This learning journey has been quite the experience, although it has been an exhausting semester and felt a bit overwhelming at times, as I reflect on everything I learned and the hard work that went in, it all feels worth it.  For my learning project I decided to learn ASL. I have wanted to learn ASL for a few years now and I believe in creating an environment that is inclusive to everyone. Since American Sign Language is a language form, I thought this was a perfect time to learn the skill.  So how did this journey go? Well I am definitely not fluent in ASL, but who would be…

Rather than trying to learn some more signs, I decided to refresh my memory by going back to the basics and recalling what I learned at the beginning of my ASL journey. I sometimes forget that in a learning journey it is not always continue learning new content but also ensuring the things we learned previously which are also foundational to progress in the future is also important.  Which includes the alphabet, counting and a few common sayings. I think it is easy to keep learning new signs, but they may not be helpful if I am not retaining the ones I learned previously. As I was going through the…

I have been extremely overwhelmed recently with tasks that keep piling up and feeling like there is not enough time to finish them all. So, this week I decided to focus less on learning new signs in ASL and rather I looked at the progression of Sign language in Saskatchewan and the school systems. I came across an article published April 2024 that identifies Saskatchewan as recognizing ASL and Indigenous Sign Language as an official language! How cool! This was a double learning factor, because I also was not aware that Indigenous Sign Language was a thing, this was my first time hearing about it.  Additionally, this article includes a…

This week I decided to try another new app. Trying to keep my options open and experience all the resources that are available, yeno? I recently downloaded Lingvano which is very similar to Duolingo but without the intense owl haunting you in your sleep! The app is very similar to the other apps I have tried and talked about in my previous blogs, but so far this one is my favourite. When you first download and open the app it asks you to sign up. Just your name, email, and a password for your account. Unfortunately the app is only free for the first few lessons. However you can use…

On my next steps of learning ASL, I wanted to focus on some signs that could be helpful in the classroom. Learning signs such as asking to use the washroom, get water, ask if they are paying attention and more. Again this week I used Youtube, but I used a different poster under the account “Learn How To Sign”. She is an ASL teacher and explains signs that she finds to be helpful in a classroom setting and the reasons as to why signing in the classroom, especially during work periods can be great alternatives. In the video, the poster talks about how you can use ASL to give students commands…

This week in my learning journey with ASL I decided to learn numbers which were relatively simple to learn but remembering which numbers use which hand motions and watching someone else sign them had me a bit confused. The numbers 1-5 were simple, it was the same as how many people count on their hands. Starting with your index finger to count the number one, then add your middle finger to count the number 2. They throw a little curve ball at you and add the thumb to count 3 rather than the ring finger. After this you drop the thumb and add your pointer to pinky fingers to count…

I decided to use a resource that was posted earlier by Brynn who is also learning ASL for her learning project. This week I watched a Youtube video teaching 25 signs you need to know as a beginner in the language.  In the other videos, apps, and resources I have used leading up to this point I was not aware of 5 key aspects that are important in signing.  Palm orientation Hand shape Movement  Location Non-manual signals I am still finding it tough when it comes to the hand shapes and movements. Also watching some videos they do not explain the palm orientation or how to properly create the movements…

For this week I decided to learn how to create videos using TikTok. I am not new to tiktok, I watch reels on the app all the time… Likely spend more time there than I should! But I haven’t really made and edited videos using the app. (The most I could do was add a video from my camera roll and toss a song behind it!  First off I had the decision between creating a video with text, photo’s or a 15 second, 60 second, and 10 minute video. I was between the photo option and the 60 second… mostly because I wasn’t sure how long I would need to make…

This week I did a lot of my learning using an instagram account that I follow. Her name is Mckinnon Galloway. I actually found her account over a year ago, and her personal story plus her ASL teachings were the reason I decided to follow her. She was diagnosed in high school with an illness called NF2 (I learned that essentially these are tumors that grow on nerves throughout the body). The doctors found two brain tumors and she was told she would be deaf before she graduated high school. With this illness, she mentions that most of the time the tumors are not cancerous (but they can turn cancerous).…

This week I decided to use a website which is also an app called Pocket Sign to continue my learning in ASL. My main focus was learning the alphabet and how to finger spell my own name! This was surprisingly a lot easier than I had anticipated and I caught on to it relatively quickly. So I learned to sign my dog Willow’s name and my husband’s name as well. Which was also a great way to practice the different letters in the alphabet. I did find learning the alphabet was relatively easy and I did catch on pretty quickly. There are still some letters that I need to go…