Teaching Signwriting to deaf children in Tunisia A PROPOSAL FOR ALL

Sun Dec 22 19:53:56 UTC 2013

I think it's Stefan's call whether it is OK to circulate the brief video.
If he would like to, I just need to edit it ever so slightly - there is a
lot of text in between shots to explain what people are seeing and I have
to make sure those screens stay up longer so people have time to read!

On Sun, Dec 22, 2013 at 2:33 PM, Valerie Sutton <signwriting at mac.com> wrote:

> SignWriting List
> December 22, 2013
>
> Hello James -
> Such a book would be wonderful, I agree, that would pinpoint some of the
> grammar points that are common to multiple sign languages - I suspect that
> the East Asian sign languages might be quite different than the western
> sign languages and so a cross-linguistic guide to the grammar of certain
> groups of sign languages could be written - but that is a project for
> another day - I do not know of such a book - does anyone on the List?
>
> I think that four months teaching Deaf children in Tunisia will be a
> blessing for the school and students, and will get them started thinking
> about reading and writing signs - that is all it can be - only a beginning
> - but Tunisia is an amazing country, starting on many “new beginnings”
> right now, and I believe in Tunisia’s creativity and tenacity for change -
>
> Dali, please keep us informed about using your new materials - I will post
> them, after we get finished discussing them - Dali and I have been
> improving the books a little before posting - They are lovely and he has
> done a lot of work -
>
> James - tell us about Nicaragua - how are the two schools going?
>
> Nicaraguan Sign Language Projects
> http://www.nicaraguansignlanguageprojects.org/
> http://www.signwriting.org/nicaragua/nicaragua.html
>
> Val ;-)
>
> --------
>
>
> On Dec 21, 2013, at 7:44 PM, James Shepard-Kegl <kegl at maine.rr.com> wrote:
>
> > Valerie et al,
> >
> > I am very gratified to see all the story adaptations in so many signed
> languages that are appearing on the web lately.  This is part of a long
> process.  I do think a grammar book, as challenging as it would be, would
> be very useful.  As I said before, I think we could make one for signed
> languages generally -- if we do so carefully.  Maybe others already have
> and I am just too isolated of late to know.
> >
> > --  James
> >
> >
> > ---- Valerie Sutton <signwriting at MAC.COM> wrote:
> >> SignWriting List
> >> December 21, 2013
> >>
> >> Hello James, Dali, and everyone who teaches SignWriting around the
> world…and there are many people who do now… and each country, and each
> teacher, teaches differently and uses different materials… I hope to post
> these materials on the web for download...
> >>
> >> Thank you for this email, James, and I agree that the materials you
> describe below sound excellent and are needed - and thank you also for the
> books and literature you have written in Nicaraguan Sign Language already,
> in SignWriting…I have barely been able to keep up with posting all the
> documents - There are sooooo many documents that have been sent to me
> privately that have not yet been posted on our web site, it is a true
> shame…So I will try to rectify this in 2014 if I can… Maybe if I can keep
> up my strength we will have more and more materials posted in 2014 -
> >>
> >> Regarding Tunisia, I just want to explain that we are all blessed with
> Professor Mohamed Dali Balti, who is diligently translating some of our
> books and materials into Tunisian Sign Language and Arabic and French - the
> languages of Tunisia. There are two such books that Dali has just sent to
> me in the past two weeks…one a textbook on SignWriting Hand Symbols used in
> Tunisian Sign Language, based on Adam Frost’s work, and the other is a
> beautiful translation of our Beginner’s Workbook in SignWriting…the
> Goldilocks coloring book…that we use in the SignWriting Literacy Project.
> >>
> >> Both books are large enough that I think I need to post them on our web
> site first, and then write again with the links to download the books,
> rather than post them directly here on the List. Also, Dali has written
> other children’s stories in SignWriting in Tunisian Sign Language, and I
> believe one of them is Little Red Riding Hood, which you mention, James
> below…. so Tunisia is one country that is moving towards your goals, James -
> >>
> >> I will write again with the links to the Tunisian documents -
> >>
> >> And there is now a book from Slovenia - Slovenia is also teaching
> SignWriting to Deaf children - more on that too -
> >>
> >> Val ;-)
> >>
> >> ---------
> >>
> >> On Dec 21, 2013, at 9:15 AM, James Shepard-Kegl <kegl at maine.rr.com>
> wrote:
> >>
> >>> Fellow Signwriters, educators, linguists and signers,
> >>>
> >>> I continue to mull over the request for materials for the little
> Tunisian project.  I am ignoring the notion that SignWriting will help Deaf
> children with sounds (?????) or their "mother tongue"  (unless their mother
> is Deaf and signs and this means their "mother hand").
> >>>
> >>> However, the request for materials to teach SignWriting is a valid
> request IF the request is really to teach signing, using SignWriting as an
> orthographic tool (which is what SW actually is.)  I am sure that many of
> us have been developing such materials in one form or another for years.
>  Maybe we could pool resources and efforts to produce something that many
> people will find truly useful.
> >>>
> >>> Let's begin with a premise:  Signed languages tend to be grammatically
> similar (not the same, but not all that different, either.)  Vocabulary
> varies a lot, but all signed languages use classifiers and classifier
> clitics a great deal.  All these languages follow syntax rules using
> spatial and locative verbs.  This is the reason that natively fluent Deaf
> signers in one country pick up other signed languages so quickly, even when
> these signers themselves cannot articulate their own grammar rules.  (You
> don't have to know what a "predicate" is to use one properly in your
> sentence structure for your own language.  On the other hand, it is very
> useful to know grammar labels and rules when you are trying to learn the
> language of somebody else.)
> >>>
> >>> I keep making a big deal that you can't teach SignWriting unless you
> have developed reading material that is FUN to read.  But, what I mean is
> that you want fun and engaging reading material to help teach signing --
> and not just to Deaf children, but to their hearing siblings and
> parents/grandparents, as well.
> >>>
> >>> I am picturing in my mind a text, divided into sections:
> >>>
> >>> 1) A RULES section that explains in detail the common grammar terms of
> signed languages.  This section would use illustrations from many signed
> languages.  And, this section would be translated into many spoken
> languages.  (That is, there would be an English version, a French version,
> an Arabic version, and so forth.  The educator then purchases or is
> furnished with the specified version.)  You will note that this section is
> intended for literate educators.  An ASL version, or translation in other
> signed languages, would be really cool, too.  Publishing something that
> will be understandable and helpful will not be easy.  However, please bear
> in mind that the reason that most hearing administrators do not accept that
> signed languages are bona fide languages (and the reason that so many Deaf
> people don't believe it either is that publications like this are rare.)
> >>>
> >>> 2)  A VOCABULARY section -- perhaps 1,000 signs -- again, specify the
> signed language you want.  Each sign is depicted in photos or diagrams,
> SignWriting, and "the mother tongue".  A cute illustration would be nice,
> too.
> >>>
> >>> 3)  A SIGNWRITING WORKBOOK to accompany the vocabulary section.
> >>>
> >>> 4)  A READING section:  20 illustrated children's stories, to be
> practiced and enjoyed by all.  If you produce a simple illustrated version
> of Little Red Riding Hood in German, it does not take a lot of effort to
> reproduce the same story in English.  This should be even more true for
> signed languages.
> >>>
> >>> This concept will take a lot of work -- several years, I expect.  But,
> in the end, when someone somewhere asks for materials to teach SignWriting,
> we will have something really impressive, fun and useful to offer.
> >>>
> >>> -- James
> >>>
> >>> ________________________________________________
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> SIGNWRITING LIST INFORMATION
> >>>
> >>> Valerie Sutton
> >>> SignWriting List moderator
> >>> sutton at signwriting.org
> >>>
> >>> Post Messages to the SignWriting List:
> >>> sw-l at listserv.valenciacollege.edu
> >>>
> >>> SignWriting List Archives & Home Page
> >>> http://www.signwriting.org/forums/swlist
> >>>
> >>> Join, Leave or Change How You Receive SW List Messages
> >>> http://listserv.valenciacollege.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=SW-L&A=1
> >>>
> >>
> >> ________________________________________________
> >>
> >>
> >> SIGNWRITING LIST INFORMATION
> >>
> >> Valerie Sutton
> >> SignWriting List moderator
> >> sutton at signwriting.org
> >>
> >> Post Messages to the SignWriting List:
> >> sw-l at listserv.valenciacollege.edu
> >>
> >> SignWriting List Archives & Home Page
> >> http://www.signwriting.org/forums/swlist
> >>
> >> Join, Leave or Change How You Receive SW List Messages
> >> http://listserv.valenciacollege.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=SW-L&A=1
> >>
> >
> > ________________________________________________
> >
> >
> > SIGNWRITING LIST INFORMATION
> >
> > Valerie Sutton
> > SignWriting List moderator
> > sutton at signwriting.org
> >
> > Post Messages to the SignWriting List:
> > sw-l at listserv.valenciacollege.edu
> >
> > SignWriting List Archives & Home Page
> > http://www.signwriting.org/forums/swlist
> >
> > Join, Leave or Change How You Receive SW List Messages
> > http://listserv.valenciacollege.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=SW-L&A=1
> >
>
> ________________________________________________
>
>
> SIGNWRITING LIST INFORMATION
>
> Valerie Sutton
> SignWriting List moderator
> sutton at signwriting.org
>
> Post Messages to the SignWriting List:
> sw-l at listserv.valenciacollege.edu
>
> SignWriting List Archives & Home Page
> http://www.signwriting.org/forums/swlist
>
> Join, Leave or Change How You Receive SW List Messages
> http://listserv.valenciacollege.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=SW-L&A=1
>
>

-- 
Erika Hoffmann-Dilloway
Assistant Professor of Anthropology
Oberlin College

________________________________________________

SIGNWRITING LIST INFORMATION

Valerie Sutton
SignWriting List moderator
sutton at signwriting.org

Post Messages to the SignWriting List:
sw-l at listserv.valenciacollege.edu

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