Several studies have begun to investigate the claim that children can make most phonological discriminations when they begin to speak. This paper investigates how well children aged 2;3 to 2;11 can discriminate between pairs of minimally different real words, and it shows that the results are affected by how well the children know the words. It is…

This paper proposes a broad outline of a variable model of language development and explores several particulars of such a model in the language behavior of four two-year-old children. The process by which information about language is progressively transformed and integrated rather than merely being added together can be seen in the shifting…

This document is Part I of a two-part project whose goal was to identify the sequential development of child behavior from birth through age seven and to identify the materials which could be used to strengthen or initiate a behavioral facet. Research on child development was collected, organized, and analyzed for correlative events pertinent to…

This analysis of Brazilian baby talk (BT) includes data from two sources: elicitations of the use of BT from three mothers, all of whom have university degrees, and observations of adult-child interactions in the home. The data shows Ferguson's modified list of thirty lexical items that frequently have BT forms in various languages and the…

The Preschool Inventory is the task in this battery most clearly associated with general cognitive development. It measures a range of verbal, quantitative, and perceptual-motor skills. The Inventory was first developed as a general achievement measure for Head Start children. The 1970 edition of the Inventory contains 64 items in four areas:…

This document presents details for a supplemental oral language development program for children in the elementary grades learning to speak American English as a second language. The booklet discusses the purpose and objectives of the program and describes the materials to be used, the physical set-up, teaching techniques and learning activities…

This study identifies the policy variables that are effective in increasing student verbal achievement in urban grammar schools and high schools, and estimates the impact of these variables upon verbal achievement, expected years of education completed by a typical student, and expected lifetime earnings of a typical student. A theoretical model…

During 1966-1967, Negro and Spanish-American pupils in grades 1 and 2 of seven Milwaukee elementary schools received a program of intensive assistance from trained speech therapists. The goals of the program were (1) to increase the verbal ability of disadvantaged children to enable them to compete with middle-class children of the same age, and…

Operant conditioning techniques were used to modify verbal behavior in 18 institutionalized, trainable mentally handicapped mongoloids with chronological ages from 4-6 to 7-10 and mental ages from 2.0 to 2.10. Two instruments were constructed to evaluate language: a language test and a speech rating scale. Project leaders had no prior knowledge of…

Commercially available toys and games for children with educational handicaps, from general retardation to disabilities in limited areas of functioning are listed. For each toy, the name, manufacturer, and sex and age interest are stated; a description of the toy is given. All toys are classified according to the intellectual functions involved.…

To examine the differences between mother-child interaction in middle class and in isolated rural poor families, a sample of 24 rural poor and 12 middle class mothers were videotaped as they interacted with their preschool children in structured situations. (Rural poor mothers were found to initiate verbal interaction with a question, a situation…

This training manual and companion videotapes comprise an educational program for professionals and paraprofessionals who work with young children with language disorders. The program is particularly helpful in serving children from linguistic minority backgrounds and their families. The program's strategies are also appropriate for teachers and…

Discusses the centers of language in the brain and the critical period for language acquisition. Explains developmental milestones of language development--receptive language, babbling, short phrases, full sentences--in the context of brain development. Emphasizes parents' role in language development, including talking to the child, dialogic…

This document provides a series of learning activities for parents to conduct with their second-graders to reinforce school lessons. Nine activities are provided for each month of the year (organized September to August). The document also offers a summary of normal development for children ages 5 to 10 years and a bibliography of authors, poems,…

A pilot study with 17 middle school science teachers at 15 schools was conducted to determine how to use interactive videodisc technology to develop student ability to use visual skills in processing science information, thereby improving science achievement. The first year's progress is described in identifying how visual images seem to affect…