SignWriting in Sign Language classes

[Adam Frost]

I am in the process of create a curriculum that incorporates SW. Right now I am working on the very beginning level, so I have the SW with just the handshapes as an animated gif. Then as the lessons go further, I will add the other symbols and make the handshapes less static. This way I can teach them a totally foreign writing system gradually while teaching them ASL without causing more confusion or substantually increasing the learning load. 

Adam

-----Original Message-----
From: "Charles Butler" <chazzer3332000 at yahoo.com>

Date: Tue, 2 Oct 2007 07:23:38 
To:"SignWriting List" <sw-l at majordomo.valenciacc.edu>
Subject: Re: [sw-l] SignWriting in Sign Language classes


Having lesson plans on Lessons in Sign Writing incorporated into Sign Language classes would be very good.  One learns by doing what is being taught in class.

If one goes through verbs (walk, run, dance, eat, shout, applause) and has them written as well as signed, then some of the writing is imparted by immersion, but one will always need a lesson plan so that as one starts with the basics (handshapes, directions, movement), it is step-by-step what one is using in class.



Valerie Sutton <sutton at signwriting.org> wrote: SignWriting List
October 2, 2007

Dear SW List members!
Recently I have had several questions from teachers wondering how to 
teach SignWriting in their school...They have asked for "course 
outlines". I actually do not have a course outline for teaching 
SignWriting as a separate subject...I just follow the Lessons in 
SignWriting textbook format...

http://www.signwriting.org/lessons/lessonsw/

But that is the OLD way of teaching...

I would like to suggest a NEW approach as well as the old way...

Maybe it is time to start using SignWriting as a part of Sign 
Language classes, without necessarily having a separate course in 
SignWriting?...

Of course there is nothing wrong with a separate course in 
SignWriting! But separating it as a separate subject can confuse the 
students too...

When we learn French or Spanish in school, we learn to speak French 
or Spanish in class, and we also learn to read it and possibly write 
it in class too...all in the SAME class...

So when you are teaching Sign Language courses, provide the students 
with the signs they are learning in class, written in SignWriting on 
paper, which they can take home with them, to study with...

So although SignWriting can be taught as a separate subject, I am 
suggesting that it might be best to just use it during classes where 
students are using Sign Language...we write complete books in Sign 
Language now, in SignWriting...so what is really needed is more 
reading material in the Sign Languages of the world...

This week and I am putting a book together using SignBank DocumentMaker:

SignBank
http://www.SignBank.org

...it is the ASL Bible, Chapters 1-7...a very large document!

I hope different religions will also start writing translations of 
their religious texts into SignWriting too...

After the book I am working on right now, I will do the layout for 
Cat in the Hat and Sleeping Beauty...so we are slowly getting 
literature to read...

Many thanks to all of the writiers!


Val ;-)




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