Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Granny and The Spaghetti Tornado

ASL has been more challenging than I expected.

I only got 60% on my first test, which made me feel bad, but the feedback from Danny was hilarious enough to dull the pain. 

First, he wanted to know why I kept flicking him off and I was seriously confused. Of course I didn't do that!!!

He laughed and laughed, as he explained that I should have used my index finger for some of the signs I should have used my middle finger for.

You should have seen the whole class laughing! Danny had the funniest comments for everyone.

He said one other girl signed like a "Russian dictator" and then wrote "Chihuahua" on the board, saying that, even though she's petite, her signing is loud. For another person, he just wrote "zzzzzz". There were those who did really great too. I look forward to being in that group soon.

He explained that deaf people can "hear" our signing voices from our gestures and his comments for me were "Madonna signs", "Shock/Electric" and "Yell/ Shout". In short, Danny thinks I'm a drama queen, which I'm not, but Danny is the professor, so...

I'm practicing a lot, watching lots of you tube videos and I started watching Switched at Birth all over again. It's different now that I'm watching the show for the signing, unlike when it was just for entertainment. I love it. I keep pausing and rewinding to practice the signs.

Homework this week is signing the story of Granny and The Spaghetti Tornado. We are in groups of three for this and my teammates, Rima and Krystal have been great to work with. The only day that worked for all of us to practice was Sunday, and they agreed to meet up at my house, so I didn't have to lug the troops around town. We had a good time watching loads of ASL videos and practicing the homework video. The kids got along and Nathan has found a new BFF in Kenyan, Rima's son, who is the same age as him.

Yesterday's class was for more practice and we made videos to see how we were doing. 
Danny's right about how watching yourself sign helps you improve because you can see your mistakes and improve. Watching myself, I did see the whole electric shock vibe he said he got. I need to remember to sign with my hands and fingers and not my whole body.

Presentation is tomorrow. I really hope we do great cos I can't afford any more crappy grades. My 4.0 GPA must not reduce, so help me God. Thankfully, Rima and Krystal are not greenhorns like me. They get to sign and copy while I voice, so we should be good. *fingers crossed*

Thanks for coming by again and again.
May your dreams come true.