Adventist Adventurer Awards and Answers/Sign Language

Level: Helping Hand (4th grade) Please have 4th graders work on this and/or younger children who are fluent by association. For example, Sign Language is spoken in the home.

Category: Arts and Crafts

Section: My World

1. Learn the manual alphabet used by the deaf, and the rules pertaining to it.

2. Learn how to send and receive words using the manual alphabet.

3. Learn at least 50 words.

4. Learn and present at least one simple Christian song.

5. Where possible, have the Adventurers meet a deaf person and sign with them.

6. Sign a simple Bible verse.

Helps

1. As available (from your local Association of the Deaf), use two-sided manual alphabet cards. That way the children can see what the signs look like from both the sender’s and receiver’s angle.

2. First they can have fun learning to spell their names. Print words on a sheet of paper and then have the children take turns spelling and receiving the words. Have children get in groups of two and send and receive words of their choice.

3. Words young people really like to learn are the animals and foods. The Joy of Signing is a good book for learning these signs, as well as other signs. It gives both a word and a picture description of each sign. It also tells the sign’s origin (example: Jesus—origin: indicating the nail prints).

4. “Jesus Loves Me” and “Into My Heart” are two examples. Remember to explain the origins when needed.

5. Have someone from your deaf community come in and share a bit of their life with the children, and teach them a few words. This will really bring this award to life.

Resources

• nad.org Website for the National Association of the Deaf
• The Joy of Signing by Lottie Riekshof (Gospel Publishing, 1987

Fingerspelling is a way of spelling words using hand movements. The fingerspelling manual alphabet is used in sign language to spell out names of people and places for which there is not a sign. Fingerspelling can also be used to spell words for signs that the signer does not know the sign for, or to clarify a sign that is not known by the person reading the signer. Fingerspelling signs are often also incorporated into other ASL signs. American Sign Language (ASL) uses the one-handed alphabet however some other sign languages use the two-handed alphabet.

In this site you will find three secret messages to decode Thinkquest

ME

With a 1-hand, point at the middle of your chest, making contact once.

YOU, HIM, HER

Point towards the person's chest with a 1-hand.

ASL

Fingerspell ASL

AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE

With intertwined 5-hands with palms vertical and at right angles (in the wall plane), complete one or two circles with your hands together.

With 1-hands, draw circles in the wall plane perpendicular to your shoulders. This version fills your signing space. Alternatively, spin your forefingers around each other in a smaller motion. Either one is in the center of your signing space.

With L-hands, contact the thumbs in the centre of your signing space with palms facing down, then wiggle them outwards simultaneously.

BOY

As if grasping your ball cap in a flattened C-hand twice. Open and close your hand twice with the palm facing across your forehead.

GIRL

With a A-hand, your thumb traces your jawbone from near your ear to your chin.

MOTHER

With a 5-hand, tap your thumb to the outside of your chin twice.

FATHER

With a 5-hand, tap your thumb to the outside of your forehead.

DON'T KNOW

With a palm-hand, touch the side of your forehead with the fingertips, then turn the hand out and away from your face.

YES

With a S-hand, "nod" your hand up and down a few times in front of your chest, facing the viewer.

NO

Using a "pinch"-hand, open and close twice with your palm facing the viewer.

For a more forceful version, open and close your fingers only once, faster with a hand motion forwards towards the subject of your command.

DEAF

With the 1-hand, touch your chin at the ear, then at the front of your chin. This version is used for culturally-deaf individuals.

An alternative sign, used for CLINICALLY DEAF (meaning literally EAR CLOSED) uses a 1-hand to point to your ear, then two palm-hands to signify closing a door. Bring the hands together like two shutters in front of that ear.

NAME

Using two H-hands, tap the second joint of the middle fingers together on top of one another.

SORRY

With a loose A-hand, rub the centre of your chest and look sorry.

PLEASE

With a loose palm-hand, rub the centre of your chest.

FINGERSPELL

Starting with a 5-hand, mime fingerspelling by fluttering your fingers in alternation while moving your hand about the fingerspelling part of your signing space.

Jesus Loves Me in Sign Language - You Tube Video

Go to You Tube to learn John 3:16 in sign language

You Tube John 3:16

You Tube Jesus Love Me