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ASL
Jan 23, 2006 19:31:37 GMT -5
Post by shmeep on Jan 23, 2006 19:31:37 GMT -5
Baby sign is becoming very popular and I say go for it. I'm studying Speech Language Pathology and I haven't seen anything in my studies to indicate that it can hurt speech or language development in any way. Of course, for the reasons already mentioned, it actually helps with communication between very young children and their parents/caregivers. Humans have oral cavities that just aren't built for speech when they're born. They're actually built for sucking and protecting the airway, believe it or not. The larynx (voice box) is very high in the throat in a newborn to make it harder for an infant to accidently have their milk "go down the wrong pipe" into the lungs. Pretty amazing. But it means they can't learn to speak... not to mention that they don't have the motor control in the mouth or the language formulation in the brain yet! The beauty of baby sign is that by the time they are formulating concept in the mind, they can actually use their hands a bit for simple signing, so it's perfect. The only downside to it all, that I can see (and it's not really a down side), is that it's a bit of a "fad" and people are going off to Baby Sign class with their infants to learn to do this. Babies can learn sign language (e.g. ASL) exactly like they learn ANY language (like English)... simply expose them to it! So, in my humble opinion if a parent is really interested in using sign language with their baby, they should skip the baby sign class and just register for a Beginner level ASL course. Learn to sign a bit and then use ASL around the baby as much as possible. Voila! The child learns the language in a more natural way. Just my two cents, for what it's worth. Take care all.... gotta go study for a big midterm! -Myra So nice to see you posting, Myra! I've missed you. You're absolutely right about baby signing. Not only does it not hurt speech and language development, research shows that babies who learn to sign first are more advanced than babies who aren't exposed to it. I think it's a wonderful way to teach a baby to communicate right when they are able to start to understand meanings rather than waiting until their mouths are able to form the words. My husband disagrees (but I think he's wrong ;D). He thinks that people who just want to teach their babies to sign while they can't talk but who then drop the language as soon as they no longer need it are exploiting ASL and somehow (this has never been made clear to me) taking advantage of Deaf people. I love your take on it, Myra. Just learn the darn language and then keep it up so the kid grows up bilingual. Problem solved. No Deaf people are being exploited (sorry...husband's words again ) and more people out there can talk to Deaf people. Brilliant. Either way, since ASL is my language at home, when I have children, they will automatically be bilingual. Poor kids, I'm going to be making up translation games so we end up with some well-trained interpreters on our hands before too many years go by. Unless they're Deaf themselves (there's a chance). Either way, it should be interesting and I can't wait to see their their little hands talking to us. Adorable. Thanks for explanation about baby mouths, Myra. I knew babies couldn't talk, but I had no idea why. You explained it well.
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ASL
Jan 23, 2006 20:38:42 GMT -5
Post by bjobsessed on Jan 23, 2006 20:38:42 GMT -5
I forgot to say earlier that if anyone was concerned about sign taking the place of oral language, you shouldn't be. My nephew had a moderate hearing loss when he was young which was corrected when he had tubes put in his ears. Because of this, he was way behind on his speech and required a lot of therapy to catch up. We taught him sign language while he was on the waiting list. As he learned to speak, he gradually stopped using the signs on his own.
He's now 14 and although he still has a slight speech impediment, his hearing is fine.
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ASL
Jan 29, 2006 19:43:19 GMT -5
Post by housemouse on Jan 29, 2006 19:43:19 GMT -5
This morning I met a little guy who was born with only one eye. Soon after he was born they had to remove the other one. Little Josh is two years old, all he wants to do is hold someone's hand and walk back and forth and explore. His mom said he has hit most of his milestones on time except for language. Here's where ASL comes in. He doesn't talk yet so his mom taught him sign language to communicate his needs. It is very cool watching him sign what he wants.
As an aside, he has therapy from the Braille Institute weekly. His mom said they start him with a cane at three. I couldn't help thinking how cute it would be to see a little tiny three year-old with a white cane and glasses! She said the kids at the institute look adorable walking with their little canes. She said one little guy had really great Ray Ban sunglasses.
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ASL
Jan 29, 2006 19:53:10 GMT -5
Post by maggiethecat on Jan 29, 2006 19:53:10 GMT -5
What an incredible story, and what a very cool little guy! Can you keep us posted on his progress?
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ASL
Jan 29, 2006 20:52:34 GMT -5
Post by bjobsessed on Jan 29, 2006 20:52:34 GMT -5
What an incredible story, and what a very cool little guy! Can you keep us posted on his progress? Please do. I love stories like that. I didn't know they started kids so young with a cane, but it makes sense. They need to get around just like the rest of us. I think that's about the time I got my first pair of crutches too. So I guess a cane is no different.
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ASL
Mar 24, 2006 12:49:27 GMT -5
Post by housemouse on Mar 24, 2006 12:49:27 GMT -5
Shmeep, I have a question about ASL. How do you convey punctuation when you are? I am reading Eats, Shoots, and Leaves right now and it got me thinking about that. Are there signs that represent certain punctuation marks?
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ASL
Mar 24, 2006 14:10:22 GMT -5
Post by shmeep on Mar 24, 2006 14:10:22 GMT -5
Shmeep, I have a question about ASL. How do you convey punctuation when you are? I am reading Eats, Shoots, and Leaves right now and it got me thinking about that. Are there signs that represent certain punctuation marks? Punctuation is shown in ASL much as it is shown through any spoken language. The vocal inflections present in spoken language tell you if you're hearing a question or a statement and pauses can mean any number of things grammatically. In ASL, a lot of punctuation is shown in the pauses, but it is also shown by indexing and by various facial expressions. For example, if you were to give someone a list of things, you wouldn't need "and," nor would you need to show where commas would go. You would simply use the index finger of your dominant hand to point to each finger on the non-dominant hand in succession to show "first this, then this, then this..." I index to show where I am in my family. I sign "BROTHER" and then hold up four fingers on my left hand and point at my first, second, and fourth fingers. Then I point at my ring finger and point to myself. This is how I say "I am the third child out of four and I have three brothers." If you want to ask a question, there are different facial expressions to show exactly which type of question you're asking. Eyebrows up for a "Yes/No" question. Eyebrows down for a "wh" question. If you're asking a "wh" question with the eyebrows up, it becomes a rhetorical question. Raised eyebrows are also used to show the topic of a sentence and to show if you're using an "if/then" clause. There are a lot of other ways to show grammar, but I don't even know where to start. If I didn't answer to your satisfaction, I'd be happy to answer any other question you may have. Basically, just think of how grammar is shown in spoken English and there is probably some signed equivalent.
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ASL
Mar 24, 2006 14:15:34 GMT -5
Post by housemouse on Mar 24, 2006 14:15:34 GMT -5
I figured it was something like that. Thanks for the info!
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ASL
May 8, 2006 12:13:00 GMT -5
Post by shmeep on May 8, 2006 12:13:00 GMT -5
I started to respond to this in the Pet Peeves thread, but realized it was going off topic quite a bit so here it is in ASL! The one ASL term that has always eluded me is "You're Welcome." I had two professors and three or four lab instructors, and every one of them told us differently, not to mention the videos. One told us not to bother, if someone says, Thanks, just sort of nod. Another told us never ever to sign, You're Welcome, as it literally means "welcome" as if, to my home, or something along those lines. A third told us yes, that is proper, has two meanings. A fourth told us to just sign Thank You right back, but when I tried that with a deaf guy he insisted, "no, no, thank you!" So I just smiled and nodded. Clarification, oh great and powerful Shmeep? You've had some great signing education, as shown by how confused it has left you. I think they taught you well. First of all, you're right on about all the SEE2 talk. Ever see anyone sign BUTTER+FLY as opposed to the simple single sign for BUTTERFLY and not a tub of flying butter? How about POP (as in soda)+CORN as opposed to the very simple sign for POPCORN? It's a wonder those poor kids can pick up any language at all. The "you're welcome" thing is always interesting and I can never get the same answer out of any two people. I tend to do whatever the Deaf people around me do and, in California, it was typically the sign for WELCOME. I agree that the concept isn't quite right, but it has been absorbed into the culture to the extent that it's pretty well accepted. I also see some people signing THANK YOU back, or some people sign FINE or NO-BIG-DEAL in response to a THANK YOU. Great question, GB.
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ASL
May 9, 2006 17:46:43 GMT -5
Post by greenbeing on May 9, 2006 17:46:43 GMT -5
You've had some great signing education, as shown by how confused it has left you. I think they taught you well. First of all, you're right on about all the SEE2 talk. Ever see anyone sign BUTTER+FLY as opposed to the simple single sign for BUTTERFLY and not a tub of flying butter? How about POP (as in soda)+CORN as opposed to the very simple sign for POPCORN? It's a wonder those poor kids can pick up any language at all. The "you're welcome" thing is always interesting and I can never get the same answer out of any two people. I tend to do whatever the Deaf people around me do and, in California, it was typically the sign for WELCOME. I agree that the concept isn't quite right, but it has been absorbed into the culture to the extent that it's pretty well accepted. I also see some people signing THANK YOU back, or some people sign FINE or NO-BIG-DEAL in response to a THANK YOU. Great question, GB. I'd forgotten about the tub of flying butter! Hee hee. Yeah, that was another one. Thankfully when we had community days (went out to a Deaf church, and we had a couple signed plays, etc) I never ran into anyone who used SEE2. I would have been terribly confused! I think most people in my area who use SEE2 are our current generation of public school kids, because the last generation used ASL until the school for the Deaf closed here. Thanks, Shmeep, for the clarification on "you're welcome." Knowing that other people are confused, and there is no one sign, makes me feel less confused. I never thought of using FINE or NO-BIG-DEAL, but you're right, they would work. One of my favorite community days was when we got to see TOYS Theatre. They're three Russian Deaf people who tour, doing skits, some with music, but without signing, and they pretty much mime all of these humorous scenes. I'm not sure if they're still touring, but I'd recommend seeing them, even for people who don't sign at all. I took my best friend, back during his second week of ASL, when he could barely fingerspell, and we both had a blast. I think I was in second year then. Universal humor. And a wee bit of audience participation. And giant bouncy balls! --GB
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ASL
Jul 27, 2006 19:33:32 GMT -5
Post by housemouse on Jul 27, 2006 19:33:32 GMT -5
I heard this story today on NPR, II thought our own Shmeep might find it interesting and might even know some of the terps mentioned. Very interesting! "Molly Hullinger lost the ability to hear speech nearly 30 years ago, but that didn't stop her from attending a recent Paul Simon concert. She loves music. Even if she can't understand the words, she can hear some of the low tones, and she can feel the beat.
She also got help from three interpreters who were on hand to sign the lyrics. The interpreters are with Sign Language Associates, a Maryland-based company that provides interpretation at a variety of events, including conferences, government hearings and theater productions.
Requests for sign-language interpreting at concerts started coming in after the Americans with Disabilities Act was passed in 1990. It required venues to provide access for people with all kinds of disabilities, including hearing loss.
Depending on the concert, there could be one deaf person in the audience, or as many as 20 or 30. In most cases, the artist ultimately covers the cost of the interpreters.
To prepare for the Paul Simon concert, Janet Bailey, president of Sign Language Associates, and two other interpreters listened to Simon's music for two weeks. Line by line, they figured out different ways to interpret his songs.
Signing music is not about word-for-word translation, Bailey said. It is about trying to convey meaning. Sign interpreters think conceptually, considering flow, rhythm and whether the signs convey visually the mood that each song tries to convey."Here is the link to listen to the story and/or see video. www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5563282
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ASL
Jul 29, 2006 9:04:22 GMT -5
Post by shmeep on Jul 29, 2006 9:04:22 GMT -5
I missed your Sign Language post until now, Mouse! How interesting.
I interviewed with Janet Bailey, who is mentioned in the article, before we moved here and I was offered a job, but I chose to go with a competing agency instead. As for interpreting song, I'm not a fan. I know it's cool to watch, but that's not my area of expertise. That might be because I'm married to a man who can hear just enough to really hate music. It probably sounds like a warped record to him when he has his hearing aids on and the vibrations are unsettling for him.
I have a Deaf friend in CA who liked going to Grateful Dead concerts, more for the social and cultural aspect than for the music. I found out that they always have a section reserved for the Deaf and their friends right up front and they have a special interpreter who tours with them and interprets all the music. One time about fifteen people I know went together and they all got to be right up close because they were with my Deaf friend.
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ASL
Jul 29, 2006 10:27:59 GMT -5
Post by maggiethecat on Jul 29, 2006 10:27:59 GMT -5
On a slightly different and more frivolous note: Elaine, have you seen the new Aleve commercial with the terp? I am a rotten judge of these things -- okay, I did catch that Jerry on ER was doing a lousy job in that episode this season -- but from I sit the woman in the commercial looks like the real thing. I'd be interested in your take.
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ASL
Jul 29, 2006 14:42:21 GMT -5
Post by mlm828 on Jul 29, 2006 14:42:21 GMT -5
On a slightly different and more frivolous note: Elaine, have you seen the new Aleve commercial with the terp? I am a rotten judge of these things -- okay, I did catch that Jerry on ER was doing a lousy job in that episode this season -- but from I sit the woman in the commercial looks like the real thing. I'd be interested in your take. I don't know if the woman in the ad is a real interpreter, either, but I like the part of the ad where she says she likes her job, because everyone's always glad to see her.
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ASL
Jul 29, 2006 18:37:10 GMT -5
Post by bjobsessed on Jul 29, 2006 18:37:10 GMT -5
This morning I met a little guy who was born with only one eye. Soon after he was born they had to remove the other one. Little Josh is two years old, all he wants to do is hold someone's hand and walk back and forth and explore. His mom said he has hit most of his milestones on time except for language. Here's where ASL comes in. He doesn't talk yet so his mom taught him sign language to communicate his needs. It is very cool watching him sign what he wants. As an aside, he has therapy from the Braille Institute weekly. His mom said they start him with a cane at three. I couldn't help thinking how cute it would be to see a little tiny three year-old with a white cane and glasses! She said the kids at the institute look adorable walking with their little canes. She said one little guy had really great Ray Ban sunglasses. This was such a great story. Any updates?
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