar reasons actually. I knew it as a kid when I was living there. But I moved back to the states when I was around five years old. One of my more personal reasons for learning German is to go back and see where I used to live. It'd be fun for me. As for now, I only know what I remember from a long...long time ago. Haha. Oddly enough however, I can watch movies from Germany just fine without subs. I can read easier books too. Like...Kids books. So...it's IN there somewhere. I just go blank when I read it on the internet, or someone expects me to say stuff beyond introductions, helping people find stuff, and the like. *shrugs* That will soon change.

So yeah! You asked, now you know!

[Brogurt]

15/f/cali

[Xanatos]

15/f/cali

Damn. Too old by like...Seven years.