Developed by Shanna Grossinger

Time Required for Activity:  20 mins

Competencies Address: 

  • Spatial structuring
  • Interpreting: English to ASL
  • ASL lexicon

Aim:

To practice spatial structuring in an interpretation from English to ASL.

Objective(s):

Learners will:

  • structure space accurately
  • interpreting English explanatory text into English.

Step One: Prediction & Preparation

The video you will interpret is an edited version of a TED talk by Paolo Antonelli.  The video is 3:32 in length.  She is a fashion designer and will talk about the history of the “hoodie” from ancient to modern times.  Spend some time thinking about the different contexts she might address and what ways that those different ideas might be referenced when interpreted into a visual-spatial language.  

Depending on the level of preparation you desire, you can also:

Step Two: Interpret the Video into ASL

Now that you have prepared, interpret the 3:32 video. Record your own work so that you can use it for analysis later. The video is designed for simultaneous interpretation. However, you can pause the video if you would like to use a consecutive approach.

Play the source video. (The video will display in a pop-up window.)

Step Three: Assess Your Work

Review your interpretation paying attention to the way you structured space.  

  • How did you handle the speaker’s discussion of the hoodie at different times in history?
  • How did you compare her descriptions of the positive and negative history associated with the history?
  • How did you mark the changes in topics such as the hoodie in the Middle Ages compared to modern versions of it?

Now watch a sample interpretation created by Doug Bowen-Bailey.  This interpretation is only one way of approaching this work. It provides some examples of how to structure space in an interpretation of this video.

Step Four: Re-Interpret the Video into ASL

Now that you have assesssed your first interpretation and seen a sample interpretation from Doug Bowen-Bailey, re-do your interpretation.

Record your own work so that you can use it for analysis later. The video is designed for simultaneous interpretation. However, you can pause the video if you would like to use a consecutive approach.

Play the source video. (The video will display in a pop-up window.)