SignWriting List
April 19, 2001
To: "Valerie Sutton"
Subject: Re: information
Date: Wed, 18 Apr 2001
Valerie,
Actually, maybe you'd be willing to answer a few questions for me? I'm
an ASL student at Arizona State University, and I'm preparing a lecture for
my class on Sign Writing. I was wondering if you could comment on some (or
all) of the following issues:
1. How does sign writing help students acquire ASL? How about the
transition to written English?
2. What sort of support is recommended for parents of students learning
sign writing in an academic setting?
3. At what age should children start learning sign writing?
4. What sort of training is required/recommended of
teachers/instructors/tutors of sign writing?
5. Any other comments that you would like to offer? Stories?
Reservations?
I would appreciate any help you're willing to offer me. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Heidi Ernst
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I am answering questions for Heidi Ernst. If anyone else would like
to answer Heidi, that would be great too....
Dear Heidi...Here are some questions and answers I sent to another
student at your school. Hope this helps...
QUESTION 1: Is SignWriting used in oral or sign programs?
ANSWER 1: In Sign Language programs. SignWriting is a way to read and
write Sign Languages.
QUESTION 2: At what age is it usually introduced?
ANSWER 2: At any age. Children can start learning to read
SignWriting as early as age 2....
QUESTION 3: How are English skills developed?
ANSWER 3: English skills? Do you mean for born-Deaf children? That is
a complex answer...depending on the degree of deafness, when they
became deaf, whether their deafness was found at an early age or not,
etc etc...There is a question-answer section on our web site:
SignWriting
Questions & Answers Directory
https://www.SignWriting.org/about/questions/questions.html
There are teachers who use SignWriting with their young deaf
students. They are providing excellent feedback:
Albuquerque Public Schools
SignWriting Literacy Project
https://www.SignWriting.org/usa/newmexico/albuquerque/albuqu.html
QUESTION 4: Where do you recruit staff to teach the sign writing and
what percentages of the recruits are deaf, hearing?
ANSWER 4: We do not hire anyone. Our SignWriting Literacy Project is
free to any teacher with Deaf students who requests participation in
the project. The teachers give us documented feedback in return for
donated SignWriting materials. Some teachers are Deaf themselves,
others are not....Here is a project description:
The SignWriting Literacy Project
FREE TO SCHOOLS FOR THE DEAF
The SignWriting Literacy Project is pioneering a new concept in Deaf
Education. SignWriting books, videos and software are donated to
classes of Deaf students. In return, teachers, students and parents
provide documented feedback. The results are published on the
SignWriting Web Site and in an annual SignWriting Literacy Project
Report, distributed to educators.
SignWriting is a way to read, write and type any signed language. All
materials donated to the schools are written in American Sign
Language (ASL), authored by Deaf native ASL signers. An English
translation of the original ASL is included with most publications.
The SignWriting videos are taught in ASL with English voice-over.
Fluency in reading and writing American Sign Language is used as a
bridge to teach written English. Although this is a new project,
feedback is already coming in, and the results are positive.
The project began in 1998. An example of one participating school:
Albuquerque Public Schools
SignWriting Literacy Project
https://www.SignWriting.org/usa/newmexico/albuquerque/albuqu.html
Would you like your school to participate? Your students must be Deaf
signers, and one teacher in your classroom needs to be on email to
receive information and to give feedback....
If your school is located in a country that does not use American
Sign Language, and you are willing to translate the materials into
your signed language in SignWriting, we will be happy to help you as
much as possible. It is a large job, but well worth it!
Write for more information:
The SignWriting Literacy Project
The DAC, Deaf Action Committee For SignWriting
P.O. Box 517, La Jolla, CA, 92038-0517, USA
Voice(858)456-0098...TTY(858)456-0010...Fax(858)456-0020
Email:
Web: https://www.SignWriting.org
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
--
Val ;->
-----------------------------
Valerie Sutton
SignWritingSite:
https://www.SignWriting.org
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