Chapter 6: Language development Flashcards
by what age have most kids mastered the basic structure of their native language?
5 years
Generativity
The idea that through the use of the finite set of words and morphemes in humans vocabulary, we can put together an infinite number of sentences and express an infinite number of ideas
Phonemes
The elementary units of meaningful sound used to produce languages
Phonological development
The acquisition of knowledge about the sound system of a language`
Morphemes
The smallest units of meaning in a language composed of one or more phonemes
Semantic development
The learning of the system for expressing meaning in a language, including word learning
Syntax
Rules in a language that specify how words from different categories can be combined (grammar)
Syntactic development
learning of the syntax of a language
Pragmatic development
The acquisition of knowledge about how language is used
Metalinguistic
Knowledge about language and its properties
How is language a species specific behaviour?
Only humans can acquire language in the normal course of development
How is language species universal?
Language learning is achieved by typically developing infants across the globe
Critical period for language development
The time during which language develops readily and after which (between 5yrs and puberty) language acquisition is much more difficult and ultimately less successful
bilingualism
the ability to use two languages
What are some cognitive advantages of bilinguals?
Rule switching
What are some linguistic advantages of bilinguals?
1) better differentiation between languages - even from “silent talking”
2) better vocabulary
Do bilingual children confuse languages?
No - they are just filling in gaps in their vocabulary with the language they know it better in
ex. knowing more school words in english and more home words in romanian
Infants directed speach
the distinctive mode of speech that adults adopt when talking to babies and very young children
What are some characteristics of infant directed speech?
1) affection tone
2) slowing speech
3) higher pitch
4) clearer vowels
5) exaggerated facial expressions
Prosody
the characteristic rhythm, tempo, cadence, melody, intonational patterns and so forth with which a language is spoken
Categorical Perception
The perception of speech sounds as belonging to discrete categories
Voice onset time (VOT)
the length of time between when air passes through the lips and when the vocal cords start vibrating
At what age do infants loose their ability to differentiate speech sounds others than their native language
10 - 12 months
Word segmentation
The process of discovering where words begin and end in fluent speech
