Extended family
Brother, sister, grandparents, aunt, uncle — the gender map from Level 1, put to work.
Focus
Compounds you can still see
BROTHER is BOY + SAME; SISTER is GIRL + SAME. The two parts have blended into one smooth movement — Frishberg's assimilation, the same process that made HOME — but the male-high, female-low starting points are still there.
Stepping through generations
GRANDMA is MOTHER bounced forward; GRANDPA is FATHER bounced forward. Each arc is a generation. AUNT and UNCLE are initialized letters at the female and male locus. One rule, six signs.
Signs in this lesson
Open any sign for its full history, sources and minimal pairs.
Make an 'L' hand at your forehead, then bring it down so both index fingers rest side by side.
Make an 'L' hand at your jaw, then bring it down so both index fingers rest side by side.
Start MOTHER — thumb of a '5' hand at the chin — then bounce the hand forward in two small arcs.
Start FATHER — thumb of a '5' hand at the forehead — then bounce the hand forward in two small arcs.
Hold an 'A' hand beside your jaw and give it a small shake.
Hold a 'U' hand beside your temple and give it a small shake.
Bring two index fingers together side by side; or move a 'Y' hand back and forth between two things.
Watch out for
Pairs in this lesson that learners mix up — the drill will test exactly these.
- BROTHER / SISTER — The same compound with the female locus: SISTER starts at the jaw, BROTHER at the forehead.
- GRANDPA / GRANDMA — Same arcs; GRANDPA starts at the forehead, GRANDMA at the chin.
- AUNT / UNCLE — Both shake an initialized letter at the side of the face: A low for AUNT, U high for UNCLE.