So I decided to dedicate my first week to exploring the resources that were available for me to learn American Sign Language. I started by first doing a simple google search. A lot of the results were classes that were available. Although I would love to take A signing class, It just doesn’t work for me right now. I had to modify my search a little, with an emphasis on free, to find what I was looking for. I was able to find many resources that I’m sure will be useful in this journey.
One of the websites that I found that I really loved was Sign Language 101. It has 10 different videos that focus on different things such as the ABC’s and gestures and body language. I decided to start by learning the ABC’s since that was the first lesson. In this first week I was able to learn letters A-N, and am still working on the rest of the alphabet.
Next I decided to see what YouTube had to offer, again I had to modify my search a few times to find what I was looking for. The purpose of this was just to explore YouTube a bit and see if it was something I really wanted to use and would be effective. I watched a few videos and came across one that I liked.
This video is a little fast and I had to watch it multiple times with a lot of pausing to really pick anything up, but I figure I will have to do that with most of my resources anyway. One thing I learned from this video was the importance of facial expressions with sign language. Of course I use facial expressions with verbal communication as well, but never thought about how the placement of the eyebrows could change the meaning of a message.
Overall I was able to find many resources that I can use for this ILP and learn a few signs.
Danielle Grentz 
I can’t get over how much I love your ILP! It’s a very ambitious project and hope you have a lot of success with it. I can’t help but think how much more marketable ASL would make you in the job market. This applies to all languages, but it could be a significant advantage.
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Thank You! I am so excited to have yet another tool under my belt to help me in my future career.
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I’m so glad that you had such a productive and educational week! ASL is fascinating and often fast paced. I know that when we were learning it to help communicate with my brother I had a hard time grasping it all- and we were learning a very simple vocabulary set! I hope that your next week with this project is just as fantastic!!
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Thanks so much. It definitely is fast paced and a little overwhelming at first, but I’m beginning to catch on.
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I think this is such an awesome post. ASL is something that can be very difficult but rewarding when you get the hang of it. I can not wait to see what else you are able to learn this summer.
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It has definitely been difficult at times, especially since I don’t have a face-to-face teacher to ask questions, but I have already been able to make a connection with some of the students I work with and that makes it all worth it. Thanks for the feedback!
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I too am doing ASL for my learning project and am loving all of the resources that are out there! I have a little bit of a history with ASL that I am building on in this course. Make sure you do not skip over the body language portion of this study, it can be truly vital to communication. Which is illustrated in the awesome video that you found! I also like that your video addresses that there is not always a 1:1 correspondence between spoken English and ASL. The alphabet will come easy with practice, it is really just muscle memory. Sign language is such a fun topic to get in to!
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Thank you so much for all the advice, I will keep it in mind as I continue working on my ILP.
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Danielle,
I love it! I loved learning ASL too and it’s great to see that there are people who are truly interested in it and take it seriously. I have a teacher at WNCC who said (for anyone who is interested) that she would be willing to do a distance learning for ASL if anyone wants to do it. There’s a beginner, intermediate, and advanced class. They start in August I believe. It’s every Tuesday night, 6-9 for 6 weeks if you are interested. Have you ever watched music be translated into sign? It always fascinates me, but it’s so hard! I want to be able to do that some day. Have fun & I can’t wait to read what you learn next week!
Nancy
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Thanks for the info. I will have to look into the class and see if it is something I can do this summer. I have not ever seen music translated into sign language I will have to check it out.
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