Venado is home to 30 Deaf and Hard of hearing (DHH) students who live all over Orange County. Students this year come from as far north as La Habra, or as far south as Laguna Niguel and everywhere else in between, which can make for some very long bus rides. Each month, this portion of Venado’s News Center will inform you about things happening within the DHH program and give some fun facts about Deaf Culture or American Sign Language. American Sign Language (ASL) is offered as an elective course for hearing students as a way to foster interaction amongst the hearing and Deaf students on campus.
Fun Fact #1: American Sign Language is NOT based on English. It is a completely separate and UNIQUE language, with its own grammar, syntax, and vocabulary. ASL is the 3rd most widely used language in the United States, after English and Spanish.
Fun Fact #2: American Sign Language is not UNIVERSAL. Many countries have their own form of sign language. Modern-Day American Sign Language evolved from the mixing of French Sign Language with the sign language used by a very large group of Deaf and Hearing people living on Martha’s Vineyard in the early 1800’s.
~ Janet Dicker – DHH Site Liaison/Teacher