Chapter 5: Language and Literacy Development

1. Chapter 5: Language and Literacy Development PED 392 Child Growth and Development

2. Definitions • Language • A symbolic system: a series of sounds or gestures in which words represent an idea, object or person • Literacy • The ability to construct and express meaning through reading, writing and discussing texts

3. Definitions (pg 257) • Phonology • The sounds of a language, the rules for combining them to make words, along with stress and intonation patterns. • Semantics • The meaning of words. (art, rat, tra?) • Syntax • The way words are combined to form phrases and sentences in a language (order)

4. Definitions (Pg 257) cont. • Pragmatics • The strategies for using language appropriately in different contexts (rules) • Lexicon • Vocabulary • Metalinguistics • Understanding of language as language (properties)

5. Critical periods • Children must acquire a language by a certain point • Words, vocabulary and sentence structure are formed by a certain point, meaning that children must not miss portions, or they will not properly acquire the language.

6. Theories • Behaviorist – language is learned through environment (Skinner) • Nativist – language is biological (Chomsky) • Interactionist(cognitive) – language is learned through interactions with others and the environment (Piaget) • Interactionist (contextual) – Language is sociocultural – cognitive and environmental (Vygotsky)

7. Chart (pg 272) • 0-6 months • Coos and cries • Recognizes voices • 6-12 months • Babbles • Uses voice for attention • Waves bye-bye

8. Chart (pg 272) • 12-18 months • First words • Shakes head (yes and no) • I, me, you • 18-24 months • 2 word phrases • Refers to self by name • 50-200 words

9. Chart (pg 272) • 24-36 months • 3 word sentences • Songs and rhymes • Conversations • 400+ words

10. Multiple languages • Bilingual • Speaking 2 languages • Multilingual • Speaking more than 2 languages • Simultaneous Bilinguals • Learning 2 languages at the same time

11. Principles of Language development (pg 281-283) • Language is a social phenomenon • Children acquire language without direct instruction and in a relatively short time • All languages are symbol systems with socially constructed rules for combining sounds into words for making meaning with words and for arranging words into sentences

12. Principles of Language development (pg 281-283) cont. • Language is so complex, children can not learn the system all at once • Language comprehension generally comes before language production • Language is linked to identity. • Language abilities grow by using language in meaningful contexts

13. Development of literacy (pg 293) • Birth to 3 years • Recognizes book cover • Pretends to read • Labels objects in book • Produces letter-like scribbles • 3 to 4 years • Knows 10 letters of alphabet (usually from name) • Understands sequences in stories • Shows interest in reading • Questions and comments

14. Development of literacy (pg 293) • Kindergarten age • Retells stories • Connects letters and sounds • Matches spoken words with written words • Writes letters and some words

15. Writing • Handwriting • Spelling • Prephonectic – consonants; parts of words (rt for rabbit) • Phonetic – consonants and vowels; match to sounds • Transitional – chunking patterns • Conventional – conventional patterns • Automatic - memorized

16. Functionally literate • Not able to read or write well enough for normal daily tasks • Applications • Newspaper • Phone book • Must teach people to read and write appropriately

17. Dialects • A variation in a language • Accent is the way sounds are pronounced • Standard American English (SAE) • The dialect of the language spoken in schools • English as a Second Language (ESL) • TESOL – Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Language