STAGES OF FIRST LANGUAGE ACQUISITION CHAPTER 13 B STAGES OF FIRST LANGUAGE ACQUISITION https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Cgpfw4z8cw

First Language Acquisition: General Characteristics and Requirements 1- Children are born with a special capacity for language 2- 3- 4- 5- 6- 7-

Things to remember We acquire language in stages All normal children develop language at roughly same time, along much the same schedule. All of us go through similar stages We don’t merely imitate sounds around us We are genetically predisposed to acquisition Our brains are hardwired to handle language A child must be able to hear language being used in order to be able to speak. Caregiver speech uses simple sentences, a lot of repetition, and paraphrasing. We are focusing on the English acquisition process

Pre-linguistic Stages Crying - Birth-2 months -any involuntary vocal production Cooing - 2 – 5 months - primarily vowel like sounds [i], [u] Babbling - 6-12 months - primarily syllable like sounds (ba-ba-ba; ma-ma-ma) Linguistic Stage

Linguistic Stages Telegraphic Speech ONE-Word Stage 12th to 18th month: single- unit utterances Speech in single terms and everyday items: ‘milk’, ‘cookie’, ‘cat’, ‘cup’, ‘mama’ Holophrastic = a single form that functions as a phrase or sentence. Example: ‘Milk!’ = “Give me milk!” Generally used to name objects Extension of its use to more complex circumstances TWO-Word Stage 18th to 20th month Child’s vocabulary: around 50 words Baby chair, mommy eat, cat play Communication: after production of speech child receives feedback. This is interaction 24th month: 200 to 300 words Telegraphic Speech Between 2 and 2 ½ years old: multiple word speech Strings of words in phrases or sentences Almost complete sentences Correct word order Inflections (wants, cats) and prepositions (in, on) Variation in word-forms Physical development: running and jumping Adult’s influence in child’s speech development

Guess the age of the child

Language acquisition, imitation, and correction First language is not taught but acquired over time Deaf children stop making utterances after 6 months Children’s language journey incorporates a lot of mistakes, errors, repetition, and trial Children do not simply imitate adults, they actively construct words and phrases based on the rules they pick up intuitively. Studies show that adult’s correction of children’s speech does not help much, they have their own way of saying things. They may repeat for a moment but they go back to their own way after a moment. A child neither imitates an adult not accepts correction.

Correction Child: Want one other spoon, Daddy. Father: You mean, you want the other spoon. Child: Yes, I want one other spoon, please Daddy. Father: Can you say “the other spoon”? Child: Other…one…spoon. Father: Say “other.” Child: Other. Father: “Spoon.” Child: Spoon. Father: “Other spoon.” Child: Other…spoon. Now give me one other spoon. Quoted in Braine, 1971

Verb “Woodstock” Noah: This is Woodstock. (bobbing a stuffed Woodstock toy in Adam’s face) Adam: Hey Woodstock, don’t do that. (Noah persists) Adam : I’m going home so you won’t *Woodstock me.

Children’s speech is creative and shows comprehension, even when the child is unable to repeat exactly what has been said: Father: “The owl that eats candy runs fast.” Child: “Owl eat candy and he run fast.”

Development of Morphology Children already learn a great deal of vocabulary and grammatical rules by the age of 2 ½ years. After this phase they try to incorporate different morphology in their sentences. Begins with –ing ( brother reading, mommy watching, etc.) That is followed by the use of regular plural -s (boy-boys, dog-dogs) they overgeneralize it to the nouns like (foot-foots vs feet vs feets; tooth-tooths vs teeth vs teeths) Almost at the same time they start using various forms of ‘be’ verb (am, is, are, was, etc.) They use regular past forms (walk-walked; move-moved; play-played) The overgeneralize the past making procedure and use it with any verb they come across to denote past (go-goed vs went vs wented, walk-walked vs walkeded, come-comed vs came vs camed, do-doed vs did) Parents do not necessarily be alarmed or vexed to hear the above expressions. They indicate that their child is trying to use different structures and try to make sense.

Overgeneralization example… Child: My teacher holded the baby rabbits and we patted them. Mother: Did you say your teacher held the baby rabbits? Child: Yes. Mother: What did you say she did? Child: She holded the baby rabbits and we patted them. Mother: Did you say she held them tightly? Child: No, she holded them loosely. 4 year old quoted in Cazden, 1972

Development of Syntax Syntax is the arrangement of words and phrases to create well-formed sentences in a language. (Proper placement of nouns, verbs, etc.)

Forming Questions This skills develops in phases: First Phase (18 months – 26 months): Simply adds –wh expressions before a word or phrase and/or utters with rising intonation, like Where mom? Dad? Why go? Where cat go? Second Phase (22 months-3 months): Still rely on intonation but are able to form complex form, like See my toy? What book name? You want eat? Third Phase (24 months -40 months): Able to use auxiliary verbs; know that verbs should precede nouns; may still feel comfortable to use –wh words; still have some traces of overgeneralization, like Can I see that? Why she can’t eat an apple? How that opened? Will you help me?

Forming Negatives Similar to Question, this skill develops in phases First Stage: Children just put the word ‘no’ in front of the expression, like no mitten not teddy bear no fall no sit here Second Stage: use the words ‘no/not’ in front of verbs rather than nouns, more negative markers like ‘don’t; can’t’ are used, like She not go. I can’t do it. He don’t give me. They not play. Third Stage: Use huge range of auxiliary verbs; adult like competency; still make errors; the expression ‘isn’t’ does not appear until the beginning of this phase, like I didn’t catch it. She won’t let go. This isn’t ice cream. Nobody don’t like me.

Developing Semantics Meaning making capacity of child grows over time. Funny anecdotes are available of children who group similar looking things together. Overextension: extension of meaning based on similarities of shape, sound, size, color (also movement and texture) Examples: Child uses the word apple to mean apple, tomato, and ball Child says ‘daddy’ to every male of her/his father’s age and ‘mommy’ to the women Child uses the word cat to mean cat and dog http://youtu.be/AgY7nkbYFaw

Discussion Questions What are children doing along their process of first language acquisition? From your own experiences as learners and users of your first language, what experiences can you recall of these processes, both at home and at school? Why is knowledge in this area necessary for future language teachers? (English Language Arts, English as a Foreign Language, English as a Second Language)? How does this knowledge prepare you to read about and understand Second Language Acquisition Theories?

How Children Learn Language http://youtu.be/ir7arILiqxg Steven Pinker is a Psychologist and Linguist at Harvard.