ASL Test Review

What is ASL Gloss?

  • Tool helpful for people learning ASL

  • words for signs written in order

  • Mainly for hearing people

*NOT the written form of ASL—no such thing exists

Rules for ASL glossing:

  • All caps

  • ASL sentence structure

  • words in order of what you sign

  • s/s= shoulder shift

  • rhq=eyes brows up, rhetorical question

  • t_____ = topic

  • NEG = negate

What mouth morphemes are used for size (large, medium, small) Which ones are used for distance (really close, medium distance away, far away)

  • Small: facial expression, pinched— “oh”

  • medium: purse lips

  • large “tcha” sound, furrow brows

Distance:

  • Really close:

    • tilt your head

    • clench teeth

    • turn head to the dominant cheek almost touching shoulder

    • point hand close to the body

  • medium distance:

    • titlt your head

    • purse slightly

    • arms moderately extended

  • Far:

    • tilt your head

    • squint eyes

    • open mouth slightly

    • arms extended

Explain the different ways number are signed in ASL

Cardinal: in front of you, palms facing out—to 5, palms faced in

ordinal: #begins with palm facing the side followed by a twist

age: 1-9 incorporated, coming from chin, palm out—-above 10, either first digit incorporated as well from chin or sing “age” and then number in front of you

units of time: minutes, hours, days, weeks, months—-1-9, with sign

What do you first sign if you are giving someone directions to a room on the same floor as you? On a different floor, how does that change?

Same floor: sign “exit classroom” or “Exit room”

Different floor: state floor destination is on

Different building: say which building (bonus)

What are ways to ask for a sign besides fingerspelling it? (5 total)

  • pointing

  • opposites

  • pictures (draw)

  • describe/act out

  • list things in the category

Explain what signer’s perspective is: perspective of the signer that determines how to understand—-signer signs directions from their own POV, receiver has to interpret themselves

*flip it in YOUR mind to make sense

What handshape do you use for pronouns: 1 handshape (point) 👆

What handshape do you use for possessive pronouns? open B handshape 🤲

What is spatial agreement?

its the spatial part that means RWO, because agreement by itself is nouns—-spatial, make the verbs agree with the space/world you have created with signs in your surrounding area

  • verbs reflect base forms, but when you are referring to established locations, movement is modified to show agreement with location (s)—also for people, signed in direction of person speaking about

  • real world orientation

  • Spatial agreement refers to the modification of verb movements in ASL to align with established locations and people.

  • Verbs reflect base forms but adjust in direction to indicate agreement with the location or subject being referred to.

  • This is achieved through real-world orientation, which enhances clarity in communication.

What is contrastive structure?

ask a which question, establish one topic on your non dominant side, nod and shift towards that side, orient signs about a topic towards sign, same for other topic

  • punctuation shown in body language

  • contrastive: new topic

  • this or that

  • list of things

  • works as a conjunction to connect ideas

  • SHOULDER SHIFT

as said in class, maybe if there is three things

What is the general correct ASL sentence structure: TOPIC-COMMENT (variation/ further, time is signed first, WH word at end

What are some different negative signs you learned this year, and when are they used: “no” “can’t” “not” “none” “don’t like” “don’t want” “never” “impossible” “don’t know” “don’t understand”

  • signed at end of sentence

Explain the difference between signing 1-9 of something versus 10 or more of something

  • usually, 1-9 incorporated with quantity sign, 10 or more, sign first, then #

How do you show the past, present, and the future in relation to your body?

  • Past signed behind (wave back)

  • Present (today, now) signed right in front of you

  • Future signed in front (reach forward)

ASL is a 3D language—-timeline is three dimensional too!

Whose responsibility is it to move in order to see a person signing: yours, if you cannot see, you move.

signer does not accommodate for large crowds, not reasonable

How do you use touch to get a Deaf person to move out of the way for you? Push gently on shoulder/upper back in direction you want them to move

DO NOT tap—that is what gets attention

What is it called when you move back and forth between being different characters in ASL: role shifting

What are agreement verbs? Give some examples.

  • require 2 people, subject and direct object. Have to agree.

  • give, help, ask, show, tell, throw, take

What percent of spoken words can be read on the lips? 30%

What is the difference between Deaf and deaf?

Deaf: group of people, proper noun, with cultural identity of being Deaf. Active part of Deaf/signing community

deaf: broader term describing most people with hearing loss, more medical term

Who wrote the book, “Deaf Child Crossing”? Marlee Matlin

Explain who each of the characters from Deaf Child Crossing are

  • Megan: Deaf little girl, main character, does not like to be helped, nine years old

  • Cindy: moved into Megan’s neighborhood, hearing, new best friend for Megan. Does not always understand Megan’s thought processes.

  • Lizzie: Deaf girl Megan and Cindy meet at camp, grows close with Megan and invokes Cindy’s jealousy

  • Ruthie: camp counselor whose sister is Deaf, paired with Megan and Lizzie because of it

  • Apples: Megan’s beloved dog who has to be put down

  • Lainee: Megan’s mom extremely pivotal to Megan’s character development—only through meaningful conversations with one of the few figures Megan respects was she able to comprehend the weight of refusing help, and how it could impact her relationships and happiness. Lainee was the only one who could have a rational conversation with her daughter

In Deaf Child Crossing, what, in general, made Megan angry?

When people tried to help her without her asking for it (further, when she thought people were making fun of her for being Deaf, whether it was true or not)

This is seen in the department store, where Cindy tries to interpret what the worker was saying because Megan couldn’t quite understand, and Megan got extremely mad…

Give a plot summary of Deaf Child Crossing

Megan is a Deaf girl—Cindy moves into her neighborhood and the two girls bond. Megan often gets frustrated with Cindy, but Cindy still convinces Megan to go to summer camp, where Megan becomes close with another, Lizzie (Deaf)—-this causes a rift in the friendship, with Cindy feeling excluded. In a fit of rage, Megan pranks the cabin by pretending to have been stolen by a witch—gets lost in the woods. Cindy rescues her, but Megan is not grateful, especially after Lizzie points out how good it is to have hearing friends to watch out for them. The girls are still cold with each other, fighting physically before school. They are reconciled eventually at the end, Megan learning her lesson to allow people to help her, and that it does not make her lesser.