Etiquette

ASL Etiquette

Always use your right hand when signing.
It is important to use facial expressions when communicating in sign language. For example, when signing the word happy you should have a smile on your face!
When communicating in ASL you should always face the person who is signing.
When a speaker looks away it is often because he or she is thinking of the next thing to sign.
In ASL it is polite to wait until the speaker is finished signing before you respond.
When a speaker turns and signs to a person that is not there it is because the speaker is referring to a conversation they had or observed with someone else.
If you need to walk between deaf people who are signing it is not rude as long as you do not draw attention to yourself.
Among the deaf it is common to wave or touch someone’s arm or shoulder to get their attention.
If you do not understand what someone it saying, simply ask them to repeat themselves.
You should never shout of exaggerate your speech when communicating with a deaf person or someone that is hard of hearing.
If you are speaking with someone who lip-reads, you should speak in a clear and even manner without over articulating your speech.
If someone has to ask you several times to repeat yourself, try rephrasing your sentence in a different way.