Child Language Acquisition Stages etc

Question 1

Phonology, 0-2 Months, Key Features, Definitions

Answer 1

• Instinctive Biological Noises.
• These are noises which the baby does out of instinct rather than being in control.
• This is usually in the form of crying.
• Used to mean a variety of needs, e.g. ‘I’m hungry’.

Question 2

Phonology, 4-7 Months, Key Features, Definitions

Answer 2

• Cooing and vocal play. (First laughter, changes in pitch and loudness).
• The child starts to produce long vowels sounds, but these do not mean anything.
• The child starts putting sounds together (just playing) - this is called vocal play.
• Sounds such as ‘goo’ and ‘ga-ga’.

Question 3

Phonology, 6-9 months, Key Features, Definitions

Answer 3

• Babbling, first combination of sounds; can be mistaken for real words.
• The child starts to reduplicate syllables - this is where the same sound is repeated. For example, ‘baba’, ‘dada’, ‘mama’. (Reduplicated monosyllables).
• Their caregiver usually starts praising them for this.
• The child starts to move on from that to mixing syllables. For example, ‘damaba’. This is called variegated babbling.
• The child starts to produce lots of phonemes - this is called phonemic expansion.
• The child starts to use only phonemes in their language - this is called phonemic contraction.

Question 4

Phonology, from 9 months onwards, Key Features, Definitions

Answer 4

• Melodic utterances.
• The child starts to use intonation.
• The child starts to experiment with rhythm and tone.

Question 5

Phonology, 9-12 months, Key Features, Definitions

Answer 5

• Proto-words
• The child starts to assign sounds to objects. These objects them become known as this. For example, ‘pap’ for the dog.
• Sounds unrecognisable out of context, but accurate enough for those around to understand what the baby means.

Question 6

Grammar, 12 months onwards, Key Features, Definitions

Answer 6

• First words
• The child finally produces their first fully formed word. Their parents get very excited and they produce that word over and over again.
• Common first words are dad, mum, cat, dog, teddy, baby and no.
• The holophrastic stage begins.

Question 7

Grammar, The Holophrastic Stage, Age, Key Features, Definitions

Answer 7

Approximately 12 to 18 months

• Holophrases are single words and usually nouns.
• A single word representing a more complex thought, e.g. ‘juice’.
• A single word can have many different meanings and moods. For example, a child shouting ‘dog’ could mean: - Where’s the dog? (interrogative) - There’s the dog. (declarative) - Come here, dog! (exclamative).
• The child can add intonation, so if they say ‘dog’ and their voice rises at the end of the word, then you they might be asking a question.

Question 8

Grammar, The Two-Word Stage, Age, Key Features, Definitions

Answer 8

Approximately 18 to 24 months

• First combination of two words, usually subject + verb, e.g. ‘doggie gone’.
• Verbs start to emerge more (and lots more nouns).
• The child begins to use syntax correctly, for example: - Subject and verb, Milo woof - Verb and object, bark dog - Noun phrases - soft Milo - Verb phrases, walk dog (but only verbs without inflections).

Question 9

Grammar, The Telegraphic Stage, Age, Key Features, Definitions

Answer 9

Approximately 24 months onwards

• This is when there are just enough words to successfully communicate - they sound like old fashioned telegrams.
• There is a massive increase in vocabulary in the section.
• Many word classes now acquired like pronouns, prepositions and various determiners but often omitted. For example: - Milo is dog - Milo go(es) woof - Where dog go?
• As a child comes to the end of this stage, they start to become complex with their language, adding negatives, inflections and coordinating conjunctions.

Question 10

Grammar, The Post-Telegraphic Stage, Age, Key Features, Definitions

Answer 10

36 months

• At this stage, the child can use many advanced features of English, including contractions, irregular verbs, auxiliaries, prepositions, and articles.

Question 11

Define Network Building

Answer 11

Identifying connections between objects, e.g. similarities.

Question 12

Define Productive Vocabulary

Answer 12

The words a person is able to use in speech or writing.

Question 13

Define Receptive Vocabulary

Answer 13

The words a person is able to understand or recognise.

Question 14

Define Overextension

Answer 14

Widening the meaning of a word so that it applies to not just the actual object, but similar ones, e.g. ‘cat’ means all animals.

Question 15

Define Underextension

Answer 15

The meaning of the word used is too narrow.

E.g. A child might use the word “dog” only to refer to their pet Labrador, but not recognize that other breeds, like a Poodle or a Beagle, are also dogs.