Spoken Language Acquisition Flashcards
Proto-words
Made up words that a child will use to represent a word they might not yet be able to pronounce. Fo example: blankie for blanket or ray ray for raisins.
Pre-verbal stage
A period of time that involves experimenting with noises and sounds, without producing recognisable words-usually lasting for the baby’s first year.
Cooing
Distinct from crying but not yet forming recognisable vowels and consonants.
Babbling
Vocal play that involves forming vowel and consonant sounds, which can be reduplicated (repeated) or variegated (different sounds put together).
Holophrastic Stage
The point in a child’s development when a child uses just individual words to communicate.
Holophrase
A single word used to express a complex idea.
Non-verbal communication
All the ways in which communication occurs that do not involve words (e.g. a parent shaking their head at a child will communicate the same meaning as ‘no’).
Reduplication
Repeated syllables within a word (e.g. baa baa for blanket).
Diminutives
The reduction in scale of an item through the way the word is created. (e.g. doggie instead of dog-this is a more accessible word choice for children that is phonologically easier.)
Addition
Adding an additional suffix to the end of a word in order to change the way in which the word is pronounced and interpreted (e.g. dolly instead of doll).
Two-word stage
A period of time when a child begins to put two words together (e.g. kick ball).
Telegraphic stage
A period of time when a child’s utterances will be three words and more; there might still be omission of some words, with the key words included.
Grammatical words
Words within a sentence that are necessary to demonstrate structural accuracy.
Post-telegraphic stage
A period of time when a child’s language will include both content and grammatical words and more closely resemble adult speech.
CDS (child directed speech)
The various ways in which a caregiver (unconsciously) adapts their speech in order to aid a child in their language development.
Expansion
Where a caregiver might develop the child’s utterance to make it more grammatically complete.
Recast
The grammatically incorrect utterance of a child is spoken back to the child but in the correct form.
Mitigated Imperatives
An instruction given in such a way that does not appear to be a command but a more gentle suggestion.
Halliday (1975)
Identified seven different functions that might be served when a child uses language. He suggested that by having an intended outcome or motivation for using language, a child will be motivated to further use language.
Instrumental function
Where the child is trying to fulfil a need (asking for food or a drink.)
Regulatory function
Used to control the behaviour of someone (telling a caregiver to sit.)
Interactional function
used to develop relationships with others (telling a sibling you love them.)
Personal function
Used to express views and preferences (me no like)
Heuristic function
Used to explore the world around them (What you doing mummy?)
Imaginative Function
Used to explore something creatively or during play.
Representational function
Used to exchange information-to give or receive information.
Hyponym
The more specific words that can be defined within the more generic hypernym. E.g. apples, pears and grapes are hyponyms
Hypernyms
The more generic term that is connected to more specific word choices that are all within the same semantic field. E.g. fruit
Jean Aitchison
Labelling, packaging and network-building of a child’s language acquisition of vocabulary.
Features of CDS
higher or melodic pitch More frequent or longer pauses Slower and clearer speech Repetition Grammatically simple sentences More questions-including tag questions Use of diminutives Use of nouns rather than pronouns Inclusive pronouns Politeness features Mitigated imperatives Recasts Expansion
Sunstitution
The process of swapping one sound for another (that is easier to produce)
Assimilation
One consonant or vowel is swapped for another
Deletion of final consonant
Omitting the sound as the end of the word for ease of articulation.
Deletion of unstressed syllables
Omitting a particular sound in the word for ease of articulation.
Consonant cluster reduction
Reducing phonologically more complex units into simpler ones-from two or more consonants down to one.
IRF
Used by caregivers to develop children’s language-initiation, response, feedback.
Categorical overextension
The name for one member of a family is extended to all members of the category.Apple used for all round fruits
Analogical overextension
A word for one object is extended to one in a different category; usually on the basis that it has some physical or functional connection.Ball used for a round fruit
Mismatch statements
One-word sentences that appear quite abstract; child makes a statement about one object in relation to another.Saying duck when looking at an empty pond
MLU
Mean length of utterance-the average utterance length of speakers calculated by adding up the total number of words spoken and dividing this total by the number of utterances- it is a broad way of exploring a participant’s input and can be linked to discussion of dominance.
Copula Verb
a verb that joins a subject to an adjective or noun complement: for example, ‘I am happy’ joins the subject ‘I’ to the adjective ‘happy’, which can include not just the verb ‘to be’ but also verbs like ‘to look’, ‘feel’ or ‘seem’
Chomsky
Nativist – children are born with a language acquisition device. They have an innate ability to acquire language
Piaget
Cognitive – children develop their linguistic competence alongside their ability to understand the world around them.
Skinner
Behaviourist – children learn primarily through imitation and patterns of positive or negative reinforcement from their carers.
Bruner
Interactional – children learn through the input of their carers, correcting and supporting their linguistic development.
Lenneberg
Critical period – children have a limited period during which their language can develop rapidly. After this, language development is much harder
MKO
more knowledgeable other-the older participant in an interaction who might offer support to a cild so that they can further their own development or learning.
ZPD
Zone of proximal development-describes the area between what a child already do and that which is beyond their reach. It is the area into which a caregiver might enable the child to progress by offering the necessary support or scaffolding to facilitate learning.
Tomasello (2003)
Usage based linguistics-a model that emphasises that language structure emerges from use in that linguistic patterns are formed and become what we know as grammatical constructions.
Operant conditioning
The idea that either a positive or a negative response given by a caregiver can influence the way in which a child talks on future occasions.
Positive reinforcement
The positive feedback given to a child which is thought to encourage similar performance again.
LAD
Language acquisition device-as proposed by Chomsky is the idea that all humans are born with an innate language learning capacity.
Universal grammar
Term coined by Chomsky- the notion that all human language possess similar grammatical properties which the brain is hard wired to be able to decode and use.
Virtuous errors
Grammatical errors that are understandable and logical through an incorrect assumption being made by grammatical rules.
Cognitive development
a child’s development of thinking and understanding.
LASS
Language Acquisition Support System as proposed by Bruner (i.e. the caregivers and other individuals who play a key role in a child’s language development.)
Scaffolding
the support provided by caregivers through modelling how speech ought to take place, in order to help the child’s language development.
Egocentric
Thinking only of themselves, without understanding or regard for the feelings of others.
Object permanence
an understanding that objects continue to exist even when they can’t be seen or touched.
Bellugi (1971)
Bellugi also looked at the stages that children learned to use pronouns, she found the following:
The child uses their own name or a name rather than a pronoun (Tom play)
The child uses the I/me pronouns but doesn’t always use them correctly. The child will recognise that there is a difference between subject and object pronouns but will not be able to apply this understanding correctly.
The child uses the I/me pronouns (subject and object pronouns in the correct places of a sentence E.g.- I play with the toy/ Give that to me. )
Cuttenden (1979)
identified three stages in the acquisition of inflections.
Stage 1-Inconsistent usage-correct usage some of the time because they have learnt the word and not the grammatical rule.
Stage 2-Consistent usage but sometime misapplied-mistaken applications e.g. past tense inflection to irregular verbs-virtuous errors.
Stage 3-Consistent usage-This is when children are able to cope with irregular forms successfully.
Bellugi stages of negation
1-18 months-Uses ‘no’ or ‘not’ at the beginning or the end of a sentence to make things negative.
Between 2 and 3 years-Children start to use no and not in front of verbs, like ‘I no want juice’. They also develop the use of contracted negatives like can’t and don’t ‘I can’t drink it’. These two forms sometimes get mixed up, ‘I can’t like it’.
From 3 years and upwards-Attaches the negative auxiliary verb to the main verb securely. Children stop using ‘no’ and ‘not’ like they did in stage 1. They standardise their use of can’t and don’t and start using other negative contractions like didn’t and won’t, ‘she didn’t catch it’. The use of ‘isn’t’ develops later.
