Learn ASL

  If your desire was to learn American Sign Language (ASL) in the 1800’s fewer educational organizations could offer more value than Oklahoma State University. Oklahoma State University (OSU), founded on December 25, 1890 as Oklahoma Agricultural and Mechanical College in Stillwater, OK, has evolved into one of the foremost land-grant universities in the United States, thanks to its rich traditions and progressive academic culture. In the fall of 2021, OSU made its American Sign Language (ASL) major into a bachelor’s degree program, a crucial development for students who want to study signing and possibly teach ASL in the US or around the world. The move was also a great leap forward for the D/HoH community, which has long been under-resourced by both the public and private sectors. Previously, ASL was only offered as a minor at OSU. Dr. Woodall-Greene, who was then an adjunct professor close to receiving her doctorate, applied for the position. Dr. Woodall-Greene was selected as ...

Mikayla Smith uses American Sign Language to describe current weather conditions and give predictions for upcoming weather events. She began the program while forecasting in the Sherman, Texas area. She uses ASL to sign everything she says during her broadcasts. Mikayla’s Passion for American Sign Language Mikayla was born and raised in Rockwall, Texas, 30 minutes east of Dallas. A member of the University of Oklahoma’s class of 2022, she received a Bachelor of Science degree in meteorology. She is passionate about employing ASL to convey local weather events to the Deaf and hard-of-hearing population. As a devoted supporter, she continually seeks new ways to learn and grow. Mikayla Has Become an Overnight Internet Sensation Videos of Mikayla’s weather forecasts have quickly gone viral. She hopes that her signing of weather forecasts will inspire others to learn sign language. She says she's happy to see the strong impact her signed forecasts have had on the public. She hopes the ...

Roughly 2% of individuals in the US are deaf or nearly deaf, and many others report having difficulties with hearing even if they are not totally deaf. Because of these info, many people use sign language in order to communicate with their family members and friends and also conduct business. A Nice Gesture to Learn Sign Language Moves Lots of People Worldwide • Eight-year-old Tallulah McLellan of Ashton-under-Lyne, a market town in Greater Manchester, England showed a level of empathy and kindness far before her years when she made an effort to learn sign language as a way to interact with her deaf neighborhood delivery driver Tim Joseph. A Wonderful Bond Formed During the Lockdown • Tallulah created a #thankyou rainbow for delivery man Tim in order to show her gratitude for all of his hard work delivering packages during the Corona virus lockdown • After that initial gesture of kindness, the two unlikely pals built a strong bond over the following weeks. Tallulah Gave Tim the ...

Photo Credits: HearingLikeMe! More and more people are learning American Sign Language so that they can communicate with loved ones or strangers and make them happy. There are many wonderful stories to share like the ones below. Read through them and analyze how these stories impact the Deaf community and help to make a difference in other people's lives. Toddler Interprets for Deaf Dad By Using Sign Language A Deaf father and a hearing mom share on social media their story of raising their hearing daughter. They often use their social media to share about how they raise their daughter through hearing and talking using American Sign Language. Their one-year-old hearing child interpreted to her Deaf father Zachary by means of sign language. Meteorologist Becomes Trending After Utilizing American Sign Language in a Weather Forecast Meteorologist Mikayla Smith has a soft spot for the Deaf and hard-of-hearing communities. She learned ASL in middle school and continued to learn ASL thr...

Joel Barish hosted the fourth DeafNation World Expo & Conference at the Bally’s Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada on Aug. 1-4, 2022. About 15,000 Deaf individuals from all over the world, including Deaf celebrities just like Troy Kotsur, Daniel Durant, Renca Dunn, and Wawa attended the event. There were fourteen sponsors and then three partners. Sponsors included OmniBridge, Deaf Bible Society, Global VRS, ZVRS, Purple, T-Mobile Accessibility, Tive, Heart Cruises, Sorenson, SComms, CSD, Convo, Nagish, and Ava.. National Black Advocates, RID, and CEASD were the collaborators. There were roughly one hundred booths and 45 shows. There were even several Deaf businesses offering t-shirts, arts, as well as other stuff. There was also a Kick-Off Party with Wawa 10th Anniversary at Chateau Rooftop. One particular participant said she was surprised by the number of people who joined the event. Another deaf participant said it was his 2nd visit to DeafNation Expo and he spotted numerou...

Kamala Harris is given an American Sign Language sign name after she got elected as president Joe Biden’s vice president.  She is an American politician and also attorney who's the 49th vice president of the United States Of America. She's the first female vp and the highest-ranking female official in U.S. history, as well as the 1st African American and also first Asian American vice president. The name sign was made by a team of Black and Indian Deaf women, Smita Kothari, Ebony Gooden, Kavita Pipalia, and Candace Jones, who worked with one another for a couple of weeks. This particular women’s group worked together to come up with a list of possible sign names and then sent out a public survey to the Deaf community at large to gather their votes from February 1 to 5, 2021.  The Importance of Name Sign Deaf culture consists of a number of valued traditional aspects that are major to the Deaf community, and one of them is the “name sign.” A name sign is a sign that's only ...

Common signs like sleep, eat, play, milk, more, et. are known as baby signs. Many people get mixed up between Baby Signs and American Sign Language; they're not considered the same. Baby Sign is taught by hearing parents, and they don't have connection with the Deaf community, do not know Deaf culture, and aren't fluent in American Sign Language. There are 2 methods parents or guardians could become qualified in teaching Baby Sign:  1) Taking a day course  2) Buying a “teaching kit.  So why help baby learn sign language ? 1. Learning Sign Language as Babies is really a Positive Addition When babies learn Baby Sign, this might lead to wanting to learn American Sign Language when babies get older. Aside from English and a second language that the family speaks, they'd learn American Sign Language as a 3rd language, which can enhance their resumes. In fact, they can get involved with the Deaf community and have the ability to speak with Deaf people. They can even get a car...