Giving Thanks Giveaway Wednesday and Thanksgiving Thursday

Today's the 3rd day of our Week of Thanks. Being the nation's busiest travel day I thought it would be best to combine the two giveaways (today and tomorrow) so both end Friday night (give one extra day to participate!) due to the holiday.  

We've heard some great things people are thankful for and awesome traditions for this blessed holiday.
Today I'd just like to say I'm thankful for you - my reader, those with the same passion for sign language for whatever the reason. Thank YOU, truly Thank you!

My mini-vacation has started for this holiday. I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving!

TWO WINNERS will be selected!! 

(one for the stuff on the Left, 

one for the stuff on the Right!)

How to enter: 

1. Go to our Facebook page (and like us)

2. Under this thread on Facebook, simply write "Happy Thanksgiving".

3. You will automatically be entered into our Wednesday and Thursday giveaway starting 9pm EST 11/21/12 and ending 11pm EST 11/23/12.

4. The first winner will receive the Sign With Your Baby book by Joseph Garcia AND the Signing Time Story Time DVD. The 2nd winner will receive the Super Baby Book, "more" bib, set of 3: 100 signs for parents, emergencies, and traveling, AND the cute "I love you" ASL snowman ornament.

If you don't win, don't worry - these same products might be included in our sales next week or you might win something else tomorrow!

The winner will be announced here and on Facebook and will have 24 hours to email us their address for the winning products to be shipped.

Thank you for participating in our great Give Thanks Giveaway!

Tuesday's Giving Thanks - Sign language Giveaway

Today's day 2 of Week of Thanks.

Tuesday: I am thankful for my job. I am quick to realize no job is perfect but after all the recent devastation that has ran havoc through New Jersey the past couple weeks with Hurricane Sandy .. I found myself bummed that my husband was working so many hours as a result of the hurricane ... he is never home. Then I realized, I'm glad we both have stable jobs. There are so many people who may be struggling to find that job they don't mind going to, perhaps even enjoy, and most importantly, pay the bills!

Enough about what I'm thankful for - today's thing I want to hear, your favorite tradition during this weekend's festivities.  Me - it was when I was growing up & waking up to get ready to watch the parade on tv with cinnamon buns .. later in the parade watching, I would start putting up the window stickies for Christmas!

Today's Giving Thanks Sign Language giveaway is ...
Free Baby Signing Time FlashCard #1 & How-To Parent Guide

 

How to enter: 

1. Go to our Facebook page

2. Like us on Facebook

3. Under this thread on Facebook, tell us what your favorite Thanksgiving tradition is.

4. You will automatically be entered into our giveaway starting 11am EST 11/20/12 and ending 11pm EST 11/20/12.

If you don't win, don't worry - these same products might be included in our sales next week or you might win something else tomorrow!

The winner will be announced here and on Facebook and will have 24 hours to email us their address for the winning products to be shipped.

Congrats to Tina for winning Monday's giveaway. Go to our Facebook page for more info.

Thanksgiving signing special handouts and worksheets for you!

Here are some sign language Thanksgiving specials 

just for you!

Thank you to everyone participating so far in our 

Give Thanks Week! 

Monday's winner will be announced very soon!

Need this file, email us. Or find it on our TPT store (for free), click here and here

Monday's Giving Thanks - sign language giveaway

So this week I decided to give away some of my favorite sign language products during what I call the Week of Thanks.

Monday: I am thankful for my family... I know - cliche, right? My family has kept me strong during these crazy times, working full-time, having a 1 1/2 year old run around, finishing up my doctorate... I even have the dish fairy come over periodically to help me with dishes! (a.k.a my mother).  So Thank you to my family!

Today's free sign language products are:

Signing Time Board Book #2: PlayTime Signs
100 Signs for Emergencies (great small quick resource!)

How to enter: 

1. Go to our Facebook page
2. Like us on Facebook
3. Under this thread on Facebook, tell us what you are thankful for this holiday season.
4. You will automatically be entered into our giveaway starting 3pm EST 11/19/12 and ending 11pm EST 11/19/12.
If you don't win, don't worry - these same products might be included in our sales next week or you might win something else tomorrow!
The winner will be announced here and on Facebook and will have 24 hours to email us their address for the winning products to be shipped.

Stay tuned for our flashcard giveaway, parent guides, DVDs, and MORE!

Don't forget to ...

O is for ORANGE

O is for ORANGE - a nice fall color! 

Now ORANGE is the same for the color and the food. I always says for the sign ORANGE -pretend you are squeezing the juice out of the orange ... just at your chin!

Today's the first day of the Week of Thanks! Our first free sign language products coming your way soon!

letter of the week: O

Letter of the week: O

Don't forget this week is our special "Give Thanks" - each day leading to Thanksgiving we will be giving away a free sign language product!

LEGAL & LAW for What's the Sign Wednesday... belated

A nice Facebook fan asked for the sign LEGAL. Here you go! I think I'll reintroduce What's the Sign Wednesday. I miss hearing from you guys!

I did both LAW and LEGAL.
LAW I use for "Mother in law". The sign is a L on your dominant hand (for me: my right hand) going to your nondominant hand (for me: my left hand). The sign starts at the top of the palm and goes down.

 

LEGAL is very similar. It doesn't go down like LAW but just a bounce in place. 

N is for ... NIGHT

N is for ... NIGHT

I just love it when Little Fingers says "NIGHT NIGHT" - my favorite way to end the NIGHT.

letter of the week: N!

Letter of the week is N

I'm going to reuse the sign GRANDMOM because I called my grandmother 'nan' :)

M is for ...

Gees so sorry life is just keeping me so busy. I think I need an assistant! Any takers?! ;) Our tutoring sessions are going in full swing over here ... we're gearing up for all these great sales for the holiday session ... but of course, we didn't forget about our letter of the week.

Here's some M words for ya!

I'm sure we can all guess what this last sign is right!?

What M words do you use with your little ones or family? What M words were you looking for? (I still have the weekend to help - I have a little more time ...promise!)

WHAT is American Sign Language? The basics

So I realized I've been going on for weeks now with my ABC series - we're already at M! But we have so many new fans and while I was talking to someone learning sign language, I mentioned SEE1 and SEE2 and he looked at me like I had two heads ... that's when I knew I cannot assume people understand all the concepts I use in my posts or previous posts and all the aspects of ASL. So let's go back to some basics!

compliments of lifeprint.com

Before we can get into WHAT is American Sign Language (ASL), let's quickly touch upon WHAT is language. 

Language has three major components and to be a language it needs all these components:
1. semantics (vocabulary)
2. syntax (grammar)
3. pragmatics (social rules)

When you look up 'language' in the dictionary, you will find the following:
1. 'body of words and systems for their use common to a people who are of the same community or nation, the samegeographical area, or the same cultural tradition. (www.dictionary.reference.com)

2. expression of human communication through which knowledge, belief, and behavior can be experienced, explained, and shared. This sharing is based on systematic, conventionally used signs, sounds, gestures, or marks that convey understood meanings within a group or community. (www.nidcd.nih.gov)

Ok, sign language ...

What is sign language? manual (using the hands, fingers, etc) communication method utilizing body language, facial expressions and other nonverbal methods.

The problem now lays in the different sign languages and the confusion starts ...

American Sign Language (ASL): complete and complex language that utilizes the hands, fingers, face, and body to to create the expressions of a persons wants, needs, comments, and more. It has its own culture and community such does Standard American English. It is not a one-to-one correlation with the English language. It has grammatical rules.  

Now Signed English, Signed Exact English (SEE) and Pidgin Signed English (PSE) - -- I think that's a discussion for a later date, but just know they are variations of sign language - they are not ASL. Don't want to share too much knowledge at one time!

Happy Signing!

Letter of the week: M

Letter of the week M!

M for ME, ME, ME (from the Signing Time song on television commercials, my daughter loves that family song " ... and then there's ME ME ME"

L is for ... LITTLE, LOOK, LOVE (in no particular order :)! )

L is for ...

LITTLE

LOOK

LOVE!

(In no particular order :). )