Through hands-on activities, participants will understand the art of signing various sports concepts, including numbers, team classifiers, sports plays, positioning, scoring, and much more. There are eight basic categories of classifiers and in this workshop we are going to explore how to use them to our advantage. One of the benefits to fully understanding the concept and usage of classifiers is you won’t find yourself searching for “words” to express your meaning. All you need to know is which type of classifier to use in which situation and you can always convey your ideas clearly, without fingerspelling or asking “what’s the sign for...?”

Educational Objectives

At the conclusion of this workshop, participants will be able to:

• Reproduce modeled sports vocabulary in sign language while applying ASL features, such as ‘use of space’ techniques, pronominalization, and numerical incorporation

• Distinguish the difference between the eight basic categories of classifiers, and implement strategies for retrieval of this extralinguistic knowledge

• Improve their ability to express sports-related concepts without relying on fingerspelling or asking for specific signs, while also building confidence in using classifiers to convey meaning accurately and efficiently in a sports context

Presenter: Beverly Fletcher-Woodel

Teaching undergraduate ASL courses since 2004, Mrs. Beverly Fletcher-Woodel was a faculty member at the Central Piedmont Community College in Charlotte, NC, where she taught American Sign Language courses for 10 years. She is retired with 30 years of state service. She currently holds a certificate from the National American Sign Language Teachers’ Association (ASLTA). Not only that, but she holds a Master’s Degree from Gallaudet University in Sign Language Teaching and a Bachelor’s Degree from Gallaudet University in Physical Education.

Mrs. Fletcher-Woodel is chair of the North Carolina Interpreter and Transliterator Licensing Board and secretary of the North Carolina School for the Deaf Alumni Association. Mrs. Fletcher-Woodel comes from a Deaf family and was raised in Morganton, NC, where she attended the North Carolina School for the Deaf (NCSD), as did many generations of her family. During her leisure time, she enjoys quality time with family, assisting her mother when needed, and spending time with her Deaf husband and her two hearing children also traveling.

When Beverly and her family are not out on the lake enjoying their jet skis or their pontoon boat, Beverly enjoys participating in cross-fit training classes, running, playing basketball for the Deaf women’s team, and working outdoor. Beverly and her family currently reside in Morganton, NC.