Background: The Language Development Survey (LDS) and the MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventories (MB-CDI) are two parental report forms that have been productive in providing data on early child language during the past 30 years. The instruments have been used both in studies relating to typical developing children and in screening…

In this paper, we present an examination of the literature on prolonged periods of silence in children from the perspective of two different scientific fields. The aim is to call attention to the inherent complexity of the factors that may be involved in the etiology of mutistic behavior during child development. Medical and linguistic literature…

Children from low-income environments are at increased risk of developing language delays which can negatively affect later academic and social outcomes. As children age, deficits between children with language delays and their typically developing peers continue to widen. In order to prevent future disabilities, efficient early language screening…

Background: Research has investigated late-talking toddlers because they are at great risk of continuing to experience language-learning difficulties once they enter school and hence are candidates for early intervention. It is also important to consider this group of children with regards to the immediate characteristics which are detrimental to…

The review of research on language development in young children with Down's syndrome indicates that these children develop language in the same sequence as children without Down's syndrome, but that they experience delays. Educators should initiate language programs as early as possible, enlist parent participation, and select normative language…

The article describes possible reasons, other than stuttering, for children's disfluent speech, presents typical case profiles for different types of disfluency, and suggests appropriate case management procedures. (Author/DB)

Reviews the literature on late talkers, children producing fewer than 50 words and/or limited word combinations by 24 months of age. Notes that a substantial number of these children will continue to have difficulties with expressive language acquisition. Clinical implications for speech language pathologists working with these children are…

Explores the development in children of dual-level phonological processing. The study suggests that even language-delayed six year olds form underlying representations composed of morphophonemic segments. Differences in performance between the groups studied (first graders, young adults, language-delayed first graders) are discussed. (55…

Outlines the stages of prosodic development that children follow from the beginning of word acquisition through the end of the second year of life. How these stages can be used to provide a model for treatment when working with children who display delayed phonological development is addressed. (Author/CR)

The paper reviews and critiques research on incidental language teaching, a method which refers to interactions between an adult and a child that arise naturally in an unstructured situation and that are used systematically by the adult to transmit new information or give the child practice in developing a communication skill. Studies of this…

Reviewed are language research thrusts of the 1970s relevant to language-delayed children: the change in focus to communication, rather than vocal requirements, and examinations of caretaker-infant interactions. Concerning language intervention with severely delayed children, language content and use objectives are identified and parent…

Delayed language development is compared to normal development along six basic parameters, and the problem of language delay among handicapped children is addressed. Interaction characteristics that occur at an early stage between the mother and handicapped child are also reviewed, along with the way parents tend to compensate for their child's…

A child's need for formal communication may be as much an emotional need as a cognitive need. Several theories attempt to explain children's language development, including the theories developed by B. F. Skinner, Noam Chomsky, and J. Bruner. Most children typically follow a standard sequence of language development: crying and cooing, babbling,…

This informational document is intended to help answer questions commonly asked by families, professionals, and the general public concerning Down Syndrome. Medical problems associated with Down Syndrome include heart conditions, upper respiratory disorders, ear infections and hearing loss, vision/eye problems, cervical problems, and…

This edited volume investigates the connections between the earliest human sounds and subsequent language development. With special attention to tracheostomies, Downs syndrome, deafness, and speech-motor impairments, the interaction between speech and language is examined in typical development as well as the effect that the interaction has on…