Deaf Awareness Week - tip 1 for the hearing world

Available for over a year

So tip number one is how to communicate with deaf people. So maybe you're thinking, I don't know how to sign. I've never done BSL. Don't worry, it's fine. You can use gesture. But do remember, try to use real things. You don't have to be really creative and make things up. You can use real things. You're definitely allowed to use pointing, utilise pointing. I know you probably think pointing is really, really rude in hearing culture, but it's very different for deaf people. Definitely use pointing. It's absolutely fine. The important thing is don't be too over-dramatic. You don't have to act big and start leaping around and over-exaggerating your lip patterns. That actually makes it really difficult. So just try and be normal. And sometimes we might not understand you, and the communication might break down. But you've always got pen and paper, so you can try just writing little comments down. It will become easier as time goes on. Just start with small steps and keep trying. So remember, gesture is okay, pointing is absolutely fine, pen and paper, short messages are fine, lovely, and learning BSL is fantastic.