DanceWriting

[Valerie Sutton]

SignWriting List
January 4, 2007

Oberlin? Really? No one ever told me that...Where is Oberlin?

I wonder if Charles, you meant the Boston Conservatory of Music's  
dance department? I was on the faculty of the Boston Conservatory of  
Music's dance department from 1976 to 1981. DanceWriting was a  
requirement to graduate as a dance major from the Boston Conservatory  
from 1976 until 1986...a full decade. We certified 85 DanceWriting  
teachers from the Conservatory. DanceWriting is used in Argentina and  
other places (smile) right now...and maybe it is at Oberlin...very  
possible...I just found out about DanceWriting in Argentina  
yesterday...so it would be great to learn about Oberlin!

But DanceWriting is not the point really, when it comes to changing  
signers understanding that there is now a way to write Sign  
Languages...if you mention DanceWriting, they will say that could not  
be a writing system for signed languages...

So Kim, it is best to mention that SignWriting is used right now, by  
small groups of people in over 40 countries, and it is growing and  
spreading... and inform them that now ASL can be written and times  
are changing... and then let them argue...controversy is good in a  
way...people remember it and then later become interested...Val ;-)





On Jan 4, 2007, at 12:04 PM, Shane Gilchrist O hEorpa wrote:

> Val,
>
> ooooh, Oberlin uses DanceWriting - thats excellent
>
> How many places do use your dance-writing system eh?
>
> Shane
>
> On 04/01/07, Charles Butler <chazzer3332000 at yahoo.com> wrote:
>> Kim, you should point out to them that Oberlin conservatory uses  
>> Dance
>> Writing all the time, so what about sign language isn't a written  
>> language?
>>
>> Charles
>>
>>
>> Kimberley Shaw <skifoot at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>
>> Hello all:
>> please sign me up, too -- I know I'll need to have better hand- 
>> writing
>> skills when I begin that college-level ASL course later on this  
>> month! I
>> tend to take lots of notes during class, but the teachers don't  
>> expect
>> anybody to be taking notes (since it "is not a written language",  
>> feh) and
>> so Signwritten "chicken scratch" is what my class notebooks  
>> usually end up
>> looking like.
>> Yes, Shane, trying to read the old German Schrift feels exactly  
>> like peering
>> at chicken scratches so far's I'm concerned! Very aesthetic  
>> chickens though;
>> the old handwriting can be very beautiful.
>> -- Kim from Boston
>>
>>
>> On 1/4/07, Valerie Sutton <signwriting at mac.com> wrote:
>> > SignWriting List
>> > January 4, 2007
>> >
>> > Charles Butler wrote:
>> > > If you can read this, I can sign up, too. Dont' know how much I
>> > > will be able to contribute, but I'd love to learn more.  (Quick
>> > > chicken stratch using my mouse)
>> >
>> > Hello Charles!
>> > Yes...I can read this...so I have placed your name on the  
>> Handwriting
>> > course list...
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > Participants already signed up:
>> >
>> > 1. Adam Frost
>> > 2. Stefan Woehrmann
>> > 3. Tini Pel
>> > 4. Kelly Jo Boal
>> > 5. Cherie Wren
>> > 6. Stuart Thiessen
>> > 7. Charles Butler
>> >
>> >
>> > Val ;-)
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>>
>>
>>
>