Here's a brief update about my schooling.
I'm more than halfway through my first ASL class, and it's AMAZING. It's so great to practice my sign on a weekly basis. I didn't realize how much I've missed it. (Actually it's quickly replacing soccer as my favorite Release. Weird, right?)
I was hoping to lay low, so they wouldn't know that I already knew sign. But that didn't work. My teacher called me out on day 1. Turns out that there's a lot of sign that beginners don't know. Basics like "right" and "OK" and "good." :) I have now received comments from my classmates like, "How much sign do you know?" and "Teacher's pet," and "I don't know how advanced you are, but can you help me?"
The main reason I started over at the beginning was to correct some of my sign that's off or old or sloppy, and to improve my grammar. And on that scale, class has been very successful. I have corrected things as basic as letters and numbers and days of the week. Re-wiring my brain has been an interesting process.
So class hasn't been a cakewalk. I feel like I'm learning just as much as my classmates, but on a different level. Certainly I'm practicing as much as most of them, working as hard, and signing outside of class just as much (if not more).
It's great to go to outside events and just sign. I've met a deaf man who is also LDS, and that's been fun. He's really nice and he's introduced me to some deaf LDS resources. I've also met lots of other students (logging hours for class, just like me - I have to get 8 hours of sign time outside of class). It's interesting. They'll see me sign and ask where I go to school. When I tell them Cincinnati State, the response is often, "Why haven't I seen you around before?" Then I'll tell them I'm in Beginning Sign 1. One guy said, "No one will ever believe you're in Sign 1." That same guy also complimented my sign, which was very nice of him, and then said, "No, really. You're better than I am." He's at the Advanced level, which is 6 classes above me.
Bottom line: I'm having the time of my life.
2 comments:
That is so cool, Tamra! Going back to school is fun.
That's awesome that you are liking it so much! and I'm not surprised you're already so advanced, you are quite the little smarty pants from what I hear. :) "Teacher's pet" though...hopefully no one beats you up out of jealousy. j/k! It's so stimulating to continue learning.
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