Spoken Language Acquisition

Spoken Language Acquisition

1. Stages of Language Acquisition

   • 1) Pre-Verbal
     • 6 MONTHS
     • -Babbling -Produces the full range of speech sounds
   • 2) Holophrastic
     • 12-14 MONTHS
     • -Single words for complex ideas -Used for an action, emotions or to name a function
   • 3) Two Word
     • AROUND 24 MONTHS
     • -'Mummy socks' could mean Mummy's socks or she is putting her socks on. They have no distinctions between the difference.
   • 4) Telegrpahic
     • 24-30 MONTHS
     • -Use almost all nouns and verbs -Begin to use English sentences
   • 5) Post Telegraphic
     • 36 MONTHS
     • -Use grammatically complex combinations -Use conjunctions (and, but, if) -Use 'runned' instead of 'ran'

2. Linguistics surrounding Child directed speech

   • Phonology
     • -Separate phrases more distinctly -Exaggerated 'singsong' intonations which emphasise key words
   • Lexis & Semantics
     • -Concrete nouns (phone, dog, computer) -Dynamic verbs (play, swim) -Adopt child's own words for things -Frequent use of childs name rather than pronouns
   • Pragmatics
     • -Gestures and body language -Fewer utterances pet turn and stop for the child to respond
   • Grammar
     • -Simple sentences -Imperatives used often -Personal names over pronouns

3. Theorists

   • Halliday (1978)
     • Functional language model
       • Instrumental: Requests for objects/needs
       • Regulatory: Request for an action to be performed (control is shown)
       • Interactional: Used to communicate with others. This is often vocalisation of appearance of others.
       • Personal: Show feelings, attitudes and personal elements of interaction
       • 16-35 MTHS
       • 9-12 MTHS
       • Heuristic: Asking questions and exploring reality
       • Imaginative: Creating an environment such as play language
       • Informative: Communicating new ideas about something
   • John Dore
     • Language functions
       • Labelling: Touching an object and saying its name
       • Repeating: Saying what an adult has said
       • Answering: Answering an adults question
       • Requesting Action: Trying to do a task and failing, therefore making noises to show they cant
       • Requesting: Asking questions
       • Calling: Shouting
       • Greeting: Hi, Hello
       • Protesting: Shouting 'don't want' at actions
       • Practising: Uttering word when object isn't present
   • Ursula Bellugi
     • 3 stages of a child's use of pronouns
       • 1) A child using their own name (Meg play)
       • 2) Recognising the I/me use in a sentence)
       • 3) Using pronouns based on subject or object position in the sentence
   • Aitchinson
     • Stages of children's linguistic development
       • 1) Labelling: Linking words to object
       • 2) Packaging: Exploring the label and seeing what it applies too
       • 3) Network-building: Connections between words. Similarities and opposite meanings.
   • Sinclair & Coulthard (1975)
     • Initiation: Mother asking question (What do we say to Nan)
     • Response: Child responding to question (Thank you Nan)
     • Feedback: Praising the child for response (Well done)
   • Roger Brown (1973)
     • 5 stages of language development regarding grammar
       • 1) 15-30 MONTHS: No bound morphemes, MLU 1.75, Word order is generally correct
       • 2) 28-36 MONTHS: Bound morphemes appear, 'ing' suffix, regular plurals appear, MLU 2.25
       • 3) 36-42 MONTHS: Possessive appear (Dad's car), MLU 2.75, Adjectives and adverbs appear, use 'A' and 'The'
       • 4) 40-46 MONTHS: Regular past tense with -ed, MLU 3.5
       • 5) 42-53 MONTHS: Compound sentences, MLU 4

4. Terminology

   • Over-applying a rule: A child using 'drinked' rather than 'drank
   • Virtuous error: Non-standard tenses and person
   • Overextension: Labelling one word for every type of similar object (The sea for all water)
   • Underextension: Only applying one word for their own object (Seeing a bottle of milk and not calling it milk as their bottle is milk)
   • Proto word: Made up words by children to represent an object/person
   • Content word: Vital words for convey meaning

5. Pronunciation issues

   • Addition: Adding sounds to words (Doga)
   • Deletion: Deleting sounds (at not hat)
   • Reduplication: Repeating a syllable in a target word
   • Substitution: Substitute a sound (wabbit)
   • Consonant cluster reduction: Occurs when a cluster of rounds are reduced (peak for speak)