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Fact:
DeafBlind people are rarely totally deaf and
totally blind. Each individual's degree of hearing and vision
loss is unique.
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This page contains resources for people who want to learn one or more
of the communication methods used by deafblind people. Some organizations
provide classes or informal lessons for families and community members.
Most of the resources on this page were chosen with non-deafblind people
in mind, because people who are deafblind typically learn these methods
in training programs
for deafblind people.
See also How do DeafBlind people communicate?
in our FAQ section.
If you would like to update or add to the information on this page, please
use our Feedback Form.
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- "ABCs of Braille
and Sign Language" Bookmarks
Internet: http://www.deafvision.net/mdba/bkmarks.html
Description: The Minnesota DeafBlind Association offers decorative
bookmarks that teach you the braille and American fingerspelling alphabets,
in exchange for a tax-deductible monetary donation.
- Minnesota
Resource Center: Blind/Visually Impaired
Email: carol.mahagnoul@state.mn.us
Internet: http://education.state.mn.us/html/intro_speced_prog_bvi.htm
Description: Resource Library that can be
used by anyone within Minnesota. Check out is by mail or in person.
Includes resources about Braille, large print, and more.
- Minnesota
Resource Center: Deaf/Hard of Hearing
Email: carol.mahagnoul@state.mn.us
Internet: http://education.state.mn.us/html/intro_speced_prog_dhh.htm
Description: Operates a Resource
Library that can be used by anyone within Minnesota. Check out is
by mail or in person. Includes resources about American Sign Language,
Signed English systems, Cued Speech, Speechreading, DeafBlind issues
and communicaiton, and more.
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This section will focus on American Sign Language
(ASL), which is used as a native language in the United States and
in parts of Canada, with regional dialects. There are hundreds or native
sign languages and dialects used by Deaf and DeafBlind communities
across the world. If you do not live in an area where ASL is used, please
consult the Deaf and DeafBlind service organizations
near you to inquire about learning the local native sign language(s).
See also Deaf and DeafBlind
Cultural Identity.
- How
Long Does it Take to Learn Sign Langauge?
Internet: http://www.nad.org/infocenter/infotogo/asl/learn.html
Description: Factsheet from the National Association of the
Deaf. This advice can be applied to the learning of any native sign
language.
- Locating
Sign Language Classes
Internet: http://clerccenter.gallaudet.edu/infotogo/locating-sign-classes.html
Description: Factsheet from the National
Deaf Education Network and Clearinghouse at Gallaudet University.
- American Sign
Language as a Foreign Language
Internet: http://www.unm.edu/~wilcox/ASLFL/aslfl.html
Description: Includes a list of colleges and
universities that accept ASL in fulfillment of foreign language requirements,
and information about why other institutions should consider accepting
ASL credit.
Note: Many high schools offer ASL as a foreign
language, and some elementary or middle schools may also offer classes.
Check with the school districts in your area.
- Learning
Sign Language: Visual and Audio, Videotapes and Computer Programs
http://clerccenter.gallaudet.edu/InfoToGo/545.html
"This directory of media resources lists videotapes and computer
programs for learning sign language and the addresses of their sources."
Note: Many of these resources may be available
through the Minnesota
Resource Center: Deaf/Hard of Hearing or at your
local library.
- Books
for Learning Sign Language
Internet: http://clerccenter.gallaudet.edu/InfoToGo/111.html
Description: "This list identifies books
on American Sign Language and other sign systems for learners at different
skill levels. Separate sections are included for books on music and
other specialty signs." Note: Many of
these resources may be available through the Minnesota
Resource Center: Deaf/Hard of Hearing or at your
local library. Also, please note that it is difficult to learn a
3-dimensional language from 2-dimensional drawings. Be sure to practice
the signs with a live person who can show you the correct way to produce
signs. You may also want to check out video
tapes that demonstrate ASL signs.
- The ASL Access Video Collection
Internet: http://www.aslaccess.org/
Description: "ASL Access is a 100% volunteer,
non-profit organization providing American Sign Language video resources
to libraries... The ASL Access Video Collection consists of over 200
American Sign Language (ASL) videos available for free loan in your
local library." Includes information on how to get your local library
to carry the videos.
- Twin Cities Metro
Area Professional and Consumer Resource Guide for Deaf and Hard of Hearing
Internet: http://www.tcdeaf.com/dhhs/index.html
Description: Lists and describes various organizations
and events serving the Deaf and Hard of Hearing communities, some of
which may provide sign language instruction.
- TCDeaf Calendar
of Events
Internet: http://www.tcdeaf.com/flyers/index.html
Description: There are many Deaf community events in the Minneapolis/St.
Paul metro area that are open to hearing people. For example, one ASL
practice/conversation group that is open to beginning through advanced
signers meets at the Barnes and Noble bookstore next to Har Mar Mall.
Check this Calendar of Events for up-to-date listings.
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Louis Braille's system of raised dots for reading and writing was originally
designed to represent the French language. Today, the Braille system has
been adapted for use in many languages all over the world. The same 63
Braille characters are used in each language, but the characters have
different meanings in different languages. Further, because Braille takes
up a lot of space, most countries have adopted an official contracted
form of Braille, in which standard abbreviaions and rules are used.
- Braille Bug
Internet: http://www.afb.org/braillebug
Description: Introduces Braille to kids of
all ages. Includes games, historical profiles, and resources for parents
and teachers.
- BRL: Braille for Remote Learning
Internet: http://www.brl.org
Description: Offers free, online braille classes
at several levels.
- Certification as a Braille
Transcriber or Proofreader
Internet: http://www.loc.gov/nls/bds.html
Description: The Library of Congress offers
a free Braille corresondence course. You willl need access to braille
equipment such as a Perkins brailler or a slate and stylus. When you
sucessfully complete the course, you will become nationally certified
as a Braille transcriber or proofreader.
- World Database of Schools
for the Blind
Internet: http://www.nyise.org/bschools.htm
Description: Addresses of over 570 schools
for the blind in the world, listed by geographical area (not including
North America). If you can't find braille classes or resources in your
area, you may wish to contact your local school for the blind, which
typically has many students and staff members who are proficient in
Braille, and the equipment needed to write Braille.
- Members of the Council
of Schools for the Blind (COSB)
Internet: http://www.cosb1.org/members.html
Description: COSB is "a consortium of
specialized schools in Canada and the United States whose major goal
is improving the quality of services to children who are blind and visually
impaired." Membership list includes contact information of schools
that you may want to contact when searching for local Braille classes
and resources.
- About Braille:
Codes, Formats, Computers, and Braille ASCII
Internet: http://www.uronramp.net/~lizgray/codes.html
Description: A detailed description of what
Braille is, how it is produced, how it has been adapted for writing
music, mathematical and scientific notation. Includes links to further
information.
- Book: World Braille Usage
Description: A compilation of the Braille
codes used throughout the world in many languages. It includes a section
of phonetic symbols, a countries listing, organisations in each country
concerned with Braille and a bibliography of codebooks. Data was collected
by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization
(UNESCO) and book was published in 1990. Available in print or braille.
In the USA, contact the National Library
Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped.
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Cued Speech is a system of handshapes and placements combined with mouth
movements, but does not require the use of the voice. It was designed
in 1966 by a math and physics professor at Gallaudet
named Orin Cornett in order to help deaf people learn to read better through
an awareness of phonics.
The system has been adapted for use in about 60 languages and dialects.
Cued Speech is not as widely used as sign language. However, in some areas
there are small communities of cuers, most of whom also sign.
Deafblind people who have tunnel vision or a unilateral visual field
may be able to clearly see the mouth and hand movements involved in Cued
Speech. Others may watch or feel the speaker's lips while feeling the
speaker's cueing hand. See also Tactual
Cued Speech as a Supplement to Speechreading (in PDF format only).
- Art of Cueing
Internet: http://web7.mit.edu/CS/Art
Description: Free, online lessons with illustrations
and video clips of what cued words and phrases look like in American
English. Explains basic linguistics, cueing form and function in a way
that is accessible to the average English speaker. Includes handy charts
and memory aids.
- CuedSpeech.com Online
Forums
Internet: http://www.cuedspeech.com/forums.cfm
Description: A place to post your questions
about cueing, find other cuers and people learning cueing in your area.
Includes postings from all over the world.
- NCSA
Instructor Directory
Internet: http://www.cuedspeech.org/Instructor/Instructor_Directory.html
Description: "The National Cued Speech
Association [NCSA]
certifies Cued Speech instructors to ensure consistent training across
the country. Certified Instructors of Cued Speech are not only proficient
in Cued Speech production but also maintain up-to-date knowledge of
cueing standards, as specified by the NCSA."
- Language Matters, Inc.
(LMI)
Internet: http://www.language-matters.com
Description: Offers cueing workshops around
the country, including at Minnesota State Academy for the Deaf. Maintains
the Cued American English Teachers Registry. LMI has charts for approximately
50 cued languages and major dialects. Several are available as video
lessons (e.g. Spanish) and many are available as audio lessons.
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Using the palm as a writing surface, the speaker holds the deaf-blind
person's hand with the palm up. The speaker's index finger is used like
a pencil to print each capital letter successively, and in the same palm
location, to form a word. [There is a short pause between words.] This
system demands literacy. It is most often used as a common way to interact
with the community and or within the deaf-blind community. The letter
X drawn on a deaf-blind person's back, from shoulders to waist, is recognized
as the standard for indicating an emergency.
Source: Canadian
Helen Keller Centre.
- Print on Palm Illustrations
Internet: http://www.deafblindinfo.org/faq/pop.asp
Description: Includes a chart showing how
to draw block letters in the Print on Palm method, and a picture showing
one person drawing on the palm of another person.
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