• American Sign Language is the third most used language in the United States.hand image by Kit Wai Chan from Fotolia.com
  
  ASL is the acronym for American Sign Language. The hands, along with eye, face, head and body movements, are used to communicate in this distinctive language. Although ASL is chiefly used by deaf and hard of hearing people in the United States and Canada, many hearing people use it as well. It is the third most used language in the United States, and one of the fastest growing languages for study. Online courses are plentiful and varied to fulfill individual learning needs.
  
  

Free and Fee-Based Classes

• Several free ASL lessons are available online and are particularly useful to supplement ASL classes students take at local colleges. To get a degree in ASL to teach it or for job requirements, it is necessary to attend an actual college that grants degrees. ASL University (ASLU) is an online curriculum resource center that offers free sign language instruction as well as fee-based instructor-guided courses. ASLU does not grant degrees but has an online documentation course that gives a letter grade upon completion. As of 2010, the ASLU tuition cost is $483. See the Lifeprint.com website for full information about this course, which is through California State University, Sacramento.
  
  Most people not needing the documentation will find the large amount of ASL materials online sufficient for learning or improving their skills. To become fluent in ASL, it is necessary to actually communicate with other ASL users. Self-study alone will not be sufficient for full learning.
  
  

Fingerspelling

• O.K. in both American Sign Language and letters image by Steve Johnson from Fotolia.com
  
  Fingerspelling is a method of spelling out words using signs relating to the letters of the word. An ASL user would use the American Fingerspelled Alphabet, also called the American Manual Alphabet, to do this. There are many fingerspelled alphabets around the world for users of the various international sign languages. The American Fingerspelled Alphabet consists of 22 "handshapes. When held in specific positions, and using specific movements, theses handshapes represent the 26 letters of the English alphabet. There are a several interactive websites for learning these movements, which can be used for class support or for self-study at home. See the resources section at the bottom for specific sites.
  
  

SignWriting

• SignWriting is a writing system using visual symbols to represent the handshapes, movements and facial expressions of signed languages. According to SignWriting.org, SignWriting is an "alphabet" that uses pictures to write any signed language in the world, so in that way it is a universal writing system. SignWriting has made it possible to have books, newspapers, magazines and literature written in signs. Online SignWriting materials make it possible to use the signs to teach signs and signed grammar to beginning signers, or to teach subjects such as math, science or history to experienced signers.