Authors: Adan R. Penilla,Angela Lee Taylor

Signing For Dummies (6 page)

When the passive hand mimics or mirrors the shape of the dominant hand, both hands either move together or alternately. If moving alternately, you move both hands in alternate directions at the same time. Examples of alternating handshapes include:

Benefiting with body language

Communicating a concept in Sign is often made clear by using body language. The meaning of
“I don’t know”
comes through clearly when you raise your shoulders, tilt your head, and turn your palm up. Signing
“I’m sick”
is more easily understood when you accompany the Sign with half-shut eyes, open mouth, and a partially extended tongue. Another example is the word
no.
The speed at which you shake your head from side to side, with eyes open or shut, can say a lot about the degree of
“no.”
Check out the illustrations of these Signs to see what we mean.

Telling with your face

In Sign, you use your face to show emotion and add expression. Facial expression tells you what type of sentence is being signed and how the Signer feels about the information. Your facial expression is just as important as what your hands are doing. Sign these expressions as if you actually “feel” that way. For example, you sign the word
sad
while you slump your shoulders down and make a sad facial expression. You sign
happy
just the opposite — keep your shoulders up and wear a smile. (Check out
Chapter 3
for illustrations of these Signs.)

Be sure that you maintain eye contact when you’re signing, and watch your conversational partner’s face, not his or her hands. Your peripheral vision allows you to still see the hands, so don’t worry about missing any Signs.