ASL Expressions Lessons #1-6 from Udemy

What's inside

Learning objective

This is a beginning level course in american sign language. this is a 6-lesson series in which you will learn the finger spelled alphabet, 20-30 new vocabulary words each lesson and 10-15 practice sentences, plus grammatical and cultural notes.

Syllabus

Lessons 1-6

Introduction to lessons 1-6 with downloadable PDFs

Lesson #1

Lesson #2

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Read about what's good

what should give you pause

and possible dealbreakers

Provides a foundation in ASL, covering essential vocabulary, phrases, grammar, and cultural aspects, which is ideal for newcomers

Teaches practical conversational skills, including introductions, question-asking, and active listening, which facilitates basic interactions

Explores basic ASL grammar and sentence construction, offering insights into the structure and nuances of a visual language

Employs a multi-lesson format with downloadable PDFs, which may require learners to supplement their learning with additional visual aids

Reviews summary

Beginner-friendly asl expressions & basics

According to learners, this course offers a fantastic introduction to ASL, widely seen as perfect for total beginners. Students praise the clear and engaging instructor and their easy-to-follow signing. The course effectively covers signs, phrases, basic grammar, and cultural notes, helping learners feel more confident in basic conversation. Key features include a logical structure and useful downloadable PDFs. While comprehensive for starting out, some find it too basic if you have prior ASL knowledge or desire more interactive practice. Minor notes include occasional video clarity issues mentioned in older reviews.

Builds confidence in basics

"I feel much more confident signing now."

"Learning grammar and cultural notes alongside signs was invaluable."

"I feel like I learned a solid base in just 6 lessons. Highly recommend!"

"Great foundational course."

Instructor is easy to follow

"The instructor is clear and engaging. I loved the practice sentences."

"Excellent course! The instructor's signing is very clear and easy to follow."

"The explanations of ASL grammar are simple and easy to grasp."

Excellent starting point for ASL

"Fantastic course for beginners! The instructor is clear and engaging."

"Perfect for total newbies! The instructor is patient and breaks everything down nicely."

"This is a great course for someone who is completely new to ASL."

"It's okay for getting started..."

Some struggle with visuals

"The video quality wasn't great in parts, and sometimes the instructor's signing was hard to see clearly."

"More close-ups or different camera angles would help clarify some signs."

"While the content was good, the video quality was a bit low."

Needs more interactive practice

"I wish there were more opportunities for interactive practice."

"Watching videos is fine, but you really need to practice with others."

"Vocabulary is decent, but the sentence practice felt limited."

Not for intermediate learners

"Found this course a bit too basic. As someone who already knew some basic signs..."

"It's strictly for absolute beginners."

"As an intermediate signer, this was not challenging enough."

Activities

Be better prepared before your course. Deepen your understanding during and after it. Supplement your coursework and achieve mastery of the topics covered in ASL Expressions Lessons #1-6 with these activities:

Practice Fingerspelling

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Practice fingerspelling to improve your reception and expression skills, which are crucial for understanding and communicating in ASL.

Browse courses on Fingerspelling

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Use online fingerspelling practice tools.
Practice spelling common words and names.
Ask a friend to fingerspell words to you.

The American Sign Language Handshape Dictionary

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Reference a handshape dictionary to deepen your understanding of ASL sign formation and improve your signing accuracy.

View The American Sign Language Handshape Flash... on Amazon

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Familiarize yourself with the different handshapes.
Look up signs based on their handshape.
Practice forming the handshapes correctly.

Create a Video of Yourself Signing

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Record yourself signing phrases and sentences from the lessons to improve your fluency and identify areas for improvement.

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Choose phrases and sentences from the lessons.
Record yourself signing the chosen phrases.
Review the video and identify areas for improvement.
Re-record yourself incorporating the improvements.

Four other activities

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Practice with a Study Partner

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Practice signing with a partner to improve your receptive and expressive skills in a conversational setting.

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Find a study partner who is also learning ASL.
Practice signing the vocabulary and phrases from the lessons.
Give each other feedback on your signing.
Role-play common conversational scenarios.

A Basic Course in American Sign Language

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Read a comprehensive ASL textbook to reinforce your understanding of grammar and vocabulary.

View Learning American Sign Language DVD to... on Amazon

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Read the chapters that correspond to the lessons.
Complete the exercises in the book.
Review the vocabulary and grammar concepts.

Translate Songs into ASL

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Translate the lyrics of your favorite songs into ASL to practice your signing skills and expand your vocabulary.

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Choose a song with clear and simple lyrics.
Translate the lyrics into ASL, focusing on meaning and context.
Practice signing the translated lyrics.
Record yourself signing the song.

Volunteer at a Deaf Community Event

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Immerse yourself in the Deaf community by volunteering at an event to practice your ASL skills in a real-world setting.

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Find a local Deaf community event or organization.
Volunteer your time to help with the event.
Interact with Deaf individuals and practice your ASL skills.
Reflect on your experience and identify areas for growth.

Career center

Learners who complete ASL Expressions Lessons #1-6 will develop knowledge and skills that may be useful to these careers:

Sign Language Interpreter

A sign language interpreter facilitates communication between deaf or hard-of-hearing individuals and hearing individuals. This type of work requires a high level of fluency in American Sign Language. This course helps build a foundation in ASL, by teaching basic grammar, fingerspelling, numbers, and over 120 signs. The course emphasizes constructing sentences, which is essential for effective interpretation. By learning to introduce oneself, ask questions, and respond, one develops the skills necessary to participate in and support conversations as a sign language interpreter. The cultural notes provided in the course also provide a key frame of reference for engaging with the deaf community. This course is a great starting point for those interested in becoming a sign language interpreter.

See salaries and explore the career path for Sign Language Interpreter

Educational Interpreter

Educational interpreters facilitate communication for deaf or hard-of-hearing students in educational settings. These professionals must have a high level of ASL fluency. This course helps build a foundation in ASL, by teaching grammar, fingerspelling, numbers, and over 120 signs. The course emphasizes constructing sentences, which is essential for effective interpretation in a classroom. By learning to introduce oneself, ask questions, and respond, one develops the skills necessary to participate in and support conversations between teachers and students. The cultural notes provided in the course also provide a key frame of reference for engaging with the deaf community, especially in an educational context. This course is a great start for those intending to become an educational interpreter.

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Special Education Teacher

Special education teachers work with students who have a wide range of learning and developmental disabilities. Some of these students may be deaf or hard-of-hearing and communication using ASL is a vital part of working with them. This course introduces a learner to 120+ signs, basic ASL grammar, and how to construct sentences. A special education teacher who is familiar with these skills can better connect with and cater to students who use sign language. Learning to introduce oneself, ask questions, and respond, as one does in this course, is necessary for daily communication in a special education classroom. This course may be helpful for those aiming to teach special education.

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Bilingual Paraprofessional

A bilingual paraprofessional provides support to students who are English language learners and may also have other learning differences. This course may be useful, as it teaches American Sign Language. This course introduces a learner to 120+ signs, basic phrases, and sentences. A bilingual paraprofessional who has some knowledge and practice using ASL has more tools at their disposal to support all students. This course provides the learner with the skills to introduce themself, ask questions, and respond in ASL, allowing them to more effectively work with students who use sign. This course may be useful to a bilingual paraprofessional.

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Speech-Language Pathologist

A speech language pathologist evaluates and provides treatment to individuals with communication and swallowing disorders. ASL can be a valuable tool for a speech language pathologist, especially when working with clients who have hearing impairments or other communication difficulties. This course may be useful as it teaches foundational ASL skills, including basic grammar and over 120 signs and how they can be formed into sentences. Learning how to ask and respond to questions, and how to ask for signs one does not know, are valuable skills for developing rapport with clients in a clinical setting. This course may be helpful for a future speech language pathologist.

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Social Worker

Social workers support clients facing diverse challenges, often requiring effective communication skills to accurately assess their needs. This course introduces a learner to American Sign Language. It teaches over 120 signs and how to construct them into sentences. Social workers who develop skills in ASL can better serve deaf or hard-of-hearing clients and their families. The ability to introduce oneself, ask questions, and respond to questions in another language increases rapport, trust, and a working relationship. This course may be helpful as it helps develop key communication skills in ASL for a social worker.

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Community Outreach Worker

Community outreach workers connect individuals with community resources and support services. Some communities have significant deaf or hard-of-hearing populations with whom ASL communication is key. This course introduces over 120 signs, phrases, and sentences. It also covers basic grammar, which is necessary for understanding the structure of conversation. The ability to introduce oneself, ask questions, and respond to questions, as this course teaches, is pivotal when developing trust and rapport in a community. This course may be useful for a community outreach worker.

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Early Childhood Educator

Early childhood educators work with young children during their crucial developmental stages. Learning basic ASL skills helps educators communicate effectively with young learners, including those who may have hearing loss or communication delays. One might use ASL in the classroom with children of all abilities. This course teaches 120+ signs, phrases, and sentences, as well as the basic grammar of ASL. This helps an early childhood educator introduce concepts and ideas to children using a new modality. It also allows an educator to build rapport with children with hearing loss or other communication differences. This course may be helpful to educators working with children.

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Recreational Therapist

Recreational therapists use recreational activities to improve the physical, emotional, and social well-being of individuals. Some of these individuals may be deaf or hard-of-hearing. Knowing basic ASL facilitates communication with these clients and makes a recreational therapist a more inclusive professional. This course teaches over 120 signs, basic grammar and practice phrases and sentences. The ability to ask questions, respond, and introduce oneself, as taught in this course, are all key to building trust with clients. This course may be useful for those working as a recreational therapist.

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Residential Advisor

Residential advisors work in a number of settings, including schools and colleges. They often work with diverse groups of people, some of whom may be deaf or hard-of-hearing. This course introduces over 120 signs, basic ASL grammar, and phrases and sentences that will help those working as residential advisors to better communicate with their residents. The ability to introduce oneself, ask questions, and respond to questions as taught in this course is a starting point for building inclusive communities in residential settings. This course may be helpful to those working in residential settings.

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Customer Service Representative

A customer service representative interacts with customers to answer questions and provide support. Some customers may be deaf or hard of hearing, and having a foundational understanding of ASL will increase inclusivity in a customer service setting. This course introduces over 120 signs, basic phrases and sentences, as well as the grammar of the language. The ability to introduce oneself, ask questions, and respond, as is taught in this course, enables a service representative to provide more personalized and accessible customer service. This course may be helpful for a customer service representative.

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Human Resources Assistant

A human resources assistant provides administrative support to the human resources department and interacts with employees in a variety of ways. This course introduces a learner to basic ASL and could be useful when working with deaf or hard-of-hearing employees or job applicants. This course teaches over 120 signs and phrases, as well as the grammar of ASL. The course includes instruction in introducing oneself, asking questions, and responding to questions, which are all skills that can be used to build relationships in a professional setting. This course may be helpful to someone working as a human resources assistant.

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Medical Assistant

Medical assistants perform administrative and clinical tasks in healthcare settings. Some patients may be deaf or hard-of-hearing and having some ability to communicate using sign language would help build rapport with patients. This course teaches over 120 signs, basic ASL grammar and common phrases and sentences. The ability to introduce oneself using sign language, ask questions, and respond to those questions are all key to providing quality care. This course may be helpful for a medical assistant.

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Library Assistant

Library assistants provide support to library patrons. Some patrons may be deaf or hard-of-hearing and knowing the basics of ASL could help a library assistant to provide more inclusive customer service. This course teaches over 120 signs, basic grammar, and common phrases and sentences. The ability to introduce oneself using sign language, ask questions, and respond to those questions are all key to providing quality customer service. This course may be helpful to someone working as a library assistant.

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Tour Guide

A tour guide leads groups of people through locations and shares information about the site. Some tourists may be deaf or hard-of-hearing, and possessing a basic knowledge of ASL could enable a tour guide to be more inclusive. This course introduces over 120 signs, basic ASL grammar, and common phrases and sentences. The ability to introduce oneself using sign language, ask questions, and respond to those questions could be useful to a tour guide. This course may be useful for a tour guide.

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Reading list

We've selected two books that we think will supplement your learning. Use these to develop background knowledge, enrich your coursework, and gain a deeper understanding of the topics covered in ASL Expressions Lessons #1-6.

The American Sign Language Handshape Flash Cards

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This dictionary focuses on handshapes, a fundamental element of ASL. It provides a comprehensive guide to understanding and producing various handshapes. valuable reference for learners to improve their sign accuracy and comprehension. It adds depth to the course by providing a detailed look at the building blocks of ASL signs.

The American Sign Language Handshape Flash Cards...

Cards

Learning American Sign Language: Beginning &...

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Comprehensive introduction to ASL, covering vocabulary, grammar, and cultural aspects. It provides a solid foundation for beginners and complements the course material. This book is valuable as additional reading to reinforce the concepts learned in the course. It is commonly used as a textbook in introductory ASL courses.

Learning American Sign Language DVD to accompany...

DVD-ROM

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