Fingerspelling is an integral part of American Sign Language (ASL) and it is also an important aspect of becoming bilingual in English and ASL. Even though fingerspelling is based on English orthography, the development of fingerspelling does not parallel the development of reading in hearing children. Research reveals that deaf children may…

Twenty-five second generation deaf signers (6-16 years old) participated in three experiments measuring their ability to classify fingerspelled and signed words and attend to the individual handshapes within fingerspelled words. Results revealed that Ss could discriminate fingerspelled words and decompose fingerspelling into the handshapes that…

The results indicated that bimodal presentations are significantly more effective than unimodal approaches and that finger spelling can be an important aid to learning for the Ss used in this study. (Author)

To test three hypotheses concerning fingerspelling's contribution to word recognition, 24 deaf children in three age groups (7-9, 10-12, and 13-15 years) were administered a vocabulary recognition test and a lexical decision task. Subjects' performance was measured by the number of words accurately identified and the response latency. Results did…

This response to a previous article on aerial spelling (AS) in New Zealand Sign Language applauds the original author's effort to highlight an interesting feature of deaf communication but finds some claims questionable. These include the lack of research on AS, failure to include AS in the Dictionary of New Zealand Sign Language, and imposition…

The reference manual of preferred sign language signs represents an effort by a special South Carolina task force to develop a single, systematized approach for signing in instructional settings throughout the state. The manual, which contains illustrations and instructions for formation of approximately 2,500 signs, was developed by establishing…

A teacher devised an activity based on the game show "Wheel of Fortune" to spark her deaf students' interest in fingerspelling. "Fingerspelling Fortune" spells out puzzles using cards with handshapes. As the cards are turned and the students try to guess the phrases, they increase proficiency in recognizing handshapes. (VW)

The use to and by 40 hearing impaired students (3 to 18 years old) of speech, signs, fingerspelling, writing, gestures, American Sign Language, and pictures was investigated. Findings of a nationwide study were combined with local data to make recommendations for a program concentrating on modes, usage, flexibility, and cognitive/linguistic…

Intended to raise researchers' and teachers' awareness of fingerspelling as an important part of signed communication, a study examined its use with deaf children in the classroom. Five trained teachers of the deaf, participating in a demonstration total communication project in a public school in the Midwest, were videotaped in their own…

Describes fingerspelling as it is used within the American deaf community and the development of fingerspelling skills in deaf (and hearing) children, suggesting that fingerspelling is largely discounted despite its potential for linkage to English orthography and literacy development. Strategies for increasing the use of fingerspelling by…

This annotated bibliography contains a list of resources addressing the efficacy of Signing Exact English (SEE II). Forty-three entries summarize results of research that overall indicate the success of students with hearing impairments who learn SEE II. (CR)

Finger spelling was effectively used to improve the spelling performance of 12 students (grades 4-9) with spelling problems. The 10-step procedure involves use of a partner (preferably a parent), intermittent involvement of the special education teacher, and a time period of 3 to 9 months. (DB)

A teacher of hearing-impaired students describes commercially available software for teaching sign language and finger spelling, lists sources of information about other software programs, and offers suggestions to encourage teachers to utilize computers in their classrooms. (JDD)

This study analyzed the fingerspelling of 25 teachers using Signing Exact English (SEE) 1 or 2, and 25 teachers using Manual/Signed English or Pidgin Signed English with their hearing-impaired students. Intergroup differences were not significant. Teachers used fingerspelling primarily to introduce novel words, spell short words, and spell proper…

The paper examines the role of morphological (word) cues in reading and considers the implications for deaf students. Theories on the importance of decoding and morphological comparison in competent reading comprehension are reviewed, and studies on how successful deaf readers learn morphological cues are described. Findings show that deaf readers…