SEE or ASL

[Guest guest]

Tina,

What we have been using is pidgen..ASL signs in SEE format with a few

exceptions for the signs like " is " . That way all she has to do is learn ASL

format

which is actually a faster and easier way of signing and she seems to slip

into easily. One thing that I would start early and that we did not know about

is the use of facial expressions. That is much harder to start using later.

Eleanor

[Guest guest]

Tina,

What we have been using is pidgen..ASL signs in SEE format with a few

exceptions for the signs like " is " . That way all she has to do is learn ASL

format

which is actually a faster and easier way of signing and she seems to slip

into easily. One thing that I would start early and that we did not know about

is the use of facial expressions. That is much harder to start using later.

Eleanor

[Guest guest]

Tina,

What we have been using is pidgen..ASL signs in SEE format with a few

exceptions for the signs like " is " . That way all she has to do is learn ASL

format

which is actually a faster and easier way of signing and she seems to slip

into easily. One thing that I would start early and that we did not know about

is the use of facial expressions. That is much harder to start using later.

Eleanor

[Guest guest]

<< Is ASL a better way to go and if so will the fact that we have been using

nothing but SEE impact his ability to learn ASL? We were once told that we

would know when our son got a bit older, which sign would suit him best. >>

Tina,

My son was diagnosed very late--at age 4--and as soon as we could, we placed

him in a TC program for 3 years, from age 4 to 7. SEE sign was used

consistently and correctly at all times, but everything was voiced as well.

In addition, each child had daily one-on-one auditory training. In three

years, went from a child with the skills of an 18-month-old to a boy

with age-appropriate language skills and the reading skills of a 4th grader.

His grammar is nearly letter-perfect and his spelling is off the charts.

(He just had to move to 4th grade spelling because 2nd and 3rd were too

easy.) Half of his classmates had CI's, and the others used aids as he

does. The kids who were in the program as long as had similar results

with their language and reading skills. learned to sign pretty well

but as his verbal skills increased, he began to resist signing--even at

school with his classmates. (It's an identity thing.) This year we

mainstreamed to a small parochial school where he is still thriving but with

only the use of our FM system.

chooses not to sign very much himself anymore but still " allows " me to

sign to him in noisy situations. He can utilize the services of the

interpreter at church and in other situations fairly well and I think this

is for two reasons. For one thing, approximately 85% of SEE signs are also

ASL signs and so most of it is familiar. The other reason is that " pure "

ASL seems to be falling by the wayside in many venues here. Most

interpreters we have run across are using more of a pidgin sign, although it

is usually advertised as ASL. (I think the last time we saw true ASL being

used for interpretive purposes was in a special performance at our local

Children's theatre last year.)

Although we have never used cued speech, I think it probably could have have

been a useful tool. However, was taught phonics so very well that he

sounds out words better than a lot of adults can and he has learned to ask

for clarification if something doesn't sound right to him. For example, if

I tell him to go get his tie and he hears " pie " , he will repeat the word he

heard for me (and raise his eyebrows. LOL!). If it's incorrect, I will

show him the sign letter " t " and all is well. He can only do this, though,

because he now has enough listening experience to know when something sounds

out of context. We hearing folks have had the benefit of all that incidental

listening all our lives and so we can usually fill in words without even

thinking about it. It is exciting to see my son is able to do it now, too.

I am convinced that, for our family, SEE sign in ' early years was the

way to go. He now has a solid base in the English language and if he loses

more hearing later (as he probably will with his LVAS), he has a good sign

vocabulary to fall back on if he chooses. We know several ASL users who

began with SEE and learned ASL as older children or younger adults; They

report that it was fairly easy to pick up once they were around people who

were fluent.

Carol - mom to , 7.11, mod to profound, LVAS

[Guest guest]

<< Is ASL a better way to go and if so will the fact that we have been using

nothing but SEE impact his ability to learn ASL? We were once told that we

would know when our son got a bit older, which sign would suit him best. >>

Tina,

My son was diagnosed very late--at age 4--and as soon as we could, we placed

him in a TC program for 3 years, from age 4 to 7. SEE sign was used

consistently and correctly at all times, but everything was voiced as well.

In addition, each child had daily one-on-one auditory training. In three

years, went from a child with the skills of an 18-month-old to a boy

with age-appropriate language skills and the reading skills of a 4th grader.

His grammar is nearly letter-perfect and his spelling is off the charts.

(He just had to move to 4th grade spelling because 2nd and 3rd were too

easy.) Half of his classmates had CI's, and the others used aids as he

does. The kids who were in the program as long as had similar results

with their language and reading skills. learned to sign pretty well

but as his verbal skills increased, he began to resist signing--even at

school with his classmates. (It's an identity thing.) This year we

mainstreamed to a small parochial school where he is still thriving but with

only the use of our FM system.

chooses not to sign very much himself anymore but still " allows " me to

sign to him in noisy situations. He can utilize the services of the

interpreter at church and in other situations fairly well and I think this

is for two reasons. For one thing, approximately 85% of SEE signs are also

ASL signs and so most of it is familiar. The other reason is that " pure "

ASL seems to be falling by the wayside in many venues here. Most

interpreters we have run across are using more of a pidgin sign, although it

is usually advertised as ASL. (I think the last time we saw true ASL being

used for interpretive purposes was in a special performance at our local

Children's theatre last year.)

Although we have never used cued speech, I think it probably could have have

been a useful tool. However, was taught phonics so very well that he

sounds out words better than a lot of adults can and he has learned to ask

for clarification if something doesn't sound right to him. For example, if

I tell him to go get his tie and he hears " pie " , he will repeat the word he

heard for me (and raise his eyebrows. LOL!). If it's incorrect, I will

show him the sign letter " t " and all is well. He can only do this, though,

because he now has enough listening experience to know when something sounds

out of context. We hearing folks have had the benefit of all that incidental

listening all our lives and so we can usually fill in words without even

thinking about it. It is exciting to see my son is able to do it now, too.

I am convinced that, for our family, SEE sign in ' early years was the

way to go. He now has a solid base in the English language and if he loses

more hearing later (as he probably will with his LVAS), he has a good sign

vocabulary to fall back on if he chooses. We know several ASL users who

began with SEE and learned ASL as older children or younger adults; They

report that it was fairly easy to pick up once they were around people who

were fluent.

Carol - mom to , 7.11, mod to profound, LVAS