SignWriting® Handwriting
For Sign Language Notetaking



 
Lesson 1
Handwriting Symbol Construction


Palm Facing, Side View
Symbols that are one-half-dark and one-half-light in Printing, showing the side-view of the hand, have a vertical line down the center of the square in Handwriting. No need to color one half black. Takes too much time!
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Palm Facing, Back View, version 1
Symbols that are black or filled-in, in Printing, showing the back-view of the hand, can be written with a diagonal line down the center of the square in Handwriting. The diagonal line usually slants towards the center of the body.
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Palm Facing, Back View, version 2
Another way to write the back of the hand...two vertical lines...
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Palm Facing, Top View,
Hands with Extended Fingers
The Top View of handshapes that have extended fingers, such as the Index Handshape, are the same for both the Printing and the Handwriting. A line is written for the extended finger, but there is a little space between the line and the square.
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Thumb Across Palm
Palm View. The line for the thumb is half-way inside the square and half-way outside the square.
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Thumb Across Palm
Side View. The line for the thumb is half-way inside the square and half-way outside the square.
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Thumb Across Palm
Back View. The double line for the thumb is half-way inside the square and half-way outside the square. It is not necessary to darken the square any further, because the double line for the thumb represents that thick white cut in the black symbol and that can only happen when the back of the hand is facing the chest.
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Thumb Across Palm, Hand Parallel to Floor
Back of Hand from the Top View. The top of the symbol is not written (left off).

Top View of Plain-Square Symbols are Topless!
A plain-square symbol is a symbol that does not have fingers extended, except for occasionally the thumb. They are mostly in Group 10, in the IMWA. The E-Hand is also a plain-square symbol, in Group 4. When plain-square symbols are parallel to the floor they loose their tops - they are topless in the top view - ha!
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Flat Hand
Front View. The standard way of writing this symbol has a point or tip at the end, representing the tip of the fingers.
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Flat Hand
Side View. Add a thicker line on one side of the symbol.
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Flat Hand
Back View. Striped symbols means the back of the hand.
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Flat Hand
Top View Palm.
The symbol becomes topless!
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Flat Hand
Top View Side.
A topless symbol with one thick line and one thin line.
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Flat Hand
Top View Back.
A topless symbol with stripes!
becomes


SignWriting® Handwriting
For Sign Language Notetaking


 


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