1. Chapter 2 First Language Acquisition

2. Explain the Behavioral approaches to L1 acquisition

3. Q: Children create ‘novel’ sentences. How do we explain this?

4. Q: Explain the Nativist approaches to L1 acquisition

5. Q: Explain LAD(Language Acquisition Device)

6. Universal Grammar If human beings are brought up under normal conditions, they will always develop language with certain properties (e.g., distinguishing nouns from verbs, or distinguishing function words from content words). There is an innate, genetically determined language faculty that knows these rules, making it easier and faster for children to learn to speak than it otherwise would be.

7. Q: Explain the Functional approaches to L1 acquisition

8. Piaget’s theory of cognitive development
Children construct an understanding of the world around them, experience discrepancies between what they already know and what they discover in their environment, then adjust their ideas accordingly.
Cognitive development is at the center of the human organism, and language is contingent on knowledge and understanding acquired through cognitive development. According to Piaget, children develop best in a classroom with interaction.

9. Q: Explain the difference between Competence and Performance

10. Q: Explain the difference between Comprehension and Production

11. Discussion topics
Nature vs. Nurture (p.38)
Universal vs. Language-specific (p.40)
Does language affect thought? (p.42)