Question about fingerspelling

Jellybean

Jellybean

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Hi Everyone,

I have a question. When someone fingerspells a word, how do you learn the word. Do you just identify the hand movement for a name like Jennifer, or do you look for letters. I'm trying to figure out how to identify what people are saying to me when they fingerspell.

Thanks for your help!
:confused:
 
Hi! It to me it is like reading words. You learn each letter first then the whole word when you get better at it. So fingerspelling I guess is like first you need to know letters then when you do you see the whole as a word. Does that make sense? Good luck! :)
 
For hearing people learning sign language, the best thing to do is to sound the word out. If you think... "c" "o" "m" "m" "u" "n" "i" "c" "a" "t" "i" "o" "n"... by the time you get to the first n, you will have forgotten the C. Instead, think "com-you-ni--kay--shun"... it will be WAY easier.

Once you become really proficient, and as is the habit of most kids who grow up signing ASL, you will see the shape of words rather than the letters, or sounding it out...though, as a hearing person learning sign, there will probably always be some words you will miss.
 
signer16 said:
For hearing people learning sign language, the best thing to do is to sound the word out. If you think... "c" "o" "m" "m" "u" "n" "i" "c" "a" "t" "i" "o" "n"... by the time you get to the first n, you will have forgotten the C. Instead, think "com-you-ni--kay--shun"... it will be WAY easier.
Click to expand...

I definitely second this. I do this so regularly that I regularly mouth the word(s) when someone fingerspells to me. I'm sure I look like an idiot but sometimes it also helps my client know I've understood them if they can lipread my mouthing. If not, it's just one of those "quirks" I guess deaf people have to put up with when they communicate or work with me! :|
 
I look for patterns in words, not just whole words or individual letters. Also, when reading high-speed fingerspelling, it's especially helpful to know what the subject is. For example, my primary client has a boss named Gayle. When she first arrived, I had trouble catching her name when he spelled it. Then I started picking up on the G and the Y, and I was able to fill in the blanks because I knew the boss's name was Gayle. So it's helpful to know what is being discussed. Now my client still fingerspells G-A-Y-L-E (and so do I) but I can read it as if it was just a sign. The same thing goes for the word April. I think this is called lexicalized fingerspelling, when you are technically spelling but you make it sort of into a sign.

Anyway, I do think pattern recognition is important. Being able to catch T-I-O-N is important, so is I-N-G, and so on.
 
:angel: I have the same method as Interpretrator. When I am watching a person signing, I too will mouth out what is being spelled, because this way, we are both on the same page. I find it easier, especially if I am incorrect, they can be stop me in time, without being frustrated.
 
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