Whew! Last night I had my very first ASL class – sponsored by Olay – and let me just say that I was definitely taken to school. My dear, dear, sister convinced me that I knew enough ASL to skip the beginner level class and start with ASL II.
Alas, she was mistaken.
We spent last night’s class “reviewing” the first twelve modules that her students had learned last semester. And by review, I mean flying through dozens and dozens of slides with the instructor asking the class to demonstrate the signs, hand shapes and concepts on each slide, and then breezing right along to the next one.
I should have started by saying that the instructor is deaf and uses only ASL to communicate with the students. It was both terrifying and at the same time, just what I needed. I managed to not make a complete fool of myself by reaching in the way back of my mind to recall signs that Lisa had taught me over the years and, doing a lot of fingerspelling. My biggest blunder of the night was probably when I (poorly) communicated that I was there to learn ASL because my babysitter was deaf. It took at least 5 minutes before I realized my goof-up. But no one laughed at me – a good sign (pun intended).
All in all though, it was a great evening. While I have a lot of studying to do, I realized that I did know a respectable amount and I really benefited from understanding the concepts that form ASL. The instructor was very patient and took her time demonstrating the application of the concepts with objects from the classroom and even showing us two very different interpreters signing the national anthem at the Superbowl.
What impacted me the most though was realizing how exhausted I was after spending two hours trying to understand and communicate in a language that was foreign to me. I told my husband on the way home that, if that was the way my sister feels after trying to read lips and stay in the conversation at Christmas dinner, I seriously understand her frustration.
Until next week!
so amazing! good luck with the rest of the classes. i bet your sister will love having you become fluent her language :D
As a Deaf person myself, I can definitely say this will mean a lot to your sister! Good on you, and enjoy the rest of the classes.
Good for you! I’m heading to my third ASL class tonight (for ASL 1) and you’re right, it’s exhausting trying to communicate when you know so little of the tools with which to communicate with!! I’m finding that YouTube is a great resource to practice with.
Have fun!
I love this. Learning ASL is on my list, too, because I’ve worked with enough kids who sign that I want to be able to communicate with them without having to ask someone else to help translate. I was amazed the other day to meet some little ones who are fluent in English, Spanish, and ASL. I felt totally out of my league. :) Way to go – and good luck keeping up!
My daughter will be graduating in May with a degree in ASL and is planning to be an interpreter in Washington D.C. after graduation. She says when she is working she works in 20 minute shifts as it is so exhausting to work longer. As a child she would often walk into walls as she was distracted by things, to watch her be so focused when she works is truly a gift.
Keeping learning – you will be amazed at how it retrains your mind.
i love that you are doing this. i’ve taken ASL in the past, inspired by two girls in my college graduating class, who happened to be the first deaf students ever to attend the college. and now, living in a foreign country (germany), i totally understand your exhaustion at immersion in another language. it gets easier! so excited for what you will learn, and more importantly, how the amount you’ll be able to participate will grow and grow.