Closing Time, One Last Call for ASL

As this semester comes to a close, so does my learning project. It is a bittersweet moment because I know this means I am that much closer to my degree, but it also means I must close out my learning project with one final post. I had such an amazing and rewarding time learning ASL. As I look back, I realize all of the amazing resources I was able to utilize to make this learning even remotely possible. I hope to continue this learning into my future and excited to share what I have learned for many years to come with friends, family, colleagues and students. This learning project not only helped me require a new language, but it also provided me opportunities to make videos of myself (which if you read my first post, I was not fond of doing) it made me a better more skilled video editor and it broadened my ideas of learning using technology.

This blog post is dedicated to wrapping up my learning project, everything I have learned, the resources I found most helpful and useful and where I was then and now. Thank you to everyone who followed along with my learning project. I hope in some way it has helped you to see the benefits of learning a language!

So, without further ado let’s get into it…

Week 1: Time to Learn ASL, It’s Pretty Handy

Week one was more of an outline of what I wanted my learning project to look like rather than actually learning any ASL. WOW, when I look back at my learning plan, I realize I barely stuck to my “plan” and adjustments were indeed made. I barely made myself a quiz and I rarely used 2 of the 3 ASL apps I had initially planned on using. However, my goal was to learn a language that could be beneficial both inside and out of the classroom and I believe as the weeks went on this goal was met.

Week 2: These Hands were Made for Talking

Week two was when I got to experience my first attempt at learning the ABC’s in ASL. I must say I really enjoyed learning the ABC’s and it really motivated me for the continuation of this learning project. For this week I not only made my first YouTube video signing the ABC’s but I posted it. Making videos was something I was the most nervous to do, but I am glad I pushed through and did it!

Mini Lesson: A Little Baby Talk

This was not really a part of the weekly learning project, but I wanted to showcase some of the ASL I already had in my brain bank. I have always loved Baby Sign Language and actually making the video to showcase what I knew was a great refresher and reminder of all the benefits ASL has for not only myself but the people around me.

Week 3: ALAS… Animoto Meets ASL

This week I used the video editor called Animoto. It was a fun and new way to edit videos that was actually surprisingly easy to use. I also learned how to sign my name is Julie, I’m learning sign and what is your name. Along with learning these signs I also learned colours. The colours I learned were red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, pink, black and white. For this I used a couple different YouTube videos.

Week 4: These Hands can do More than Just Count

This week I tried my hands at learning through TikTok. I used 2 different TikTokers for this. On top of learning how to count I also learned the days of the week and the months of the year. I saved the months for last because I thought they would be the hardest but in fact I was wrong, and they were the easiest because they are usually finger spelled. This is when I realized how important it was to learn the alphabet in ASL. I sure was glad I learned and practiced this from week 2 of my learning project.  

Week 5: Imagine all the People…Who Could Learn ASL

For week 5 I learned the signs for people. As mentioned in my blog post this was by far the hardest and most information, I challenged myself to learn. I am glad I challenged myself though because I think learning these signs will be a great asset for the classroom. I am hoping I can carry thing language into my teaching career in order to make the world that much more inclusive.

Mini Lesson: Who’s Hungry for a Little ASL?

Again, this was not part of my official weekly learning plan, but I thought it would be fun to learn fruits in ASL and I was super excited to try making a TikTok of my own! Although I was nervous because well, I am not super confident in recording myself but I also was not confident in my signing especially that fast but it was probably one of the most fun things I have done in a long time. For this I also used TikTok to support my learning. I realized at this point that I was relying on TikTok more than my ASL apps that I had originally planned to use for this learning project.

Week 6: She, Them, He, We & All My ASL Learning

Week 6 was the final week of the learning project. I couldn’t believe I was at week 6 already. This week I decided to make a video recapping my ASL learning journey and also making a video of the pronouns in ASL. I used both YouTube and TikTok this week. I really enjoyed the depth of learning from YouTube but the quickness of TikTok.

Before and After my Learning Project:

Resources I Found Most Helpful for Learning ASL:

YouTube:

• The ASL Alphabet: American Sign Language Letters A-Z
• Sign Language 101 Lesson 2 – ABC’s, Colors & Pronouns
• Greetings in ASL, “Hi, my name is…”
• Take Lessons: 20+ Basic Sign Language Phrases for Beginners | ASL
• Sign Language 101 – People, the Body & Clothes
• Sign Language 101 Lesson 2 – Pronouns

The ASL App

TikTok

• Count from 1 to 20 in ASL
• Days of the week
• Months of the year
• Fruits
• Fruits Part 2
• Pronouns in ASL
• Pronouns sentences in ASL

Learning from those we label

I believe it is important to include that anyone I learned from on TikTok was hearing impaired or deaf. I think it is important to respect the language of those who use it on a daily basis. Here are some great TikTokers to learn from:

• @slntwrlddd
• @____onelovee
• @f3rnandasl
• therealljade

Resources I found Most Useful for Editing Videos:

• iMovie
• Animoto

All of the resources listed above are excellent for learning ASL and honestly for learning using technology in general. If you haven’t already I highly suggest checking them out! YouTube, TikTok and Apps for your phone can help you not only learn a new skill but they can also support any learning that is currently being done.

Resources I thought I would use, but did not end up using:

• Learn American Sign Language: Lessons For Beginners
• ASL Study App
• ASL App

The above listed apps are not necessarily bad ones for learning online however, I never ended up using them as I thought I would. In my personal opinion they did not enhance my learning in any way but I still encourage everyone to check them out and make an opinion for themselves.

Closing Time

I want to end this blog post by thanking my EDTC 300 colleagues for supporting me, encouraging me and joining me through my learning journey. All of your kind words of encouragement and advice helped me so much along the way! I also want to give a big thank-you to Katia for creating this learning project where I was able to learn a skill I have always wanted to learn. I am really looking forward to sharing my learning with all my future students and colleagues. This learning project has ignited my passion for learning this language and I am excited to continue this learning journey for the years to come.

See you later everyone &