How do you sign...

Grayma said:
I have a couple questions from communication issues that came up recently with my deaf friend. I think partly my sense of humour just does not translate well, but anyway.

In the sign club we're doing, my darling son is the class clown. Actually, he's the class clown everywhere, but my friend has only seen him at class. The rest of the class is always laughing at him, and I am always signing to him "Pay attention," and "Behave!". I tried to tell her once that he was the class clown. Now she keeps asking me where he goes to school to learn to be a clown and I don't think she's being funny. Is there some other way to communicate that my 13 year old son just turns everything into a joke and loves to make people laugh? Or maybe she is being funny and I don't get it.

This last Sunday, we were signing, and there was quite a bit of distance between us so it wasn't obvious that we were talking to each other. A friend (and a member of our little sign lnaguage club) stepped between us, completely blocking our view. I was teasing him, and I waved him away and pretended to rebuke him. My friend laughed at that and teased me that I wasn't nice to him at all.

I said I was old, so I was just acting like his mother. That didn't communicate well at all. She wanted to know where his mother is, what does his mother act like, where did she live- and she just seemed to fixate on his mom, and kept asking me what I meant. In the end, I just said I was trying to joke, but I guess it wasn't very funny, but she still seemed confused.

Any ideas? Ideas other than that I should not ever try to be funny in sign language again, because I've already figured that part out.
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"Clown" is a very distinctive concept. "Class clown" is an idiom. what does it mean to be a class clown? it means to fool around making jokes not paying attention.

sign it something like this perhaps:

Son, my, he, play, silly, all day, pay attention, not, (frown). Think, me, he, become clown, goto, clown, college, maybe (laugh).

Does this help?
 
Cheetah said:
You could call it a medical program.

Other words to use: drug, therapy, cure, process, step by step, ect...

You have to go to the concept of what you want to say... You are thinking of calling it "treatment" instead of thinking of the concept. What does it mean? What are you trying to convey. there is no 1 right answer.
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Thanks Cheetah, I was struggling with concept synonyms and 'process' is one that would work well in the situation. :ty:
 
Cheetah said:
"Clown" is a very distinctive concept. "Class clown" is an idiom. what does it mean to be a class clown? it means to fool around making jokes not paying attention.

sign it something like this perhaps:

Son, my, he, play, silly, all day, pay attention, not, (frown). Think, me, he, become clown, goto, clown, college, maybe (laugh).

Does this help?
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Yes!!:ty:

Hmmm. New thought. Is there a sign for idiom?
 
In what way do you want to sign the word idiom? Generally, an idiom such as "its raining cats and dogs" is signed without actually saying "this is an idiom".
 
AlleyCat said:
In what way do you want to sign the word idiom? Generally, an idiom such as "its raining cats and dogs" is signed without actually saying "this is an idiom".
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I'm wondering about saying "In English, Class clown is an idiom meaning..."
 
Either finger-spell "idiom" or use quotes.

In English, "class clown" is an idiom ("same as") .....whatever you want to answer that with.
 
I sign idiom by using both pinky fingers (almost like I am signing the letter I with both hand) and doing a quotation mark type gesture with the pinky fingers.
 
I sign it by using the pinky quotes then move apart a little and do the regular quotes. It's just something I picked up from my ASL teacher many years ago but never say anyone else sign it that way. Honestly don't ever remember discussing idioms with other deaf.
 
Silly he - joke person - clown. Needs stop he. Look at teacher he will.
 
LDNanna said:
Silly he - joke person - clown. Needs stop he. Look at teacher he will.
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This is helpful, too.:ty:

I am working on memorizing both what you and Cheetah suggest. It also helps with my ever present struggle with grammar.

My only comfort is that one of the other members of the group is a public school teacher in the Middle School, and she says that my son is right on target for goofing off, albeit a little funnier than most boys his age.:shock:
 
If you are giving someone your email address, is there a special way to sign the @ symbol?
 
MDCodeRedFreak said:
What is the sign for "blackmail"?

Like THREATEN and SHOW/REVEAL?
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If this is used in a legal setting then just spell it out.

In casual conversations I've seen it signed as 'black' and mail is spelled. I don't know of a specific concept sign for it.
 
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