British Sign Language For Dummies

Introduction 1

About This Book 1

Conventions Used in This Book 1

Foolish Assumptions 2

How This Book Is Organised 3

Part I: Starting to Sign 3

Part II: Everyday BSL 3

Part III: Getting Out and About 3

Part IV: Looking into Deaf Life 3

Part V: The Part of Tens 3

Part VI: Appendixes 4

Icons Used in This Book 4

Where to Go from Here 4

Part I: Starting to Sign 5

Chapter 1: Discovering Who’s Who – and How They Communicate 7

Different Groups of Deaf People 7

Who’s dumb? 7

Understanding who’s who 8

 and how do they communicate? 10

Attracting a Deaf Person’s Attention? 13

Touching on the arm or shoulder 13

Waving 14

Stamping on the floor 14

Switching the light on and off 14

Watch My Lips! 14

Chapter 2: Sign Language You Didn’t Know You Knew 17

Signs That Make Sense 17

Gestures 17

How do you sign this word? 18

How does BSL create new signs? 19

Making It Clear with Body Language 20

Let Me Spell It Out: Finger-spelling 20

Left or right? 22

Watch my lips – not my fingers 23

Now you see it, now you don’t 23

Funny Faces 24

Using funny faces 25

No! Not me! 25

Oh yes! 25

Are you happy? 25

Getting Your Hands into Shape 26

What is a hand shape? 26

Simple Sentences: Sign Order 28

Chronological order 28

Question forms 28

Part II: Everyday BSL 31

Chapter 3: Meeting and Greeting 33

Greetings! Starting a Conversation 33

Asking questions: Who? What? Why? When? Where? Which? How? 34

WH questions (open) 35

Yes/no questions (closed) 36

Rhetorical questions 37

Getting to Know You 37

What’s in a Name? 40

Where do you live? 40

So Long, Farewell, Auf Wiedersehen, Goodbye 47

Chapter 4: Knowing Me, Knowing You 53

Don’t Point! It’s Rude! Or Is It? 53

Telling Others about Yourself 54

Family and friends 54

Talking about your job 58

Discussing your workplace 60

Chapter 5: Expressing Your Feelings 69

How’s Life? Talking about Your Feelings 69

You OK? Talking about your health 75

Where does it hurt? 79

Just take one of these 85

999 Emergency 88

Chapter 6: Nailing Numbers 95

Explaining Regional Signs 95

Numbers? Count me in 96

Who’s first? 102

Telling the time 103

Talking about money 105

Asking someone’s age 107

Chapter 7: Describing Weather, Colour, and Clothes 119

Signing Come Rain, Come Shine 119

Describing Colours 123

Developing Dress Sense 125

Eyeing up everyday clothes 126

Mentioning the unmentionables 129

Wrapping up winter warmth 130

Putting a spring in your signs 134

Summer sun (if you’re lucky) 135

Part III: Getting Out and About 141

Chapter 8: Getting from A to B 143

Signing Space 143

Placement of signs 144

Prepositions 144

How Do I Get to ? 145

Getting to and from work 148

Location, location, location 152

Looking out for local landmarks 153

Countryside landmarks 157

Out on the Town 159

Chapter 9: Arranging Not So Blind Dates 167

Getting Tense about Time 167

Arranging to Meet 169

Today’s the day 169

When shall we meet? 172

Mastering months 178

Special Celebrations 181

Chapter 10: Fancy Fish and Chips? 189

On Today’s Menu 189

Which knife and fork to use? 189

Want breakfast? 193

Grabbing a quick lunch 197

Tea, a drink with jam and bread 204

What’s for dinner? 206

Eating Out 209

Take-away food 210

Fancy a drink anyone? 213

Chapter 11: Making the Most of Your Free Time 217

Having Fun with Leisure Activities 217

Getting Sporty 222

Playing Indoor Games 230

Having Fun with Hobbies 234

Part IV: Looking into Deaf Life 243

Chapter 12: Deaf Community and Culture 245

Digging Into the History of BSL 245

Exploring the Origins of Deaf Education 246

Deaf 1880 Milan conference 246

The oral method 247

Enlightenment at last! 247

The Social Side of the Deaf World 247

Discovering Deaf clubs 248

Embracing the new 248

Access for Deaf people – Language Service Professionals (LSPs) 249

Investigating interpreters 249

Communicators/Communication Support Workers (CSWs) 251

Lipspeakers 251

Manual notetakers 253

Electronic note-takers 253

Palantypist/speech-to-text reporter (STTR) 254

LSP etiquette 254

Chapter 13: Technology and Modifications for Deaf People 257

Keeping in Touch 257

Minicoms and Text-phones 258

Type-Talk and Text-Direct 259

SMS 259

Fax machines 259

Email 260

Videophones/webcams 260

Wakey-wakey! Flashing Lights and Vibrating Alarms 260

Somebody at the door 261

Fire! Fire!/Baby’s crying! 261

Wake-up call 261

Part V: The Part of Tens 263

Chapter 14: Ten Top Tips to Improve Your Signing Skills 265

Watch My Face 265

RSVP Please 265

Showing the Sign! 266

Spotting the Difference 266

Being Honest 266

Mirror, Mirror, on the Wall 266

Being a Film Star 267

Keeping a Record 267

Hare or Tortoise? 267

The Way of the World 267

Chapter 15: Ten Top Tips For Good Communication 269

Get an Attitude 269

Lights, Camera Action! 270

Does He Take Sugar? 270

Get Body-Conscious 270

What’s the Point? 271

Keep Clear – Access Required 271

Be Environmentally Friendly 272

One at a Time Please! 272

English versus BSL 272

Don’t Give Up! 273

Chapter 16: Ten Top BSL Resources 275

Honing Your Skills at BSL Classes 275

Attending a Communication Club 275

Going to Deaf Pubs 276

Taking a Trip to the Theatre or Cinema 276

Attending Deaf Workshops and Conferences 277

Watching BSL Signed DVDs 277

Taking in TV Programmes 277

Wising Up to Websites 278

Weighing Up Webcams 278

Making Deaf Friends 278

Chapter 17: Ten Really Useful Phrases 279

How Are You? 279

You All Right? 280

Again, Please 280

I’m Sorry 281

I Don’t Understand 281

Do You Need Help? 282

That’s Right! 282

That’s Bad/Wrong! 283

Excuse Me 283

See You Around/Soon! 284

Chapter 18: Ten Things You (Probably) Didn’t Know about Deaf Culture and History 285

British Sign Language (BSL) 285

St John of Beverley 286

Early Signs of Sign Language 286

Vows of Silence 286

To Read and Write – Right? 286

Finger-spelling Circa 1720 287

Give Us a Bell 287

Deaf Church to Department Store 287

The Queen Amused Others 287

Deaf to the Crowd 288

Part VI: Appendixes 289

Appendix A: Answer Key to Fun & Games 291

Appendix B: About the Online Content 293

What You’ll Find Online 293

Dialogues 293

Customer Care 295

Index 297