What is pragmatics
social use of language, storytelling, gestures, emotions, body language, etc. it is the vessel for all other components and includes the rules of conversation
What is phonology
how phonemes are organized to form words.
What is syntax
grammar of language
What is semantics
vocabulary
What is morphology
smallest word that has meaning.
Ex: wait is one morpheme but unhappy is two.
What is metalinguistics
how we think about language.
Ex: how to change sentences, convey meaning, and put sounds together.
What is emergent literacy?
while learning to talk, we are also learning to read. Interaction with children is crucial for development. Singing nursey rhymes, talking to a baby, reading to a young child all help develop oral language.
Explain nature
innate ability to develop language
Supported by theorists like Noam Chomsky.
Suggests humans are born with an innate language acquisition device (LAD) or a universal grammar that predisposes us to learn language.
Evidence includes:
The rapid, universal timeline of language milestones across cultures.
Children’s ability to produce novel sentences they’ve never heard before.
Explain nurture
learning language from environment
Supported by theorists like B.F. Skinner (behaviorism) and later social interactionists (like Lev Vygotsky).
Argues language is learned through exposure, reinforcement, and interaction.
Evidence includes:
The role of caregivers modeling speech and reinforcing correct use.
Variability in vocabulary and grammar development depending on environment and social interaction.
What are the two main interactionalist approaches?
Constructionism and emergentist
Why do we have linguistic theories?
To explain language development, to guide research, to compare perspectives, inform practice, and understand human nature.
linguistic theories exist to give us a structured way to explain and study how language is learned, used, and processed.
Describe Child-directed speech
Higher pitch and exaggerated intonation.
Slower rate of speech with longer pauses.
Simpler vocabulary and shorter sentences.
Repetition of words and phrases.
Clearer articulation of sounds.
Frequent use of questions and attention-getting phrases (e.g., “Look!” “See the doggy?”).
Helps model language and help children segment speech
Do Neurons physically touch each other during a synapse?
no
What are the four lobes of the brain?
Frontal, temporal, parietal, occipital
What are the two areas primarily involved in language processing and connected by the
arcuate fasciculus?
Broca’s area (in the left inferior frontal gyrus) – important for speech production and language expression.
Wernicke’s area (in the left superior temporal gyrus) – important for language comprehension.
What tv show segment have we watched at the end of every class?
Elmo’s word of the day
You have a child on your roster who has difficulty engaging in conversational turn taking.
This is a deficit in what major language component?
Pragmatics
Communication
information of ideas, information, feelings; requires sender and receiver.
Language
socially shared rule, uses arbitrary symbols to convey ideas.
Speech
verbal means of communication
3 functional components of speech?
form, use, content
