How does syntax work in ASL signing?

TinyAttentionSp · 08-06-2009, 11:56 PM

Again, I'm very new, but so far, the sign sentences I've learned are things like, "I N-A-M-E. I Learn-learn sign." stuff like that. Are there sign sentences that reflect English syntax, like, "I'm going to the movies" Rather than something like, "I go movie"? Am I right in assuming ASL more of a symbol language, where you indicate or symbolize rather than name, describe, put together sentences, etc? know what i mean? sorry to be rude if i am!

Oceanblue7 · 08-07-2009, 12:55 AM

I am going to take a stab to answer your question. According to your question, you want to know if there is a sign mode for English? Yes, there is such mode called S.E.E. (Signed Exact English) its not considered an ASL language its a method to communicate in English using sign language. You can sign an entire English sentence such as I am going to the movies, I am going to the store and so on.
There are books that teach this mode.
For ASL, its got its own syntax (word order) and grammar. If I am not mistaken, ASL is Object-Subject-Verb and it can change (anyone correct me if I am wrong here).
You have non manual which include facial expression. With a negative feeling, purse lips and the negative expression the face.

When asking rhetorical questions, who, what, why , where non manuals eyebrow raise, body tilt forward and sometime shoulders rise.
Yes/No eyebrows squint, eyes widen, and head tilt to one side. (Anything missing feel free to add, anyone)

I hope this helps in a nutshell =)

TinyAttentionSp · 08-07-2009, 11:54 PM

This actually really does help. xD I guess I need to read farther, because I never realized there was a pattern. I wonder if SEE is easier than ASL... huh.

Hutt5asl · 08-09-2009, 08:48 AM

SEE might be easier to understand, for those of us whose predominant language is English, but SEE takes a lot longer to sign because you are signing each and every word. ASL skips all the articles (?) like a, an, the, etc. and flows much faster to get the thought across. But, I know for me, learning the grammar and syntax of ASL is hard to get used to. There is also PSE (Pidgen Signed English) which uses the order of English, but is more like ASL in that it skips all the a, an, the, etc. But SEE and PSE are NOT true languages. ASL is.

Mrs Bucket · 08-09-2009, 08:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TinyAttentionSp

This actually really does help. xD I guess I need to read farther, because I never realized there was a pattern. I wonder if SEE is easier than ASL... huh.

SEE is not a language, period.

ASL is the language of the Deaf and I must say you are setting yourself up to failure if you are going to learn SEE. You'll only have much more misunderstandings with Deaf people and you'll only do much better with ASL.

Be patient with the classifiers and with ASL, you do need to be patient.

Em903 · 08-09-2009, 08:27 PM

From one ASL student to another, it may seem confusing at first especially the first few lessons but I promise you it gets easier after awhile. I've found myself using some signs while speaking even (completely on accident!). ASL is a beautiful language and stick to it! You'll love it

Reba · 08-10-2009, 10:39 AM

Learning SEE might be easier in the short run but long term it will hinder your learning ASL. You will have to "unlearn" a lot of SEE before you can learn ASL, and that will just confuse you and slow down your acquisition of ASL. It's better to learn ASL first. You can always add SEE signing later if you need it for educational interpreting. In fact, my terp program taught us ASL interpreting first, then SEE transliterating second. As a terp, you should eventually learn not just ASL, but SEE and PSE/MCE so you can provide your clients with whatever mode they prefer.

MoonDrifter · 08-10-2009, 04:55 PM

At first I tried learning ASL by signing in S.E.E. When I read the ASL book last week, I realized that it has a similar format to that of spanish which surprised me. Since I have taken spanish last year, I hope that the experience I have will come into play as I learn more ASL.

Signing is awesome!

kipourgos · 08-12-2009, 09:25 AM

Do all you can to separate your thinking from English and instead learn how things are expressed in ASL.

I'm learning Turkish sign but unfortunately what we're being taught is more like "Signed Pidgin Turkish." (There is no Signed Exact Turkish and I'd shudder to think of trying to sign that way, it would be exhausting). So I'm trying to keep "unlearning" it as we go by talking to deaf people as much as I can.

Turkish sign (I only know a very little ASL but I suspect there are similar examples) uses facial expression for many things in place of actual "word" signs; for example, there is no discrete sign for "can/be able to." If you want to say "I didn't do it, because I couldn't do it," you would sign:

I do not, reason do not.
[raised eyebrows] [2x, with neg. frustrated expression]

You might even be able to get away with leaving out that second "not", because you've expressed the inability/frustration and negativity with your face.

You could sign somthing in pidgin but you'd have to either "talk around" it to get the real meaning (which is cumbersome) or leave out an important part of the concept (inefficient). But it really is pidgin, because it's missing half the information: remaining attached to spoken language syntax and words, you would be missing out on all those visual and spatial cues. You'd have trouble really understanding people speaking true TSL (or, I suspect, ASL as well), and become accustomed to expressing yourself fully in sign.

I have this lasting image in my mind here - 8 people sitting in a row learning the sign for "smile," and signing it with glum, deadpan faces.

And the teacher saying "what the hell was that?! Are you talking about smiling or about a funeral?"

Em903 · 08-12-2009, 05:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kipourgos

I have this lasting image in my mind here - 8 people sitting in a row learning the sign for "smile," and signing it with glum, deadpan faces.

And the teacher saying "what the hell was that?! Are you talking about smiling or about a funeral?"

that is SO true! You see maybe over half the class with non-expressive faces and then the few who actually do try to with emotion.

zoomzipboom · 08-12-2009, 10:27 PM

would it be right to sign something like this when saying "i am going to the movies."?
to say "i go (sign i, n, g) to movies.
while i understand that things like "am" and "the" are not necessary i was wondering about the "ing" part. it would be fine to sign "ing" right. in my text books it said that was fine but is not as common in the deaf community.

i also read that in an educational setting that a teacher, if he or she wanted to say "would" that the teacher would sign "will" and then sign a "d" to indicate the word "would."
but that this is not as common among deaf adults.

or "ran" instead of "run" would you use the word "past" before the word "run" to indicate past tense.
i am curios to know what you guys think about this. it would help me alot, since i am teaching myself from books and im not in a class.

Hutt5asl · 08-13-2009, 12:32 AM

Signing the "ing" and word endings, from what I know, is very English, and is not ASL. You should try to find a good ASL Grammar book from your Library.

It is hard learning this from just books, but learning how ASL grammar works will help you a lot. I've been teaching myself from books and videos as well. Luckily I have made a few friends in the Deaf community and that has helped a lot! I also got several good books from Amazon.com that explain ASL Grammar.

God Bless!

Reba · 08-13-2009, 01:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zoomzipboom

would it be right to sign something like this when saying "i am going to the movies."?
to say "i go (sign i, n, g) to movies.
while i understand that things like "am" and "the" are not necessary i was wondering about the "ing" part. it would be fine to sign "ing" right. in my text books it said that was fine but is not as common in the deaf community.

i also read that in an educational setting that a teacher, if he or she wanted to say "would" that the teacher would sign "will" and then sign a "d" to indicate the word "would."
but that this is not as common among deaf adults.

or "ran" instead of "run" would you use the word "past" before the word "run" to indicate past tense.
i am curios to know what you guys think about this. it would help me alot, since i am teaching myself from books and im not in a class.

If you're learning how to sign in order to communicate socially with deaf people, you don't need to get involved with what teachers use in educational settings. It will just make it more confusing for you.

In your example sentence, "I am going to the movies," you have to be more clear about what you mean. Do you mean you are currently on the way to the movies, or that you will be going to the movies later, or are you going to the movies continually? That is, is the full thought, "I am going to the movies now" or "I am going to the movies after school" or "I am going to the movies every day this summer"? Each "going" would be signed differently. Just adding an "-ing" to "GO" would make the meaning as clear as mud.

zoomzipboom · 08-13-2009, 01:11 AM

hutt5asl,
asl grammar books, thanks! i didn't know they made books specifically for this.

now i know. thanks.

i am learning from lifeprints.com and aslpro.com too. i have found these very helpful too, and watching asl videos on youtube. i just learned about the comedians The CODA Brothers and this has helped a whole lot as well.

it is nice to be learning signs while laughing and having a good time.

have you heard of them? they are pretty funny.

zoomzipboom · 08-13-2009, 01:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Reba

If you're learning how to sign in order to communicate socially with deaf people, you don't need to get involved with what teachers use in educational settings. It will just make it more confusing for you.

In your example sentence, "I am going to the movies," you have to be more clear about what you mean. Do you mean you are currently on the way to the movies, or that you will be going to the movies later, or are you going to the movies continually? That is, is the full thought, "I am going to the movies now" or "I am going to the movies after school" or "I am going to the movies every day this summer"? Each "going" would be signed differently. Just adding an "-ing" to "GO" would make the meaning as clear as mud.

clear as mud, ha well we don't want that.
and no i am not going to the movies continualy haha.

well if i leaving the house to go to the movie, i could just say:
"i go to movie now"

right?

or if it was later i could say:
"i go to movie later."

or if i was on my way to the movie i could say:
"i on way to movie."

or if it was going to be every day this summer would it be:
"i will go to movie every day this summer."

or if it was past tense would it be:
"i past go to movie."

are these right? or pretty close at least?

Em903 · 08-13-2009, 01:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zoomzipboom

hutt5asl,
asl grammar books, thanks! i didn't know they made books specifically for this.

now i know. thanks.

i am learning from lifeprints.com and aslpro.com too. i have found these very helpful too, and watching asl videos on youtube. i just learned about the comedians The CODA Brothers and this has helped a whole lot as well.

it is nice to be learning signs while laughing and having a good time.

have you heard of them? they are pretty funny.

ASLPro is a good place but there are some signs that are not the same as what I had learned from my teacher in an ASL class (who is deaf). So don't put all your trust into websites. If you can, learn from people who use the language. -ING is very English. If you don't know a word, don't bother fingerspelling out the ending, like say you didn't know the word driving. Just fingerspell "drive" or any root word. It's a lot more fun to learn from people anyhow.

Reba · 08-13-2009, 01:38 AM

I recommend this book for ASL grammar:

Amazon.com: American Sign Language Green Books, A Teacher's Resource Text on Grammar and Culture (American Sign Language Series) (9780930323844): Charlotte Baker-Shenk, Dennis Cokely: Books

(Don't worry about the "teachers" part of the title.)

Hutt5asl · 08-13-2009, 05:20 PM

[QUOTE=zoomzipboom;1391220]hutt5asl,
asl grammar books, thanks! i didn't know they made books specifically for this.

now i know. thanks.
[QUOTE]

The two I have are American Sign Language The Easy Way and The American Sign Language Phrase Book. I felt the 2nd one especially, was very good at showing how easily a thought can be expressed in ASL. They both got quite high ratings on Amazon.com, and I like both books very much. I haven't tried the Teacher's 'Green' book (yet) that was also mentioned, but that one also got high ratings on Amazon.

In the sentences you mentioned, you were including the word "to" and it is not needed. "I go movies later", "I go movies now", "Summer I go movies everyday". (I hope I'm telling you correctly) Someone please correct me if I'm wrong!

I'm still learning, too!

And yes, I use YouTube a lot to view videos. The more I learn, the more I can understand when I'm reading someone else's signing.

God Bless!

Reba · 08-13-2009, 09:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hutt5asl

...In the sentences you mentioned, you were including the word "to" and it is not needed. "I go movies later", "I go movies now", "Summer I go movies everyday". (I hope I'm telling you correctly) Someone please correct me if I'm wrong!

I'm still learning, too!

If you're referring to the sentences I posted, I didn't intend for them to be glossed versions of ASL signing. I was only giving you the English conceptual meanings. If I were glossing the sentences I wouldn't include the "to", and I would change the sentence structures.

If I gloss phrases or words, I use all caps to represent signs.

Sorry for the confusion.

zoomzipboom · 08-13-2009, 10:14 PM

thanks for the info you guys.

Bottesini · 08-13-2009, 10:20 PM

When so many people come in to AD professing an interest in ASL, why is it so hard to fill a section when Deaf Action Centers go out in the community and hold classes?

There you people could learn correctly and they are not very expensive since they are only adult ed through the public schools..

Hutt5asl · 08-13-2009, 10:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Reba

If you're referring to the sentences I posted, I didn't intend for them to be glossed versions of ASL signing. I was only giving you the English conceptual meanings. If I were glossing the sentences I wouldn't include the "to", and I would change the sentence structures.

If I gloss phrases or words, I use all caps to represent signs.

Sorry for the confusion.

I should've clarified myself... I was referring to the sentences that Zoomzipboom had listed in her post...

God Bless!

Reba · 08-14-2009, 09:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bottesini

When so many people come in to AD professing an interest in ASL, why is it so hard to fill a section when Deaf Action Centers go out in the community and hold classes?

There you people could learn correctly and they are not very expensive since they are only adult ed through the public schools..

Yes, I've noticed the same problem.

Many hearing people express to me their desire to learn sign language but they don't want to bother taking a formal class.

I've even tried setting up classes for interested people but they don't follow thru or even show up. If they have to buy a book/CD for the class, much less pay for qualified instruction, forget it.

Note: I'm not referring to sincere seekers who simply can't find a class in their area.

Reba · 08-14-2009, 09:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hutt5asl

i should've clarified myself... I was referring to the sentences that zoomzipboom had listed in her post...

God bless!

Quote:

OK

.

zoomzipboom · 08-14-2009, 07:54 PM

yeah i live in a small town and though i imagine there might be some at the technical college in my town, i have zero money to take a class... unemployment hit prettty hard especially where i live and so many people are out of work, including myself. i am 26 and unfortunately had to move back in with my mother which at 26 can make a person feel kinda bad.

but!!! i might be hired at quizno's, a sub shop in my city. i go in to talk to the manager tomarrow. so when i get the job and can get a place and back on my feet again, official classes are one of the things i will be saving for.
just wanted to clarify so i wasn't grouped in the category of cheap hearing people who don't want to pay for a class. because that is not the case at all. i literally have 40 bucks to my name... which i stashed away so i wouldn't spend it, but now can't remember where i put it so yeah basically as good as no money at all. haha. it is really not funny being poor, somewhat sad, but luckily i have a mom and a step dad who took me in when i was down on my luck. hopefully things will turn around for me soon.

Bottesini · 08-14-2009, 08:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zoomzipboom

yeah i live in a small town and though i imagine there might be some at the technical college in my town, i have zero money to take a class... unemployment hit prettty hard especially where i live and so many people are out of work, including myself. i am 26 and unfortunately had to move back in with my mother which at 26 can make a person feel kinda bad.

but!!! i might be hired at quizno's, a sub shop in my city. i go in to talk to the manager tomarrow. so when i get the job and can get a place and back on my feet again, official classes are one of the things i will be saving for.
just wanted to clarify so i wasn't grouped in the category of cheap hearing people who don't want to pay for a class. because that is not the case at all. i literally have 40 bucks to my name... which i stashed away so i wouldn't spend it, but now can't remember where i put it so yeah basically as good as no money at all. haha. it is really not funny being poor, somewhat sad, but luckily i have a mom and a step dad who took me in when i was down on my luck. hopefully things will turn around for me soon.

Area News - NE WI — WADNet Post

Quite a bit goes on near Green Bay if you check out this link.

zoomzipboom · 08-14-2009, 09:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bottesini

Area News - NE WI — WADNet Post

Quite a bit goes on near Green Bay if you check out this link.

oh thanks. that is a good site.

FireTiger · 08-19-2009, 11:56 AM

I've never heard of low cost or free ASL classes, I'd be all over that (as much as pregnancy allows) - THe only ASL classes I know of were at FCCJ-> now called FC?? something else now...

They weren't cheap nor at good times in the day.

Hutt5asl · 08-19-2009, 05:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FireTiger

I've never heard of low cost or free ASL classes, I'd be all over that (as much as pregnancy allows) - THe only ASL classes I know of were at FCCJ-> now called FC?? something else now...

They weren't cheap nor at good times in the day.

The only free online classes I know of are at LifePrint.com
It's the same material the guy uses with his actual college classes, but the images/animations are on the web. Not enough in the way of interactive, but it's a great start to learning the actual signs, I think, and he does go into some ASL grammar stuff. That's how I started; I went thru all 45 lessons and then kept reviewing them. Then I moved on to other sites from there.

08-06-2009, 11:56 PM	#1 (permalink)
TinyAttentionSp Registered User Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 11	How does syntax work in ASL signing? Again, I'm very new, but so far, the sign sentences I've learned are things like, "I N-A-M-E. I Learn-learn sign." stuff like that. Are there sign sentences that reflect English syntax, like, "I'm going to the movies" Rather than something like, "I go movie"? Am I right in assuming ASL more of a symbol language, where you indicate or symbolize rather than name, describe, put together sentences, etc? know what i mean? sorry to be rude if i am!

08-07-2009, 12:55 AM	#2 (permalink)
Oceanblue7 Patriots Rock! Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: She Walks by faith not by sight Posts: 6,702 Blog Entries: 26	I am going to take a stab to answer your question. According to your question, you want to know if there is a sign mode for English? Yes, there is such mode called S.E.E. (Signed Exact English) its not considered an ASL language its a method to communicate in English using sign language. You can sign an entire English sentence such as I am going to the movies, I am going to the store and so on. There are books that teach this mode. For ASL, its got its own syntax (word order) and grammar. If I am not mistaken, ASL is Object-Subject-Verb and it can change (anyone correct me if I am wrong here). You have non manual which include facial expression. With a negative feeling, purse lips and the negative expression the face. When asking rhetorical questions, who, what, why , where non manuals eyebrow raise, body tilt forward and sometime shoulders rise. Yes/No eyebrows squint, eyes widen, and head tilt to one side. (Anything missing feel free to add, anyone) I hope this helps in a nutshell =) __________________ Ps.103:12 He washes our sins away into the ocean Brady's back "We have unfinished business to take care of" Randy Moss,#81, WR

08-09-2009, 08:48 AM	#4 (permalink)
Hutt5asl ASL Rocks!! Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Southern NJ Posts: 246	SEE might be easier to understand, for those of us whose predominant language is English, but SEE takes a lot longer to sign because you are signing each and every word. ASL skips all the articles (?) like a, an, the, etc. and flows much faster to get the thought across. But, I know for me, learning the grammar and syntax of ASL is hard to get used to. There is also PSE (Pidgen Signed English) which uses the order of English, but is more like ASL in that it skips all the a, an, the, etc. But SEE and PSE are NOT true languages. ASL is. __________________ Lauren My Videos / My Blog Please be patient with me... I'm still learning! Last edited by Hutt5asl; 08-09-2009 at 04:14 PM.

08-10-2009, 04:55 PM	#8 (permalink)
MoonDrifter Registered User Join Date: May 2009 Location: Hillsboro Posts: 1,140 Blog Entries: 1	At first I tried learning ASL by signing in S.E.E. When I read the ASL book last week, I realized that it has a similar format to that of spanish which surprised me. Since I have taken spanish last year, I hope that the experience I have will come into play as I learn more ASL. Signing is awesome! __________________ ~You only have one shot at life. Either live it or waste it~

08-13-2009, 12:32 AM	#12 (permalink)
Hutt5asl ASL Rocks!! Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Southern NJ Posts: 246	Signing the "ing" and word endings, from what I know, is very English, and is not ASL. You should try to find a good ASL Grammar book from your Library. It is hard learning this from just books, but learning how ASL grammar works will help you a lot. I've been teaching myself from books and videos as well. Luckily I have made a few friends in the Deaf community and that has helped a lot! I also got several good books from Amazon.com that explain ASL Grammar. God Bless! __________________ Lauren My Videos / My Blog Please be patient with me... I'm still learning!

Today
Deafness	Sponsored Links __________________ This advertising will not be shown in this way to registered members. Register your free account today and become a member on AllDeaf.com

08-07-2009, 11:54 PM	#3 (permalink)
TinyAttentionSp Registered User Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 11	This actually really does help. xD I guess I need to read farther, because I never realized there was a pattern. I wonder if SEE is easier than ASL... huh.

08-09-2009, 08:27 PM	#6 (permalink)
Em903 Premium Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Posts: 287 Blog Entries: 5	From one ASL student to another, it may seem confusing at first especially the first few lessons but I promise you it gets easier after awhile. I've found myself using some signs while speaking even (completely on accident!). ASL is a beautiful language and stick to it! You'll love it

08-10-2009, 10:39 AM	#7 (permalink)
Reba Premium Member Join Date: Jun 2004 Posts: 20,801	Learning SEE might be easier in the short run but long term it will hinder your learning ASL. You will have to "unlearn" a lot of SEE before you can learn ASL, and that will just confuse you and slow down your acquisition of ASL. It's better to learn ASL first. You can always add SEE signing later if you need it for educational interpreting. In fact, my terp program taught us ASL interpreting first, then SEE transliterating second. As a terp, you should eventually learn not just ASL, but SEE and PSE/MCE so you can provide your clients with whatever mode they prefer.

08-12-2009, 09:25 AM	#9 (permalink)
kipourgos Registered User Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Istanbul, Turkey Posts: 76	Do all you can to separate your thinking from English and instead learn how things are expressed in ASL. I'm learning Turkish sign but unfortunately what we're being taught is more like "Signed Pidgin Turkish." (There is no Signed Exact Turkish and I'd shudder to think of trying to sign that way, it would be exhausting). So I'm trying to keep "unlearning" it as we go by talking to deaf people as much as I can. Turkish sign (I only know a very little ASL but I suspect there are similar examples) uses facial expression for many things in place of actual "word" signs; for example, there is no discrete sign for "can/be able to." If you want to say "I didn't do it, because I couldn't do it," you would sign: I do not, reason do not. [raised eyebrows] [2x, with neg. frustrated expression] You might even be able to get away with leaving out that second "not", because you've expressed the inability/frustration and negativity with your face. You could sign somthing in pidgin but you'd have to either "talk around" it to get the real meaning (which is cumbersome) or leave out an important part of the concept (inefficient). But it really is pidgin, because it's missing half the information: remaining attached to spoken language syntax and words, you would be missing out on all those visual and spatial cues. You'd have trouble really understanding people speaking true TSL (or, I suspect, ASL as well), and become accustomed to expressing yourself fully in sign. I have this lasting image in my mind here - 8 people sitting in a row learning the sign for "smile," and signing it with glum, deadpan faces. And the teacher saying "what the hell was that?! Are you talking about smiling or about a funeral?"

08-12-2009, 10:27 PM	#11 (permalink)
zoomzipboom Registered User Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: I live in wisconsin, near Green Bay. Posts: 57 Blog Entries: 4	would it be right to sign something like this when saying "i am going to the movies."? to say "i go (sign i, n, g) to movies. while i understand that things like "am" and "the" are not necessary i was wondering about the "ing" part. it would be fine to sign "ing" right. in my text books it said that was fine but is not as common in the deaf community. i also read that in an educational setting that a teacher, if he or she wanted to say "would" that the teacher would sign "will" and then sign a "d" to indicate the word "would." but that this is not as common among deaf adults. or "ran" instead of "run" would you use the word "past" before the word "run" to indicate past tense. i am curios to know what you guys think about this. it would help me alot, since i am teaching myself from books and im not in a class.

08-13-2009, 01:11 AM	#14 (permalink)
zoomzipboom Registered User Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: I live in wisconsin, near Green Bay. Posts: 57 Blog Entries: 4	hutt5asl, asl grammar books, thanks! i didn't know they made books specifically for this. now i know. thanks. i am learning from lifeprints.com and aslpro.com too. i have found these very helpful too, and watching asl videos on youtube. i just learned about the comedians The CODA Brothers and this has helped a whole lot as well. it is nice to be learning signs while laughing and having a good time. have you heard of them? they are pretty funny.

08-13-2009, 01:38 AM	#17 (permalink)
Reba Premium Member Join Date: Jun 2004 Posts: 20,801	I recommend this book for ASL grammar: Amazon.com: American Sign Language Green Books, A Teacher's Resource Text on Grammar and Culture (American Sign Language Series) (9780930323844): Charlotte Baker-Shenk, Dennis Cokely: Books Amazon.com: American Sign Language Green Books, A Teacher's Resource Text on Grammar and Culture (American Sign Language Series) (9780930323844): Charlotte Baker-Shenk, Dennis Cokely: Books (Don't worry about the "teachers" part of the title.)

08-13-2009, 05:20 PM	#18 (permalink)
Hutt5asl ASL Rocks!! Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Southern NJ Posts: 246	[QUOTE=zoomzipboom;1391220]hutt5asl, asl grammar books, thanks! i didn't know they made books specifically for this. now i know. thanks. [QUOTE] The two I have are American Sign Language The Easy Way and The American Sign Language Phrase Book. I felt the 2nd one especially, was very good at showing how easily a thought can be expressed in ASL. They both got quite high ratings on Amazon.com, and I like both books very much. I haven't tried the Teacher's 'Green' book (yet) that was also mentioned, but that one also got high ratings on Amazon. In the sentences you mentioned, you were including the word "to" and it is not needed. "I go movies later", "I go movies now", "Summer I go movies everyday". (I hope I'm telling you correctly) Someone please correct me if I'm wrong! I'm still learning, too! And yes, I use YouTube a lot to view videos. The more I learn, the more I can understand when I'm reading someone else's signing. God Bless! __________________ Lauren My Videos / My Blog Please be patient with me... I'm still learning!

08-13-2009, 10:14 PM	#20 (permalink)
zoomzipboom Registered User Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: I live in wisconsin, near Green Bay. Posts: 57 Blog Entries: 4	thanks for the info you guys.

08-13-2009, 10:20 PM	#21 (permalink)
Bottesini Bodhar agus leath dall Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Middle of dog pack Posts: 16,109	When so many people come in to AD professing an interest in ASL, why is it so hard to fill a section when Deaf Action Centers go out in the community and hold classes? There you people could learn correctly and they are not very expensive since they are only adult ed through the public schools.. __________________ It's a joke Nathan!

08-14-2009, 07:54 PM	#25 (permalink)
zoomzipboom Registered User Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: I live in wisconsin, near Green Bay. Posts: 57 Blog Entries: 4	yeah i live in a small town and though i imagine there might be some at the technical college in my town, i have zero money to take a class... unemployment hit prettty hard especially where i live and so many people are out of work, including myself. i am 26 and unfortunately had to move back in with my mother which at 26 can make a person feel kinda bad. but!!! i might be hired at quizno's, a sub shop in my city. i go in to talk to the manager tomarrow. so when i get the job and can get a place and back on my feet again, official classes are one of the things i will be saving for. just wanted to clarify so i wasn't grouped in the category of cheap hearing people who don't want to pay for a class. because that is not the case at all. i literally have 40 bucks to my name... which i stashed away so i wouldn't spend it, but now can't remember where i put it so yeah basically as good as no money at all. haha. it is really not funny being poor, somewhat sad, but luckily i have a mom and a step dad who took me in when i was down on my luck. hopefully things will turn around for me soon.

08-19-2009, 11:56 AM	#28 (permalink)
FireTiger Panthera tigris phenoixi Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Arl, Jax, NE-FL, SE-USA, Earth, Solar System, Milky Way Galaxy, Local Group, Universe A, Mutiverse 1 Posts: 73	I've never heard of low cost or free ASL classes, I'd be all over that (as much as pregnancy allows) - THe only ASL classes I know of were at FCCJ-> now called FC?? something else now... They weren't cheap nor at good times in the day.

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