Many people believe that ASL is simply English with hand signs, but that is not true. ASL has its own sentence structure. For example, in English, we would say “I am going to the store.” In ASL, it would be “Store I go.” This sentence structure demonstrates how ASL and English are different.
Since tone of voice cannot be heard, facial expressions in ASL can change the meaning of a sentence. This does not really occur in English. NIDCD states that ASL is a real language and has its own grammar. Experts believe that ASL developed naturally within the Deaf community.
Additional information found at:
National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders
Valli, Clayton. Linguistics of American Sign Language
The author is currently enrolled in ASL classes.
The Wolverine 