Language Acquisition Terminology

Language Acquisition Terminology

1. Grammar

   • Inflections
     • Word endings; '-ing','-ed'.
   • Holophrase
     • Single word utterance.
   • Rudimentary Statement
     • Ommiting less important words in an utterance; 'bird gone'
   • Non-Standard Verb Tense
     • Applying a standard tense to non standard verb, e.g. catched.
   • Non-Standard Plural
     • Applying a standard verb tense to a non standard e.g. mouses
   • Telegrammatical language
     • Missing words out.
   • Overgeneralisation
     • Incorrectly applying inflections. E.g. Sheeps
   • Grammatical Morphemes
     • '-s' for plurality and '-ed' for tense.
   • Inflectional Morphemes
     • Ways in which words order to mark tense e.g. run/ran/jumped or plural socks/children/sheep
   • Length of Utterance
     • Older the child, the more lengthy the utterance
   • Subordinate conjunctions
     • 'if', 'what', 'when' develop at about 5 years.
   • Two word utterances

2. Lexis

   • Fast Mapping
     • Linking a word after hearing to an object, can lead to over extension.
   • Over Extension
     • Words have a broader meaning e.g. dog for all animals.
   • Naming Explosion
     • Dramatic increase in pace when children acquire language.
   • Under Extension
     • Words have a narrower meaning. E.g. 'shoes' when only referring to their own.
   • Referential style
     • Words mostly consist of references to people or places.
   • Classification of 50 first words
     • Naming things
     • Actions or events
     • Describing
     • Personal

3. Phonology

   • Intonations
     • Sound patterns produced by a variation in voice and tone.
   • Pre-Verbal Stages
     • Biological noises
       • 0-8 weeks- coughing, crying
   • Cooing and Laughing
     • 8-20 weeks- Short vowel sunds
   • Vocal Play
     • 20-30 weeks- more definate and controlled
   • Babbling
     • 25-50 weeks
   • Melodic Utterances
     • 36-72 weeks- intonation, rhyme and melody

4. Links to AO2

   • Parental Contribution
     • Regulate, modify and correct child's speech.
   • CDS (Child Direct Speech) or Motherese
     • Adult 'talk' when speaking to children.
   • Linguistic Universal
     • An aspect of development that ALL children share
   • Regulatory
     • From parents. E.g. 'can I borrow...'
   • Sociolinguistic rules
     • Culturally determined rules that dictate how language should be used in a social context.

5. Pragmatics

   • Halliday's stages
     • Instrumental
     • Heuristic
     • Representational
     • Personal
     • Imaginative
     • Interactional
     • Regulatory