| Age |
Understanding |
Expression |
Sound System |
Social Development + Play |
Examples |
| 6 mnths |
Responds to familiar adults by turning head |
Varied babble patterns |
Wide range of sounds, mainly b, p,d m |
Holds objects, smiles, shows pleasure |
baba dada |
| 9 mnths |
Recognises a word or phrase by looking :“Time for dinner” Will react to a phrase with an action “Wave bye bye” |
Pre-words - same sound pattern is always used for an object or event |
Combining different sounds in strings "bada" "daba" |
Copies faces, copies ‘raspberries’ and intonation patterns Takes turns in ritualised games, looks for hidden objects |
“eye ah” = cot, sleep, I’m tired, I want to go to sleep |
| 12-18 mnths |
Will select real objects by name if familiar - cup, ball, cat |
Single word used to express a whole idea |
Few, often repeated, sounds used: dodo = dog |
Stage 2 attention Realises that vocalisation get response |
“da” (cat) “di” (sleep) “wo da?” (what’s that?) |
| 18-24 mnths |
Will select dolls’ house-sized toys by name - can recognise a toy or model person or animal as a symbol for the real thing |
Sentences with two elements, where words are used in a certain order to convey relationship and meaning |
New sounds used: m, n, ng Words still simplified - ends/syllables missed, clusters reduced: spoon = poon |
Stage 2 attention continues Relates real object to self - brushes hair Begins to play with real objects -drinks pretend tea |
“ma goh” (man gone) “dada duh” (daddy running) “wa bibi” (want biscuit) “we dada?” (where’s daddy?) “ki boar” ([you] kick ball) |
| 2-3 years |
Can relate two objects together: “Put the doll on the chair”
Can select some objects by function: “Which do we sit on?” This involves inner language - an internal idea used to answer a question
Beginning to understand attributes “Which one barks?”
|
Sentence with three elements where sentences are expanded with extra words + some grammar:
Negatives: 'no' 'not' 'can't'
pronouns: 'me' 'you' 'he'
descriptive words: colours, size and 'more' ' dirty'
|
Further new sounds are added: k, g, f, s, h, w, y, l
Many sound simplification patterns operate, and speech may be difficult to understand
Simple sounds may replace more complicated ones:
soo = shoe
dup = jump
dein = train |
Throws tantrums and is less easily distracted
Emotionally dependent on adults
More sustained role play: putting doll to bed, washing clothes, driving cars, but with frequent reference to friendly adult
Watches others play, may join for a few minutes but little notion of sharing toys or adult’s attention
|
Sentence types include: Statements “di on dair” (sit on chair)
Negatives “no ball go”
Questions “where my mummy?” “why it be jumping?” “where my daddy gone?”
Commands “let me go”
Adjectives “bi we boar” (big red ball)
Is “ca be er” (the cat’s hurt)
Pronouns “me do it” “e lot e du” (he lost his shoe) “e cying” (he’s crying) |
| 3-4 years |
Starting to comprehend sentences involving:
- colour
- size:
- ‘longest’
- ‘shortest’
- ‘biggest’
- ‘smallest’
- number:
- “take two out”
- negatives
- prepositions
- up to four
- pieces of information:
- “Put the big red cup in the box”
|
Four element sentences, with:
- word ending (-ing)
- plurals
- past (-ed)
- past participle (-en)
- third person singular (he wants tea)
- possessives(John’s)
- negatives (n’t)
- is (he’s happy)
- auxiliary (he’s coming)
- comparatives (bigger)
- superlatives (biggest)
- -ly (quickly)
Sentences may now be strung together to give complex sentences with two verbs Use of and, but, so,because Language is mostly adult, but listen out for some errors
|
Clusters of sounds start:
sn, sp, mp, nt (3½ years)
|
Affectionate and confiding
Likes to help with adult domestic activities, make believe play,including invented people and objects
Enjoys floor play alone or with siblings
Joins in make believe play with other children
Understands sharing
|
Errors to be expected at this stage: Pronouns “her doing it”
Determiners this/that: “this one is hers” (should be ‘that one’)
Irregular nouns “mouses”
Adjective order “a red new chair”
Modals “he bettern’t do it”
Verb tenses “catched”
Concord “the man are” “they is”
Word order “neither I did”
|
| 4-5 years |
Understanding lengthy commands involving prepositions: ‘behind’ ‘beside’
Size and colour used in the same sentence
Should rely less on the situation to help understanding
Beginning to understand more abstract complex commands, things beyond the here and now and cause and effect “Bobby pushes the baby over. Who’s naughty?” |
Language is largely fluent and grammatically correct
Sentences are lengthened and made more complex: “I should have been able to”
Development continues in the way that language is used and in vocabulary development |
New sounds: ch, j, sh, z, v
Clusters: sk Blends: pl, kw, tw
Three sound clusters correct by 6 years: spl, str, skw
th and r may not be used until 7 years old
Child can self-correct errors in multi-syllabic words |
Independent and can be strongly selfwilled
Shows sense of humour in talk and activities
Likes dramatic make believe play and dressing up
Needs companionship with other children with whom is alternately cooperative/aggressive
Beginning to appreciate consequences of actions
Shows concern
Appreciates past and future |
Discourse: the way sentences are strung together to give structured conversation, achieved through sentence connectivity: ‘actually’ ‘however’
Takes listener’s knowledge into account to keep on the topic and remain appropriate and relevant |