Study by subject
Sign language
In sign language you memorise signs, the fingerspelling alphabet and the parameters of each sign. Lumi asks them back until the movement comes on its own, well before your exam or your first conversation.
How to turn this subject into cards
There is one sign language per country, such as LSF, ASL, BSL and LSE, so choose yours before you make cards. Make one card per sign, with the word, a description of the handshape, the location, the movement and the orientation, and the facial expression. The trap is understanding a sign you see without being able to produce it. With Lumi you recall the movement from memory before seeing the solution, and retrieving fixes more than watching again (Roediger and Karpicke, 2006). Practise with a video or a Deaf or signing person in addition to the cards. Add to each card an example from your own life, which makes the answer easier to find again.
What you need to know by heart
- The fingerspelling alphabet of your sign language, letter by letter.
- Basic signs, greetings, family, numbers and colours.
- The five parameters of a sign, handshape, location, movement, orientation and facial expression.
- The role of space, where you place the people and places you talk about.
- Question and negation signs with the facial expressions that go with them.
How Lumi helps you remember it
You teach your sign cards to Lumi, alphabet, signs, parameters. It forgets over time, like you do, then quizzes you right before you would forget. As your exam or meeting approaches, the Mist settles over what you know less well and Lumi asks that first. You arrive able to produce the sign, not only to recognise it.
Example cards
Three cards the way you would write them, with the answer Lumi expects.
Which parameters describe a sign?
Handshape, location, movement, orientation and facial expression.
What is the fingerspelling alphabet used for?
To spell out with the hands a name or a word that has no sign.
Is sign language the same in every country?
No, each country or community has its own, such as LSF, ASL, BSL or LSE.
Example card
Try it, Lumi turns it into fill in the blank questions in your browser.
Sign language · teach this card to Lumi
Sign languages differ from country to country, such as LSF, ASL, BSL and LSE. These languages are not word for word translations of spoken languages. A sign is described by its handshape, location, movement and orientation. Facial expression is also part of the grammar.
Lumi’s question
Sign languages _____ from country to country, such as LSF, ASL, BSL and LSE.
Pick the missing word
Answer right to light Lumi up
Its lamp fades when a fact slips away.
Frequently asked questions
- Is sign language a translation of the spoken language?
- No. It is a full language with its own grammar and word order. You do not sign word for word what you would say aloud.
- Can I learn sign language with flashcards?
- Cards fix the vocabulary, the alphabet and the parameters of signs. To sign fluidly, add practice with videos and people who sign.
- How do I remember a sign I cannot write?
- Describe it with its parameters on the card, add an image or a video link, and make the movement when you answer. Recalling the movement from memory fixes more than watching it again (Roediger and Karpicke, 2006).
Read next
Sources
- Roediger, Karpicke (2006). Test-enhanced learning. Taking memory tests improves long-term retention. Psychological Science, 17(3). doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9280.2006.01693.x
Teach this to Lumi
Give Lumi your sign language notes, it gives them back as questions at the right moment.