This study examined consonant cluster production, especially general trends and individual differences, in 16 typically developing 2-year-olds over six months. Data demonstrated that the toddlers could produce an increasing range of consonant clusters in word-initial and word-final position, although few could produce them correctly. Specific…

This study examined phonological changes in the conversational speech of children between the ages of 2 and 3 years. Phonological analysis of conversational samples obtained from the same children at three-month intervals showed significant differences among children in rates of final consonant deletion, cluster reduction, vowelization, and…

A natural language sample of babble and words was obtained for 47 2-year-old children and compared with expressive language scores 5 months later. More than 50 percent of the variance in language outcome test scores was accounted for by rate of word use, rate of vowel babble, and behavior problems. (Author/DB)

This study examined the influence of metrical patterns (syllable stress and serial position) of words on the production accuracy of 20 children (ages 22 months to 28 months). Among results were that one-fourth of the initial unstressed syllables were omitted and that consonant omissions, though few, tended to occur in the initial position.…

Free play and elicited language samples were obtained monthly for 10 to 12 months from five late talking children. Analysis indicated that three of the children resolved their late onset of speech by 33 to 35 months of age. Both quantitative factors (e.g., limited phonetic inventory) and qualitative factors (e.g., atypical error patterns) were…

This study investigated developmental patterns of acquisition of the unrounded U.S. English vowels, by following 6 normally developing children from 22 to 30 months of age. Three classes of production errors were identified: intertrial production variability, context-sensitive substitutions, and context-free systematic substitution patterns.…

This study examined whether toddlers build a repertoire of words as integral sequences of gestures and then differentiate these sequences into their gestural and segmental components. Results demonstrate clear differences in duration and coordination of gestures between children and adults and a shift toward the patterns of adult speakers during…

This article describes the Colorado Phonetic/Phonologic Assessment of Hearing-Impaired Infants and Toddlers (PHONE) and the speech of 91 hearing-impaired infants and toddlers, examining number of vowels, consonants, elements per utterance, and utterances; differences by age and by hearing loss for each vowel and consonant; and relationship to…

Twenty-seven toddlers identified as showing specific expressive language delay (ELD) were studied and followed through the preschool period. Findings indicated that home-based intervention accelerated vocabulary skills, but did not decrease the likelihood of later phonological problems. ELD was also seen as a self-correcting condition. (PB)