Revised 08/2012

ASL 210 - Asl Story Telling (3 CR.)

Course Description

Focuses on the elements of storytelling in ASL and the techniques that Deaf Americans utilize to pass on the histories and traditions of the Deaf community. Emphasizes comprehension and production of short stories in American Sign Language with emphasis on sign production clarity and conceptual accuracy. Lecture 3 hours per week

General Course Purpose

Provides an environment through which the student can learn and incorporate the use of ASL storytelling elements such as body/role shifts, eye gazes, facial expressions, and classifiers. This course will increase the expressive and receptive skills of the student working with or interpreting for Deaf and hard of hearing students in both social and academic settings. 

Course Prerequisites/Corequisites

Prerequisitie: ASL 262, or permission of instructor.

Course Objectives

Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:

• Describe the cultural impact of storytelling as part of Deaf Community’s heritage.
• Select appropriate role shift techniques for a variety of characters.
• Illustrate the role of a narrator.
• Analyze a story told by a native ASL user and identify the various strategies used.
• Demonstrate the appropriate use of classifiers, body shifts and expressions for tones, settings and actions.
• Create and sign long story with showcasing the storytelling elements such as taking up the narrator’s role, acting out a diversity of roles for characters, and modifying the tone of the story through changes in pauses, eye gazes and body movements.

Major Topics to Be Included

• Role shifts rules
• Classifiers uses for background settings and actions
• Opening and closing techniques
• Use and manipulation of pauses, eye gazes and body movements
• Analysis of Deaf storytellers