BSL books and other learning resources can really help with your learning, particularly if you have a preferred learning style. Your learning style determines how you access information. For example, you may prefer to listen or you may prefer to watch and copy. Whatever your learning style, we have listed a range of resources that can help you on your journey from BSL Basics to BSL fluency.
Table of Contents
- BSL Books for Beginners:
- Resources for Level 2 Learners
- Advanced learning resources for Level 3 onwards
- Deaf poetry
- Deaf Culture
- Websites:
- Paid for resources:
- BSL Apps
- Deaf organisations:
BSL Books for Beginners:
Books can be useful for explaining new concepts. The books listed below are recommended for beginners up to Level 2 competency.
Resources for Level 2 Learners
Some students find expressing emotions in BSL quite difficult. We have highlighted a great video by a deaf tutor who explains how to express emotions in BSL. The clip is aimed at Level 2 signers who will understand what the tutor is explaining in the clip
Advanced learning resources for Level 3 onwards
Linguistics is taught at earlier stages in BSL learning as it is essential for developing receptive skills. As you develop your understanding of British Sign Language, you also need to develop a deeper understanding of linguistics. These resources will help you with finer points such as classifiers and directional verbs.
Deaf poetry
Dot Miles was a poet pioneer and showed how BSL could be used creatively. Deaf poetry is a part of the storytelling experience in Deaf Culture
Deaf Culture
There are many features of Deaf Culture that students need to learn to understand the Deaf world. The resources listed below give you a glimpse of the lived experience within the Deaf Community.
Seeing Voices by Oliver Sacks
The sign community website gives you information about deaf history and the connection to other sign languages across the globe:
Visual Vernacular is a beautiful art form that emphasises the visual nature of BSL:
Websites:
Signed BBC programmes on iplayer
Paid for resources:
BSL Apps
Deaf organisations:
This list will continue to grow as more resources are added. Are you aware of any websites or books we should add to the list?
You can get in touch via our contact page if you have additional resources to share with BSL learners.
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