Second language learning research suggests the existence of a theoretical device (a monitor) that can examine an utterance for grammaticality and appropriateness. The monitor theory gives insight into the process that native language speakers follow in learning to write their own language. The monitor can be developed consciously (learning) or…

The experiment reported here attempted to investigate the nature of both intrinsic, unlearned temporal parameters as well as learned, language-specific durational properties in the speech of young children. Developmental aspects of several temporal parameters were investigated in the speech of ten 2 1/2 to 3-year-old and ten 4 to 4 1/2-year-old…

The years after children demonstrate comprehension of particular syntactic structures have received little attention. What happens in language development after mastery is achieved? Are children then like adult speakers in judging the acceptability of grammatical structures? Questions addressed in this research were: Will older children and young…

This paper reports on a longitudinal study of the acquisition of the voicing contrast in English word-initial stop consonants, as measured by voice onset time. Four monolingual children were recorded at two week intervals, beginning when the children were about 1;6. Data provided evidence for three general stages: (1) the child has no contrast;…

This book defines the concept of language; examines what pupils do when they learn, recall, and transfer information; and explains how cognitive processes and language processes differ during various maturational levels and among various experiential settings. Subjects dealt with include: four models by which language can be studied; the elements…

This paper discusses the nature of language knowledge and the manner in which children come to acquire this knowledge. Among the topics discussed are language production and the ability to understand sentences never heard before, sentence formation, children's construction of rules, children's language creativity, language acquisition and age,…

Five severely retarded emotionally disturbed children (2-7 years old) were exposed to a prelanguage sensorimotor program for 20 weeks. The program emphasized the use of exploratory behavior and gesture imitation. Results suggested that object permanence could be encouraged using these activities but that the approach used in training imitative…

Nine deaf students (8-9 years old) participated in the Magic Circle program, a human development program designed to improve self-concept, relationships with others, and academics. Students met as a group with the school social worker for 15-30 minute sessions. The program focused on three main experiences: awareness, mastery of self-confidence…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the linguistic differences in the spontaneous speech of language-deviant children in two very different situations. Spontaneous speech samples of eleven five-year-old language-deviant children were obtained from: (1) the traditional adult-child therapy situation using appropriate stimulus materials; and…

A process-oriented research strategy was employed to examine relations among various aspects of the early home environment and children's language development. The home environments of 65 infants were assessed when the infants were 12 and/or 24 months old with the Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment (HOME). HOME includes six…

Since, by the time they enter school, children have developed a major portion of their spoken language system by being immersed in language, it seems probable that they could also apply these rules to the orthographic system if they were immersed in reading. Thus, learning to read by reading would allow the general formation of rules that could…

In speaking a child sometimes makes constructions in which a sequence of separate utterances expresses a semantic relation not expressed by either utterance. These "vertical constructions" are the main point of this study. Previous studies of construction in child language have largely dealt with sentences. In this study, sentences are…

Purpose of the Zip Pak is to give the migrant child, who enters and leaves the classroom periodically, a packet of lessons which he creates and learns. Behavioral objective is that the child will recognize approximately 10 to 15 words, selected from his spoken vocabulary, by the end of two weeks. The lessons aim to motivate the child, while at the…

Contingent social reinforcement was applied differentially to aid the behavioral and educational development of a 9-year-old severely retarded nonverbal female with quadriplegic spastic cerebral palsy. Four behaviors prerequisite and collateral to beginning language development were defined and measured: eye contact, head control, initiative…

This document is the fifth in a series of 12 early childhood program descriptions compiled by the Far West Laboratory for Educational Research and Development. The program described here is the Tucson Early Education Model (TEEM) located at the University of Arizona. The model is designed for Head Start programs and kindergarten through third…