Starting tomorrow, I'm taking a class. You read it right. I'm taking a class. And not just any old class, I'm taking a language class. And not just any old language class, it's an intermediate Japanese sign language class.
I took the beginning course in 2008 and haven't found any way to hone my skills, so I'm still not able to hold a conversation in sign language. And my listening skills are just awful. Did I say "listening skills?" I meant, my reading skills. I can't read sign language very well. I have to convert the signs into Japanese words and then wait for my brain to parse the grammar, and by then I'm completely lost.
Contrary to what you might have been led to believe, there actually is NO silent period when learning sign language. You can begin signing right from day one. The human brain can distinguish between all the different signs in the whole world. So jump right in!
