Learn American Sign Language your way with a TakeLessons expert

DeafBlindness  Tactile signing is one method of communication used by the DeafBlind community, who have a combination of both hearing and vision losses. Having a dual sensory loss impacts communication, socialization, mobility, and daily living. Statistics from 2008 indicate that approximately 50,000 or more people (including children and adults) living in the United States are DeafBlind.  Being categorized as DeafBlind refers to a wide array of people; the sensory loss varies from person

Fajrul Islam / Moment / Getty Images To effectively communicate with sign language, you need to know basic sign language words and phrases. Just like spoken languages, there are a variety of sign languages used around the world. American Sign Language (ASL) is used throughout North America, including the U.S. and English-speaking Canada. ASL is a complete language, which means that you can communicate just about anything through signing. Those who are deaf and hard of hearing, as well as peo

Most people living in the United States are likely familiar with American Sign Language (ASL); even if they don’t know any signs, they know it exists. Even less people realize that ASL is not universal, but unique to the US and parts of Canada. Therefore, it’s probable that very few people living in the US realize that ASL has variations. Just as with spoken languages, which have various dialects and accents, there are also variations within ASL, and age, race, location, socio-economic c

Throughout the years, there have been many Deaf people. You may know someone personally who is Deaf, maybe a family member, a friend, a classmate or a neighbor. It can also inspire your ASL learning to look back through history, and learn the stories of some well known and famous Deaf people who have made a difference in both the Deaf community and in the world. Here are some famous Deaf people throughout history:  Laurent Clerc - 1785-1869 One of the very first to be well kno

Are you excited about learning American Sign Language? Have you been wondering how to learn ASL fast, so you can communicate in this non-verbal language, speak with your Deaf community, or maybe even pursue a career as an ASL interpreter? Then you’ve come to the right place!  If you’re wondering how to learn ASL quickly, we’re here to help. While in most cases, learning a new language does take a lot of work and time on your behalf, there are strategies you can use to expedite your tim

Many people are surprised or even shocked to learn that American Sign Language is not universal. However, when you think about how many spoken languages there are across the globe, it makes sense that sign language would be the same. After all, American Sign language is its own language with its own grammar, idioms, and everything else needed to be a language completely separate from English. Different types of sign language are developed in different regions around the globe, just like spok

Is ASL used throughout the United States? Is it only spoken by those who are Deaf and hard of hearing? Believe it or not, ASL is widely used by several people in many areas throughout the U.S. There are approximately 500,000 deaf people in the U.S. Yet, these are not the only people who use American Sign Language. Besides the Deaf communities throughout, there are also hard of hearing individuals who are fluent in ASL. ASL Interpreters Another group of people that use ASL almost on a daily

Hearing Loss According to the CDC, at least one in 1,000 babies are born with a hearing loss. Historically, a hearing loss could go overlooked in a baby for months and even years, but fortunately, at present approximately 98% of infants are screened for a hearing loss. Identifying a hearing loss in infants is critical, because the first three years of life are crucial for speech and language development and it’s important for all children to have linguistic input from birth. Without exposur

Ever heard of Clayton Valli? Who is that? What did he do? Let’s take a look at the inspiring story of Clayton Valli. A Brief Look at Clayton Valli's Life Clayton was born on May 25th, 1951 in Massachusetts. He was a deaf man, who became a notable ASL poet and linguist. Valli had quite an impressive education. He first attended the Austine School for the Deaf in Vermont in 1971. Then he received an Associate of Applied Science in Photography from the National Technical Institute for the D

  If you picture silence when you think of Deaf art, you’re missing out on so much more. Deaf art, like all other art, expresses the unique values of the artist. Deaf art represents aspects of Deaf culture, Deaf identity, American Sign Language (ASL), Deaf gain, deafness, hearing loss, oppression, Deaf perspective, Deaf experience, celebration, resistance, and cultural identity. ________________________________________________________________ What is Deaf Art? Art is broadly defin