What Is The Quickest Way To Learn Sign Language?

Classes/tutor: I would say this is probably the best option, but it is also the most costly,  especially if you hire a private tutor. If you find a class in your area then you get to share the cost of the tutor with the rest of the class so it is much less expensive. Most of the time the tutor will be a hearing person who knows the language, so they can talk you through it as you learn, but occasionally you may get a deaf tutor instead.

The best thing about being in a class is that if you have a question then you can ask the tutor and get an answer, also you can practice your signing skills with your classmates which is another benefit you don’t get with other learning mediums.

DVDs: Learning from DVDs or online videos and software is also an option. The courses with DVDs or online video components to them usually have a bit of everything, they have text for most of the theory, then videos for examples of signs, then they have software to help you learn a group of signs too.

While this is a good way to learn, then unless the course gives you access to a student area where you can ask questions, then it is not as good as attending a class because you could get frustrated and give up, or pick up bad habits that nobody can correct you on.

Books: I love learning things from books, but sign language is not something that should be learnt from a book. There are books out there, and you could get them as an accompaniment to classes or your DVD course, but with something physical like signing, then it is hard to document that on paper. The signs would have to have multiple photos and arrows to show you how to move your hand, or it might explain it in text, but with an actual class or video then you actually see them demonstrate the movement which is so much easier for you to learn correctly from.