Exploring Elements of Language Development

Language is an extremely complex symbol system but there is no doubt it is the single most important vehicle for socialization, learning, and development. Two facinative aspects of language development include the syntagmatic – paradigmatic language list and the development of metalinguistic awareness. Both will be explored in this field activity leading to your case study report.

Administer and score each of the following two tasks with one child. Synthesize your data and describe what you have found. In short, contrast the MLU and P/S Language Inventory approach to measuring your subject’s language development.

Practice:

Dog ____________________

Read ____________________

1. Black ____________________ 28. Tell ____________________
2. Carry ____________________ 29. Between ____________________
3. Obey ____________________ 30. Up ____________________
4. Sour ____________________
5. Quiet ____________________
6. Give ____________________
7. Rough ____________________
8. Table ____________________
9. Slow ____________________
10. Cold ____________________
11. In ____________________
12. Father ____________________
13. Run ____________________
14. Mix ____________________
15. Begin ____________________
16. Add ____________________
17. Listen ____________________
18. Never ____________________
19. Bird ____________________
20. War ____________________
21. Bright ____________________
22. He ____________________
23. Little ____________________
24. Over ____________________
25. Dark ____________________
26. City ____________________
27. Soft ____________________