Child Language Acquisition Flashcards
Phoneme
A unit of sound eg. “m” + “ph”
Morpheme
A unit of meaning eg. root, prefix, suffix
Grapheme
A written unit to convey meaning.
Morphology
The study of how PARTS of WORDS create DIFFERENT meanings by COMBINING with each other or standing alone.
Phonology
The study of UNITS of SOUNDS.
Syntax
The ARRANGEMENT of words in a SPECIFIC ORDER.
Orthography
The study of the SPELLING SYSTEM.
Pragmatics
The study of the PRACTICAL ASPECT of HUMAN ACTION and THOUGHT.
Voiced
The sound is pronounced CLEARLY in a word eg. at the start of “Cat” the c is pronounced.
Unvoiced
The sound is NOT pronounced clearly or AT ALL eg. in “hands” the d is missed out.
Type of errors: Children’s writing
Morphology, Phonology, Orthography, Pragmatics, Syntax
Morphology: Past tense formation
“I runned to the playground”
Correct version - “I ran to the playground”
A VIRTUOUS error –> OVER EXTENSION of “ed” morpheme to show past tense (not needed).
Morphology: Homophone
“Your my best friend”
Correct version - “You’re my best friend”
Contracting the “you’re”, as they sound the same.
Morphology: Incorrect use of possessives
“I have got three teddy’s”
Correct version - “I have got three teddies”
OVERGENERALISED the PLURAL RULE.
Might be to do with PRONUNCIATION –> might think it’s possessive for them.
Phonology: Consonant deletion
“My hans are big” –> UNVOICED CONSONANT
Correct version - “My hands are big”
VIRTUOUS error - DELETION of the consonant “d”
Phonology: Mispronounced phonemes
“I have Free cats”
Correct version - “I have Three cats”
Could be due to ACCENT or SPEECH IMPEDIMENT -
May be unable to produce the sound themselves.
Pragmatics: Context
“I saw a blue dog as big as a house”
A dog is much smaller than a house.
Hyperbole –> From their perspective, may not see things in the same way that we do.
Syntax: Superlative formation
“He is my most favourite uncle”
Correct version - “He is my favourite uncle”
Do not need the PREMODIFIER “most”.
INSERTION of “most”.
Orthography: Spelling system
“My bog is called Dexter”
Correct version - “My dog is called Dexter”
Could be associated with FINE MOTOR SKILLS –> got b + g confused and reversed them.
Learning to write key words-
Insertion - A letter is ADDED which DOES NOT BELONG in the word.
Omission - A letter is MISSED from the word which SHOULD BE THERE.
Substitution - A letter is SUBSTITUTED for another letter.
Graphemic cluster omission- A CLUSTER of letters has been OMITTED from the word.
Graphemic cluster substitution- A CLUSTER of letters has been SUBSTITUTED for another set.
Transposed letters- A letter has been WRITTEN THE WRONG WAY ROUND.
Cursive - Joining up letters when writing.
Magic e - The <e> at the END OF WORDS which is silent. For example, "make" or "cake".
Hypotaxis - JOINING clauses using SUBORDINATION.
Parataxis - Simple sentences JOINED with NO CONJUNCTION or COORDINATING CONJUNCTIONS.</e>
Types of errors: Children’s speech
Addition, Deletion, Consonant Cluster Reduction, Substitution, Assimilation
Addition
The child ADDS something COMPLETELY NEW into the pronunciation. For example, “cat-o” (cat + o).
This links to DIMINUTIVES –> “doggy” - makes it EASIER for the child and indicates SMALLNESS.
Deletion
The child REMOVES A SOUND from the word altogether. For example, “ca” instead of “cat”.
Consonant Cluster Reduction
The child REMOVES some CONSONANT SOUNDS from the word. For example, “ra-it” instead of “rabbit”.
