Discover Sign Language

Signing becomes a family affair as you learn signs for family members. You'll understand how sign language categorizes the signs for gender, and we'll discuss communication in families with a Deaf person. This includes lipreading and other communication strategies. We'll end by learning the signs for numbers 67 to 100.

In this lesson, you'll learn signs for extended family members. You'll also learn signs to describe how you're related to them. We'll put together longer sentences to practice using your new vocabulary. You'll be introduced to number systems beginning with age and telling how old family members are. We'll discuss Black signs ―the sign language of a subculture within Deaf culture.

What time is it? In this lesson, you'll discover how to tell time as well as sign the days of the week and other time periods such as minutes and hours. We'll discuss how spoken languages handle past, present, and future tenses, and then examine how sign language does this. Finally, we'll discover the impact the "Deaf President Now" movement had on the lives of Deaf people and our society.

This lesson teaches signs for additional time frames such as yesterday, today, and tomorrow. You will learn signs for indoor and outdoor activities. Then, you will learn signs for your opinion, so you can explain which activities you like and don't like. You will also learn about CODAs—a group of hearing people unique to the Deaf community.

Now it's time to learn the signs for feelings and personality traits, and you'll combine these signs with signs learned in previous lessons. You'll see how to communicate how you're doing, how to ask how others are doing, and how to describe different personal attributes. You'll also learn more about Deaf culture—this time, about physical contact and getting the attention of a Deaf person both nearby and across the room. Finally, you'll gain tips for practicing your signs.

In the final lesson, you'll learn signs for clothing and hairstyles, such as jacket and long hair, and we'll combine these with signs from other lessons. You'll learn about classifiers and how to use them with patterns such as stripes. Then you'll learn signs for descriptions such as mustache and beard. You'll also explore the last of our issues of Deaf culture: teaching hearing babies to sign.

We conclude the course with a lesson that will equip you to wish a friend happy birthday, offer a birthday treat, and talk about your favorite animal. You'll start by learning to sign the months of the year and how to say, "Happy birthday!" You'll also learn signs for food and animals. We'll finish by exploring how English is translated into sign language, and you'll get an introduction to the role of the professional sign language interpreter. You'll even get some tips on using an interpreter with a Deaf person.

Instructor-Moderated: Students enrolled in a six-week online class benefit from a one-time, 10-day extension for each course. No further extensions can be provided beyond these 10 days.​

Self-Guided: Because this course is self-guided, no extensions will be granted after the start of your enrollment.

Yes! This course is designed to help you feel comfortable conversing with the deaf and hearing impaired community. You'll be taught conversational sign language that will help you introduce yourself and start a conversation. You'll also learn the alphabet so you can fingerspell names and words as well as colors, numbers, and common phrases that will help you form sentences. After completion of this course, you'll be able to sign!

Not necessarily. The Foreign Service Institute classifies the ease of learning a new language based on its similarity to English. While experts do not agree on which category American Sign Language should be placed, it is clear that is not listed in the easiest category because it is not similar to English. However, with dedication and the right training through our Discover Sign Language course, you will be using sign language to communicate in no time!

Hearing loss is much more common than many people think. In fact, nearly 28 million Americans suffer from some degree of hearing loss. Hearing loss increases after the age of 65, and by age 75 nearly 50 percent of people will have at least some hearing loss. Learning sign language can help you better communicate with these people, and even someone in your own family who may suffer hearing loss as they age in the future.

No. Signed languages are no different from languages spoken all over the world. Different countries use different forms of sign language. Our Discover Sign Language course teaches American Sign Language (ASL) which is used in the United States, Canada and some parts of Mexico. ASL is also used in some countries in Central America, Africa and Asia with modifications.

Learning sign language could help you in your job. The Americans with Disabilities Act sometimes requires companies to have an interpreter for deaf or hearing-impaired individuals, so being able to converse in sign language could be a resume booster. Basic knowledge of sign language will also go a long way in showing customers that you care for their needs.

This course will help you converse with the deaf and hearing impaired. You can bridge gaps between yourself and this population as well as open the door to meeting new people. You'll also explore lip reading and baby signs which can help you when working with even more people. It may even give you an opportunity to get involved with volunteer organizations.

Learning a new language can keep your brain healthy and agile. You'll create new connections among neurons which can improve your memory and problem-solving skills as you age. You can also set an example for your children who will be inspired by watching you learn to reach out to a new group of individuals.