Gaining Perspective Through ASL

When I decided to learn American Sign Language (ASL), I thought it would be easy. I thought that learning the basics would be simple and in a couple of weeks I would have a solid foundation. I was wrong. I started out with a really solid plan; I would complete three workbooks I found online and then quickly learn a song. However, because I didn't stick to my schedule I found myself nearing my deadline with little to no knowledge on ASL. I had learned the fingerspelling alphabet pretty quickly, but soon realized that fingerspelling is not a big part of ASL. So, the purpose of this blog post is to offer readers a potential step-by-step process for learning ASL. 1. Master the fingerspelling alphabet. While fingerspelling may not be the biggest part of American Sign Language, it is still essential to know the alphabet in order to spell names and even understand the signs. Many of the signs used in American Sign Language use some form of a letter. Take the word for "try", a...

1. Sign language is universal. Just like any other language, many times sign languages are unique to individual countries.   In the US alone there are three major forms of sign language, American Sign Language (ASL), Pidgin Signed English (PSE), and Signing Exact English (SEE). In fact, there are thought to be upwards of 300 sign languages used around the world today. Written about in the Daily Mail in 2015, linguists  " recorded the first ever 'regional accent' in sign language" in Philadelphia. In the images below, you can see the difference between the traditional ASL word for "have" and the Philidelphia ASL word.  Traditional ASL "have" Philidelphia ASL "have" 2. ASL is a visual form of English. In actuality, ASL is it's own language, with its own grammar structures, rules, and colloquialisms. Just like in spoken English, tone or pronunciation can drastically change the meanings of signed words, but tone might come in...