My First Week of ASL Classes

I was fairly nervous on the first few days but knew that things would be “okay”. There would be some small hurdles to overcome, however I assumed that most of my classmates would be nervous as well and that Ruby would be patient and helpful. I was so right. All of my classmates already understood finger-spelling as well as many signs, some very fluently.

Many of us bonded fairly quickly and I feel that we are a good support group for each other. Those that understand are pulling our levels of knowledge up as they explain what we have missed. Studying together before or after class also reinforces what we are learning.

There is quite a bit of laughter as we misuse a sign (alcohol, understand) as we understand we will all make mistakes and this is how we learn.

Completing the finger-spelling drills and learning the “dos” and “don’ts” has helped a great deal with my technique. I hope! Finger-spelling the ingredients on the Ritz cracker box while eating breakfast was a very interesting task. The challenge of unknown words (thiamine) was fun.

I am trying to not panic when I don’t understand a sign, or more commonly, a series of signs when Ruby or another student is communicating. Trying to relax and grasp the concept is my main goal today, this week, this year. While I know there is no end to the learning, I do feel more comfortable with the learning process and am having fun with it.