The first school for the American Deaf community was established on April 15, 1817 by Thomas H. Gallaudet and Laurent Clerc. Gallaudet observed how a school for the Deaf was run in Paris and brought back Laurent Clerc to be the head teacher. As a result, American Sign Language (ASL) is based around French Sign Language. For more information on Gallaudet, Clerc, and the history of ASL check out Gale in Context: Biography or World Book.
When a baby learns to talk the first things he/she learns are the sounds the language is built around like da, ba, me, coo, doo. Along the same lines, I want to begin teaching American Sign Language (ASL) with the 45 handshapes used. To form letters and words these shapes will be applied to different directions and motions. There will be two videos covering the handshapes: 22 in the the first and 23 in the second.
The following materials on ASL can give you a jumpstart on learning the letters and words of ASL.
Books
Videos
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