How to Learn Sign Language Online | Best 7 Free Tips
Are you looking to learn sign language? Sign language is a crucial form of communication in the hearing loss or hearing impairment community. It involves hand movements and shapes, gestures and facial expressions, and lip movements to pass information.
Unlike popular assumptions, sign language also dramatically benefits people with no hearing impairment. These include enhanced spatial reasoning, lifelong cognitive benefits, the enhanced ability for body language interpretation, and improved communication for people in public roles, such as nurses, police officers, and social workers.
Whatever your reason for wanting to learn sign language is, here are tips on how to learn sign language today:
Understand the Type of Sign Language you want to Learn
Understanding the type of sign language you want to learn gives you clarity on why you want to learn it in the first place. Besides, sign language is not universal, so communication could vary from region to region. For example, British Sign Language (BSL) differs from American Sign Language (ASL).
However, sign language, in general, falls under these three broad sections:
Deaf Sign Languages
These are the preferred types of sign language used globally in the deaf community. For instance, ACL requires mastery of 26 hand gestures.
Auxiliary Sign Languages
Auxiliary sign languages involve the use of signs alongside oral or spoken communication. These help to stress communication and allow the other person to use both forms to decipher.
Manually-coded Languages or Signed Forms of Spoken Languages
These often bridge the spoken and signed languages.
Take a Physical or Online Sign Language Class
Trying to learn sign language independently from scratch can be daunting. We recommend mastering the fundamentals of sign language with guidance from an expert. A quick search for sign language classes in your locality should leave you with viable options, including educational centers and private sign language tutors.
There are hundreds of online sign language classes for people whose schedules cannot allow for physical classes or those that just fancy online classes. These include Signlanguage101.com, ASLpro.com, and SchoolofSignLanguage.com.
The benefit of modern online sign language classes is that most happen live, improving communication and sign language comprehension. You could also take them at your preferred time, making them easy to work with your routines and schedules.
A sign language class will equip you with fundamental knowledge of the ASL or BSL alphabet and an understanding of the receptive and expressive fingerspelling ability.
Seek Help from Your Deaf Family Member or Friend
If you already have a reliable deaf family member or friend who communicates in sign language, ask them to help you learn. Let them teach you the basics, such as greetings, gender differences, apologies, and other expressions. Take turns communicating in sign language until they approve your communication skills.
Besides, learning sign language through a family member or friend boosts self-expression, trust, and all-around communication between you both.
Use a Sign Language Tool
Sign language tools allow you to learn sign language remotely and via your smartphone or computer. The internet is full of sign language resources ranging from websites to apps. Using these to learn boosts your confidence in sign language, making it easier for you to practice in the real world.
Some reliable sign language tools include the ASL application, Lingvano, ACE ASL: Learn Fingerspelling, Handspeak, ASL translator, Poket Sign, and We Capable. These can help you convert the English language into sign language and vice versa.
We recommend learning via your preferred sign language for at least 30 minutes each day to improve your sign language skills. You could also take quizzes at the end of each class to gauge your understanding of sign language.
Join a Sign Language Club, Group, or Movement
If you have no close family member or friend who uses sign language, keep on your quest to learn sign language. Most towns and cities have sign language clubs where people communicate purely in sign language. Research them, join them in one of their meet-ups, and perfect your sign language skills.
You could also find restaurants that hire deaf or hard-of-hearing waiters and waitresses, requiring you to communicate in sign language. This social experience can be a fun way to learn sign language in real-time.
Watch Sign Language Videos
One fun way of learning valuable and relatable content via sign language is watching sign language videos. There is no excuse here since you can watch a 10-minute YouTube clip during class break, lunch hour, or during a bathroom break.
Some reputable sign language channels on YouTube include Sign Duo, Deafies in Drag, and Signed with Heart. The famous kid cartoon company Baby Shark also introduced sign language for kids, which we find very thoughtful. Expert sign language creators on TikTok also share tips on learning sign language via their platforms.
If social media is not your jam, go the old-school way by looking for sign language videos and watching them. Use subtitles to understand, then rewatch without subtitles, trying to know if you got them right.
Watch and Imitate Interpreters
The law requires organizations to provide sign language interpreters upon request. It is why you will find most public speaking involvements having a sign language interpreter on site. We recommend finding a recorded live proceeding with a sign interpreter, muting it, and then imitating them. While doing this, write down what you understood and watch the clip with the audio on, noting and correcting your mistakes.
Conclusion
Learning sign language is fun, thrilling, and straightforward. Remember to practice fingerspelling, pay attention to your gestures and facial expressions, and be mindful of gender differences. Utilize consistent social experiments and see yourself being a pro at sign language in no time.