In our last chapter 4 entry, Maggie gives us a final reminder that talking to and interacting with babies is the best way to foster language development. I'm sure you'll appreciate her personal perspective on Elkind's work.
Many parents seem to believe that in order for their child to develop linguistically, they need to buy them the newest innovative toy or product that will engage language learning. Hundreds upon hundreds of dollars are being spent on products that are NOT necessary for the growth of that child. Why? Because all you need to help your child grow linguistically is to talk to them. That’s it. Talk to them; interact with them, etc. According to the authors, we learn language through social relationships. I know it’s easy to believe that a computer game or a TV show can help children learn “faster” or be a step ahead, but in reality, it’s just a sales pitch.
I didn’t grow up in a technology-rich environment. We didn’t have a computer, fancy toys, or anything that would “enhance language learning.” Even though I didn’t have those things, I can fluently speak, read, and write two languages: English and Spanish. Spanish was my first language because my parents only speak Spanish. They didn’t buy CD’s that would constantly tell me that “casa” means “house” in Spanish. They just talked to me through daily interactions. By the time I was 3 years old I was speaking fluent Spanish without help from any “language enhancement” product. I didn’t have Leapfrog to help me learn English, either. I went to school and was immersed in the English language. My teachers spoke to me in English, my peers spoke to me in English, etc. THAT is how I learned to speak English. I learned Spanish at home and English at school; both languages were learned through social interaction and communication.
Children can learn new languages easily because according to Chomsky, we have a natural instinct for picking up language. We don’t need to be given a lesson on language as we learn to speak it. A child’s mind begins to decipher pauses, fluctuations, syllables, words, phrases, sentences, etc. In fact, by the seventh month of the pregnancy, the child can already begin to hear snippets of conversations in the outside world. Mom speaks to her baby or to others around her throughout the day, so the child is already exposed to the mother’s language. By 4.5 months, a baby can decipher when a sentence ends and another begins by hearing the pauses and fluctuations of the sentences. In addition, around the same time, babies will begin to recognize their own names. Constantly, they hear their names being called when being addressed by their parents, family, etc. Studies have been done where they are called by a different name by one person and their own name by another, and the baby is more likely to respond to their own name than the other name.
At six months, a child still does not have verbal language, but they do have a type of language. Language is a means to communicate; who said language had to be verbal? At six months, a baby can follow us with their eyes or gaze at an object they find interesting. By nine months, they can also follow where our finger is pointing, if we decide to show them something by pointing at it. This may not be verbal language, but a gaze can say, “Oh, look at that. That looks interesting.” In response, the parent can see the infant gazing at the object and then bring it to the child.
As the child continues to grow linguistically, they begin to babble. This constitutes sound patterns like “ba,” “da,” “ma,” etc. For a while, the baby continues to babble until they start to connect objects or people to their babbles. Soon, they begin to hear and catch more words in their vocabulary, and are able to say them. By 18 months, a child can name people, animals, and objects they see constantly, like foods, toys, etc. Soon, they begin to make two-word sentences like, “Dada home” instead of “Daddy is home.”
By the time a child is 3 years old, they can speak in clear sentences, and they begin to realize we mostly speak in past tense. In addition, they notice that we add –ed to the end of words spoken in past tense. This is fascinating because they see this pattern on their own. No one stopped them in the middle of the day to explain how to say a word in past tense. By 4 years old, a child begins to notice when and how to use certain words or phrases. For example, saying, “Have a good day!” or “Hope you had fun!” Also at this age, they begin to understand the context, setting, and storylines in stories. Although they may not know the terminology, they understand that Cinderella first lived with her mean stepmother, and then went to the ball, then married the prince. Of course, the more we speak to children, the more language they will acquire, and storytelling is one of the best mediums for this.
Language development is best developed when children are spoken to more often. This means actual conversation, not, “Go to bed,” “Clean your room,” “Don’t make a mess,” etc. They need to have real conversations. Ask open-ended questions. Expand the conversation. The more this is done, the more the child will develop linguistically. You don’t need Leapfrog, or other fancy products and toys to stimulate language enhancement, just talk to them.
While our individual experiences do not always reflect what the research shows -- especially because research looks at group norms -- your example of your own language development fits the textbook description of what SHOULD happen. I think it's hard for people to believe that simple face-to-face interaction is really best for language development -- especially with all the high-tech gadgets available for such small children. This is definitely a situation where keeping it simple really is best!
ReplyDeleteAfter reading chapter four and Maggie’s blog I began to realize the importance of interacting verbally with children. I agree with both Maggie and the book regarding verbal communication being the best method to help children acquire language. There is no need to buy any technological product to improve children learning. Similar to Maggie I was raised in a culture in which technology did not play a role in children’s development. We did not have computers or any other toy that helped us develop language. However, our social interaction with people around us played that important role in our development. Many parents are focused on all the products thinking that it will help their children become intellectual; but, they ignore the fact that not all children learn at the same pace. The book mentioned that “Some children say no words at all at 16 months, and some say as many as 100. Some children talk in short sentences at 18 months, and some don’t use sentences until 28 months” (p. 63). I work at a day care and I have noticed the difference in the children’s language. Some toddlers are speaking more than others and the most important thing is that we do not use any technological product at all. Parents need to stop wasting their money buying expensive products and realize that the key for learning is simply communication.
ReplyDeleteBelinda Gutierrez Ornelas
I agree that children do not need to be exposed to the television or the computer in order to develop their language. I work at the infant and toddler center at Fresno State and I often experience these verbal and nonverbal languages with the children. Many of the infants and toddlers in our class do not speak verbally. Since these young children have not yet developed their verbal language, we have to communicate with them in another way. We do this by using hand gestures or sign language. Sign language seems to work very well with the children. I remember a toddler at my workplace who wanted a toy microphone that was on top of a shelf that he could not reach. He knowingly pointed to the shelf and said, “Shelf.” I honestly had no clue what the child wanted, but I knew that he wanted something from the shelf. I touched almost everything on the shelf, but I could see in his face that every toy I touched was not the right one. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get what he wanted because there were too many toys up there. He dropped to the floor and yelled in frustration; I told him, “Use your words please.” At last he said, “Microphone,” so I reached for the microphone and gave it to him. I believe that the best way for children to learn their verbal and nonverbal language is through direct interaction. Children do not necessarily need to be exposed to television or computer to develop their language.
ReplyDeleteHnou Moua