American Sign Language ~ Summer

[Michelle_NC]

DD needs one more ASL class to fulfill her foreign language requirement,  and the only local college that offers them decided not to run any this summer.  Agh!!  We found a really cool alternative that might be of interest:

 

http://www.gallaudet.edu/ccs/summer-asl-courses.html

 

Gallaudet originally started as a college for those who are deaf or had of hearing, but its now open to everyone.  The whole campus is constructed around deaf culture, so its a bit like having a study abroad experience because summer students stay on campus and are expected to interact in sign language while they are there.  Summer classes run for 2 weeks, meet 5 hours a day, and count as a 3-credit college course.

 

The really cool extra benefit is that parents are allowed to stay in visitor housing while their kid is enrolled.  Its an inexpensive way to stay in the heart of Washington DC:  http://www.gallaudet.edu/reslife/housing/visitor-housing.html $35 a night for the first person and $14 for the second.

[counselinggirl]

That does sound awesome! Thank you so much for sharing!  :hurray:

[shawthorne44]

WOW!   That is really cool.   I hope they still do this when my little girl is old enough.   She's taken two classes in co-op and now we (her parents) are learning because she is using it.  

 

I think ASL is a really cool language.   It doesn't have the problems of unpronounceable sounds of a spoken language when the native and other language don't share the same base sounds.  Most of the signs to be based on things that cross cultures.  Like Elephant, you sort of run your hand down an invisible trunk.   Elephant's have trunks everywhere.   I just wish there weren't so many sign languages.   I also love all the videos out there demonstrating signs.  

 

eta:  too bad they require a high school diploma for this.  Seems like a great thing to during the summer between Junior and Senior year of High School as Dual Enrollment.  

Edited March 3, 2016 by shawthorne44

[Michelle_NC]

If you dig through their information packet, they allow high school students to attend with permission from their high school:  "Senior high school students may be eligible to take PST prefixed courses with written recommendation of their high school academic advisor and permission of the instructor."

 

They seemed especially open to homeschoolers.

 

There's also a summer camp program:  http://www.gallaudet.edu/outreach-programs/youth-programs/summer-youth-programs/immerse-into-asl.html

 

 

Edited March 3, 2016 by Michelle_NC

[shawthorne44]

Ooooh, that looks really cool.   A camp and ASL language immersion combined.   Interview over skype, makes total sense.   

[Mom2OandE]

Very cool! My daughter wants to go into Deaf Studies. She'd love to be able to participate in a few years.

[foxbridgeacademy]

So doing this in a year or two.  Both DD and DS are learning ASL on their own and DD especially would love this.