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Obras por Diane Lane Chambers

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I came across this book a few years ago when it was being sold from a booth at a Deaf/Deaf-Blind Expo I was volunteering at. Although I didn't get to meet the author, she lives and works in the area of Colorado that I was living in at the time of the purchase. I just now got around to reading it.

Author Diane Lane Chambers (my copy has just "Diane Chambers" on the cover, her name probably was expanded in later editions due to there being another author with the same first and last name who happens to have written a book on ASL) was/is a professional sign language interpreter who was asked to work with a deaf-blind man. Although Bert Riedel, 86 years old at the time of their initial meeting, had some communication means, his family felt strongly that sign language (using the tactile method -- hands on hands while signing) would be an effective means of supplementing communication. Bert had a form of Usher's Syndrome that caused him to lose his sight and hearing late in life -- he did learn braille and the family used a braille-writer (like a typewriter) to communicate with him. However, it wasn't easily portable and there were several situations where communication was not fast enough or just wasn't possible. It was believed that sign language could be a more immediate means of communicating with Bert. So, this is when the author came in. What started out as basic lessons developed in a close friendship.

Starting out with fingerspelling and basic signs, then working up to Signed-English sentences and finally to the basics of ASL (American Sign Language), Bert was constantly willing to learn along the way. This plucky personality charmed Diane and nearly everyone (other volunteers) who he met along the way. Bert charmed this reader, as well.

While this book is clearly a tribute to Bert Riedel (the epilogue states that he passed away at 92 years old in 2003), it is also instructive on the challenges faced by the Deaf, the Deaf-Blind, the workings of sign language itself, and the role of sign language interpreters assigned to deaf clients (such as in a courthouse setting or a medical office). This book is very enlightening, even for someone like myself who has worked with deaf-blind clients in both part-time work and volunteering. Recommended reading.
… (mais)
½
 
Assinalado
ValerieAndBooks | Jul 8, 2015 |

Estatísticas

Obras
3
Membros
14
Popularidade
#739,559
Avaliação
½ 3.5
Críticas
1
ISBN
3