Monthly Archives: November 2009

We had so much fun – big thanks to Ray, Vanessa, Dustin, and all our wonderful new Squamish friends for hosting us. We look forward to returning! Here’s an article about the efforts by some of the Squamish people to revitalize their language, and the Squamish nation website.

We had a great time at a gathering of Wawa speakers in Manzanita, OR, playing the other WAYK core conversation, “the Walk” over and over. Thanks everyone for playing!

With the help of Jason and everyone at the Watershed Clinic we ran a game in Cantonese a few weeks back.

This video runs almost an hour, and starts with a “no pressure refresher” WAYK game just in sign with some discussion about techniques and play. For those really excited to just see the Cantonese in play, cue the video to 27:25.

And now, Evan’s follow up:

I am so excited for you Jay!
Learning your own language from your own elder… A wonderful source of pride for your entire family and especially your grandma! I can’t tell you the number of times I have heard of people looking at books instead of talking to their elders to learn their language.

It is interesting that it doesn’t matter which language you are about to learn… The important questions are how you will go about it. I would start with technique “what ever works”. If it works, use it. Use every resource you have, every technique, trick, bribe, what ever!

Yes it is true that you must be gentle with your elders. As a budding “language hunter” you will develop your skills to learn language just by spending quality time with your family. The trick is not to worry, if you set up the first day/interaction as a pleasant “chit chat” then it won’t seam like you are expecting your teacher to “do” anything but enjoy simple conversation.

The next time you have a conversation (lesson) with your grandma then it will seem more silly because the experience of the “same conversation” will start to set in. But now a purpose will emerge. She will see “what” you are doing even if at first she doesn’t see “how” you are doing it. She will play along, especially when your ability to speak increases… as if by magic (even though you are putting mental work into “limit”, “same conversation”, “shared experience”, “set up” and “obviously”). Let your understanding of the techniques be your guide and anchors through your self guided learning.

So my advice…

Take a print out of the Universal Speed Curriculum with you. Study it. Practice this simple exchange in English. Can you get people to have this USC (WAYK) conversation with you at a store, gas station, restaurant?

How do you start your “language hunt”?

Set up a conversation that you can have over and over again. Is there something she likes doing that she wants to do with you anyway? Is there some restaurant she always wants to go to?

Now set the stage with obvious props that you will touch and trade. Having coffee or tea is a great and simple exercise. A favorite meal is also perfect.

Get a tape recorder and ask her if you can tape your chit chats/sessions. If she says no then do it in secret if you find it ethical.

Conversation #1
Have your first conversation… Let it just be casual, natural, enjoy coffee and the time and conversation thread you travel.

Conversation #2
Have the “same conversation” in the “same setting” “set up” with the same objects “sharing another experience”.

But now you can begin to fill in the USC.

Can you say “What is that?” in your target language?
If you can’t then you must ask your grandma how to say “what is that?” in your language. When she tells you then put the sign with the words and start the game. Play WAYK “on” her.

Go around the table and ask “What is that?” to everything there.
Pull out a dollar and put it on the table and ask “what is that?”

Now ask her to quiz you and ask you “what is that?”

“Make her say” yes.
“Make her say” no.

That should be plenty for your second conversation.

When she figures it out you what you are up to either by watching you or by asking then you can play “with” her.

Conversation #3
“Set up” the “same conversation”.
Start impressing the socks off of her by asking her “what is that?”
Now work in “Craig’s List” me/mine while working in “want”

Me/mine
you/yours
he/his
she/hers

A few conversations in and you should be working through CL want/have/give/take

Use the sign language all the way through. Don’t worry about teaching her the signs… She will pick them up from you. The signs help so much that she won’t be able to help herself from wanting to use them while she is talking… Maybe her language already has signs for things… contract the signs and use them.

You are now “language hunting” your way to fluency while having casual coffee/tea conversations. Once you set the patterns then you will both start using the patterns/techniques to guide your conversations. Go slow. Limit. Enjoy! Then teach your kids everything you learn as soon as you learn it! Grandma will cry tears of joy when the little ones start in asking “what is that?” in her language.

Reader and fluency game player Jay Bazuzi commented recently:

In a month I’ll be visiting my grandmother and want to learn her language from her, so I’m eager to learn how to use WAYK for other spoken languages.

I’ve been following the roadmap myself, practicing with the videos, friends, and kids. I’m getting pretty comfortable with Want/Have/Give/Take.

Should I plan to play with her in English + sign, to teach her signing fluency? And then modify the sign to her native tongue? It seems like a lot to ask of her. She’s a good sport, but she’s old, and I want to be gentle with her.

This question really illuminates where the rubber meets the road. I’d like to make sure all the other WAYK fans see the response I gave Jay:

It sounds like you’ve entered the territory of technique “Language Hunting”.

WAYK operates in many contexts; it all comes to down to contextualizing the game, and the skills of flow play and technique use that you’ve developed.

You know better than me if your grandmother has the energy and interest to learn some sign. Certainly if she does, it will accelerate the learning process in several respects. But you have other tools at your disposal.

Usually, especially with endangered languages, we do run into elders who don’t have the energy or time available to learn the WAYK game. Think of that game as your learning lab, where you developed and honed all the skills that you will now take out into the world and “language hunt”.

Playing with doing everything with your grandmother that you do in a WAYK game, but just silently and secretly, for yourself, without marking techniques for her.

Setup a conversation that will interest her and she will find easily accessible; perhaps about having tea. Then immediately, “obviously” your nouns jump to mind, that you have to discover one by one (cup, tea, sugar, etc.). You have your “set up” space to keep as simple as possible for your own sanity. You have the “set-up” conversation ready to go. Plan to have this “same conversation” over and over with her. “Limit” the conversation to each tiny piece as it comes, to the very next word or structure you need. “Sorry charlie”, internally, any attempt on her (or your!) part to make it too complicated. Because ASL mimics actual objects and actions, continue using the sign as a “bridge language” for yourself, and it will also help your “fluent fool” to understand what you mean and want.

And so on. Do you see? The game develops learning skills, not a static unchanging format that you must lug from one situation to another. The core game acts as your learning laboratory; what you learn there, you take out into the chaotic, churning world of situations and personalities, using your new technique skills for your own benefit.

The fluency game reaches its full potential when a community uses it as a language and relationship of learning/teaching. You can “language hunt” by yourself, and experience great success and incredible speed moving along the “Travels with Charlie”; but when a community does this together, hunting and feeding each other as informed players – watch out!