An ASL Storytelling Handbook, Trix Upon a Time:  -- 1 hour – beginners – by Trix Bruce from Washington State
            Create your own visual storytelling! Brainstorm the steps needed to put a story together. List all the details of the play that affect the body's senses ( vision, sound, smell, taste, and touch). Imagine yourself as a member of the audience ( both deaf & hearing). What do they really want to see? Exercises that help you learn how to make clearer body language, gesture, and signs. Finalizing the story and narration in ASL. Participants will learn the following aspects of ASL Storytelling: Role Shifting, Eye Gazing, Characterization, Classifier Usage, Building a story in ASL.

ASL Colloquialisms – 1 hour – advanced – CEUs – repeated for intermediates by Patrick Fischer from Portland, Oregon
            Part of linguistics study of how colloquialisms and slangs differ in ASL in comparison to English.  For example:  brown nose, held back anger, lost the thought, and more.  Each slang has their own ASL sign/grammar.  This is one of the most misused and misunderstood part of our ASL language.

ASL Misunderstandings– 1 hour – for advanced or intermediates – CEUs if for advanced – by Bill Rennie from Anaheim, California     
        In this workshop we will discuss why hearing people often misunderstand the deaf when they sign ASL. Learn how "yes" can actually mean "no" and "no" can actually mean "yes"!

ASL SEMANTICS: Precision of Expression Series Focus Word:  RUN  -- 2 hours – advanced – CEUs – by Trix Bruce from Washington State
            Semantics is defined as the study of meanings expressed by the elements of a language or a combination of the elements. A concept expressed in an ASL sign often cannot be conveyed by a single all-purpose English word. Likewise, English words and phrases may have variations in meaning, which require translations using different ASL signs. This workshop helps the student advance skills in translating the languages of ASL and English. This workshop will
focus the word of RUN.

"Beginning ASL, Where Do I Put My Hands?" – 1 hour – novice – by Sherry Jertberg from Gainesville, Florida
     Everyone tells me "Use ASL" but how?  I can't get past my English!  This class will help you start making the transition from English to beautiful ASL.

"Expounding with Adjectives" – 1 hour – novice – by Sherry Jertberg from Gainesville, Florida
     Help!  I feel like a deer in headlights!!  So you've taken a sign class but when you met a deaf person you froze  This class will help you get past the fear ande feel conficent to hold a conversation.

City & State & Country Signs  -- 2 hours – advanced – CEUs – by Jose Granda from Miami, Florida     
            There are over 180 signs to memorize! Gain knowledge of our American signs and the native sign for that country. Some of the signs are definitions of a cultural aspects or trademarks.

Classifiers A to Z Classifiers A to Z -- 1 hour for beginners by Jon Barr from Georgia
Knowing about classifiers and using them are two different things.  This session will show many classifiers and provide practical helps in using classifiers in everyday conversation and in interpreted settings. Knowing about classifiers and using them are two different things.  This session will show many classifiers and provide practical helps in using classifiers in everyday conversation and in interpreted settings.

Conceptual Accuracy and Idioms -- 1 hour -- beginners -- by Marietta Patchin from West Palm Bay, Florida    
     Most beginning signer become confused and frustrated because they cannot think of or recall the sign for a particular word.  Hearing minds tent to rely on their native which is based on sound and is not a conceptual language.   ASL is not a word for word system of communication.  ASL is a CONCEPTUAL system.   Individuals who want to become skilled singers must become conceptual signers and not WORD signers.   In this class we will take a good look the meaning of CONCEPTURAL ACCURACY and learn ways to train the mind to SEE rather then HEAR.    Join us for the fun as we also throw in a few English idioms to make that signed word for word will blow your mind !!!!

Demystifying Prosody in American Sign Language – 1 hour for advanced and 1 hour for intermediate – CEUs – Mike Ernest
     In spoken languages, prosody refers to variations in rate, pitch, loudness, stress, intonation and rhythm of continuous speech. As it relates to fluency - the absence of prosody is perceived as monotonous speech. Speech that is not rhythmic or prosodic is also characterized as unusually slow or fast, halting, dysfluent and lacking the normal rhythm and fluency of a native speaker.
       In American Sign Language, prosody is a term that is used to refer to variations in handshape, the movement, rhythm and size of signs, and to movements of the torso, head and neck. Variations in posture and body movement, the rate and direction of sign movement, sign tension and stress, increases and decreases in the size of sign production, variation in pacing and pauses, and repetition of signs create rhythm and fluency. As in spoken languages, native and near-native fluency are often marked by skill in prosodic variation. In this workshop, we will examine characteristics of native signers that are examples of prosody.

Developing Receptive Skills -- 2 hours --- for intermediates and again advanced – by Bill Ross from North Carolina
            This workshop focuses on the development of visual receptive language skills, an often-cited concern for second language learners.  Since the majority of interpreters for the Deaf today acquire American Sign Language (ASL) as a second language, the ability to fully understand sign language is critical to a comprehensive understanding and interpretation of the signed message.  Focus will be on various techniques in developing greater receptive ability, some areas addressed:  culturally based signs, numeric recognition, fingerspelling, and interactive behavior.

“Face-Painting” with Non-Manual Signals in ASL-- 2 hours -- advanced/interpreters – CEUs – by Trix Bruce from Washington State
            Non-manual signals (NMS) in American Sign Language enrich and clarify the meaning of manual signs. Come and learn that art of painting your face with a full spectrum of NMS colors and designs. Non-Manual Signals include: 1) Non-Manual Adverbs 2) Lexical Non- Manual Behaviors 3) Non-Manual Grammatical Markers 4) Emotional States / Evaluative judgments 5) Prosodic Structure 6) Discourse Structure 7) Turn Taking 8) Backchannel Feedback 9) Grammatical “Sound” Markers, and 10) Mouth Movements.
This workshop will focus on developing accurate non-manual signals and markers as used in ASL. Demonstrations of each category of facial behaviors and head movements will be shown in context. Practice exercises will be offered. By the end of this workshop, you’ll be an artist!

“Getting a Picture in Your Mind”  -- 2 hours for intermediates by Jose Granda from Miami
            This workshop will help develop strong receptive skills that will teach participants to create a picture and walk through the picture, this workshop will develop those visualization skills. The participants in challenging activities like drawing a home floor plan , describe a car in detail, and learn signs of characters to interpret children’s stories.

Handshape Common Misuse:  Really?  Did I Sign That?  -- 2 hours -- Intermediates -- by Trix Bruce from Washington State          
            The Handshape is probably the most apparent parameter of ASL.  Linguists have identified a large number of discrete handshapes, which the signs are most look-like. The presenter will demonstrate several categories that demonstrate various degrees of similarity for particular handshapes, which can lead to misunderstandings.  She will also show the proper application of palm orientation, location, and movement for the handshapes.

"Hearing Loss: Pathology or Challenge:  Communicating with People who Have a Hearing Loss" -- for beginners by Mike Ernest from Virginia
    The failure of effective communication with a person who has a hearing loss is often blamed on the person with the disability themselves. In fact, the hearing impaired person may feel guilty and blame themselves for communication errors.
     Here are some tips from people with hearing loss as to how to take responsibility for communication by making their needs known in an assertive and knowledgable manner.

How do you voice that?? -- one hour for  Intermediate by Marietta Patchin from West Palm Bay, Florida 
     You might call this conceptual accuracy in reverse,   Now we are looking at ASL to English instead of English to ASL.   What words will you use for  that ASL phrase.  Will the “hearing” understand.   Am I getting the point across?   Does my voice tone match the Deaf person's sign tones.    Do I follow English word order or voice ASL??   How important is it anyway??

Improv Games for ASL Comfort – two hour for intermediates and two hours for advanced – CEUs – by Keith Wann from Brooklyn, New York
        Interactive Improv games to improve your confidence in using everything you have to be understood by the other person.  Hands, Arms, Legs, and those faces…just make it up..interpreters do! Edutainment.  Often we are faced with the problem of running out of signs while we interpret.  This workshop will help the participants feel comfortable making up classifiers during improv games

Incorporating Expansion Techniques in Your Interpreting -- 3 hours – Advanced – CEUs – by Bill Ross from North Carolina
            The language differences in American Sign Language and spoken English require that interpreters employ various expansion and compression techniques to achieve message equivalency.  Expansion techniques are used in order to make implicit information in the source language more explicit in the target language.  If an interpreter is unfamiliar with expansion techniques, the resulting interpretation develops errors, unnatural phrasing, and incorrect grammatical structures.  The goal of this workshop is to expose interpreters to various expansion techniques and to begin incorporating specific techniques as found in American Sign Language.

Interpreting Difficult Words in the Bible  - 1 hour for advanced -- CEUs -- by Jon Barr from Georgia
Have you ever wondered how to sign words like abased, conversation, grace, emerods, feebleminded, and more?  This practical workshop will present numerous difficult words, their definitions, and strategies to interpret them into today's language and culture.  There will be time for group questions and interaction.

Making Faces --  1 hour for beginners and intermediates – by Crom Saunders
            Facial expressions are an integral part of ASL grammar. This workshop will model some basic facial expressions that have grammatical significance in ASL, and help increase natural fluency in expressive ASL.

My Experience With "Deaf Rights"  -- 1 hour – advanced – by Jose Granda from Miami, Florida
            This workshop will focus on my experience from 1950’s through present time  related with communication systems , using interpreters, the laws, jobs, and the communication barriers. Also, I will discuss old technology to new technologies for communication and living. How did my parents communicate with me during my childhood?

Multiple Meanings – 1 hour – beginners – by Patrick Fischer from Portland, Oregon
            One word equals one sign?  NO.  There are several semantics signs for one English word depending on the content of the sentences.  Students can learn to select right sign to match information and avoid using a wrong sign which cause confusion and misunderstanding.  Example:  My nose is running vs Jane is running for office.  The sign for running is different for both sentences.  This is one of the most misused and misunderstood part of our ASL language.

Music and the Deaf Ministry -- one hour -- topics and descriptions coming from Marietta Patchin from West Melbourne, Florida

Scholar-Apprentice: A New Look at Mentoring -- 2 hours – advanced – CEUs – by Bill Ross from North Carolina
            Mentoring is a vital tool for those in the interpreting profession.  A mentor provides feedback and guidance to those in want of such a model.  How that mentor provides feedback, and the language used by the mentor can encourage, or discourage, the “apprentice” (mentee).  There are specific terms and phrases that can be used to depersonalize feedback to encourage growth.  This approach and terminology will be presented along with an overview of the history of mentoring.  The Self Guided Approach and Guided Approach will be introduced and clarified.  Peer Mentoring will be discussed as a possible alternative.

Scriptural Concepts.  Open to all levels.  (CEUs) by Marietta Patchin from West Palm Bay, Florida
     How many concepts are there in the scripture for the word “glory”?   Are you using the same sign for all of them?  What about phrases like: “the carnal mind”, ‘without a vision men parish” or “be ye not unequally yoked together”   How many concepts for simple words like sleep, dead, or though can you find in the scripture?  We will examine words and biblical phrases in this class keeping them  in context with the verse. We also will look at various passages and consider the entire meaning, then put it into a visual picture.   
Knowing and understand scriptural concepts is vital for those who want to give a clear message.  As the scripture says, “If the trumpet give an uncertain sound, who shall prepare himself for the battle”.  If you want to "tune up your  trumpet" this is the class to take.

Setting Boundaries: Reality for the Emerging Interpreter – 1 hour for advanced – CEUs --- Mike Ernest from Virginia
            When making the transition from signer/interpreter training student to working interpreter, one of the greatest challenges is setting boundaries. Your personal and professional behavior as an emerging interpreter can set the tone with consumers for an entire career. This workshop will define a number of boundary-setting strategies used by experienced interpreters. The attitude of Deaf Consumers to these strategies will also be discussed. Interactive participation is expected!

Task-Based Language Teaching and ASL – 2 hours for advanced -- CEUs – by Cathi Bouton
            Conference participants will be provided a brief overview of the theoretical principles of TBLT and guided through the process of creating lesson plans based on these principles.  Geared for ASL teachers

Time X Ten – 1 hour – beginners and intermediates – Mike Ernest
            Vertical time, horizontal time, calendar time and sun time? Time is managed in ASL in a variety of creative visual ways, using space, movement, direction and non-manuals. Here is a workshop that describes and allows practice for ten variations in time for beginners and advanced students.  

SUNDAY MORNING POST CONFERENCE