Reports on two studies that examined the natural process of word learning in children 4-11 years old. The children hear the new words in a conversation, a story, and paired with a definition. Results indicate that children at all ages could acquire a partial semantic representation from a single exposure. (SED)

This article discusses the importance of vocabulary in second language acquisition (SLA), presents an overview of major strands of research on vocabulary acquisition, and discusses five principles for effective second language (L2) vocabulary instruction based on research findings on lexical input processing. These principles emphasize…

An analysis is made of the gradual learning process through which a child becomes bilingual from early infancy. (NCR)

A phenomenon called "pragmatic variation" is discussed as a child's individual system of behavior in response to a question the child doesn't understand but realizes that he must verbalize an answer to. (NCR)

In testing kindergartners and first graders in their comprehension of the words "before" and "after," it was found that when temporal terms are acquired, they are first used as prepositions and then as subordinating conjunctions. (Author/NCR)

Preschool children's comprehension of the adverbial modifiers "very" and "sort of" was experimentally investigated in 64 children. (Author/NCR)

This paper explores the questions of how and why children learn names for things. The acquisition of reference is set within a broader discussion of linguistic representation, which defines language as a system functioning in a three-way relationship among the individual language user, the world of experience, and the social community. It is…

Investigates the role of intraverbal learning (a process through which semantic knowledge is acquired from purely linguistic information) in preschool children's acquisition of semantic concepts. Shows that the relative effectiveness of pictorial and intraverbal information depends on the child's age, the type of information supplied, and the…

Investigates whether students could more easily remember synthetic words by rehearsing with definitions, examples, or sentence composing. Concludes that students who used sentence composing performed better on a posttest than those who had rehearsed using examples and definitions. (SRT)

Root word vocabulary was studied in two normative samples (English-speaking, wide socioeconomic range) and in an advantaged sample. Findings suggest that greater efforts should be made to foster vocabulary acquisition in the primary years, and that a rough vocabulary curriculum sequence can be identified for the elementary years. (Author)

A longitudinal study of three children examined the relation between object permanence and language development. (Author/NCR)

This paper reports on an experiment undertaken to delineate more clearly the relationship between the naming process in children and certain aspects of the environment which may play a role in that process. The investigation concerned the effect of manipulation and of object novelty on naming. Sixteen children, ten girls and six boys, ranging in…

Examined the effect over time of the use of sign language in a two-year period, including preschool and ending with kindergarten, on hearing children's language development. Found vocabulary gains, no evidence of memory decay over time, and positive evidence for inclusion of sign language instruction in early childhood education. (SD)

A study is described of heuristic devices useful in learning both native and second languages. The study concerns particularly the means used by very young students (second and third graders) in vocabulary acquisition and in the establishment of semantic relationships. It was of concern to verify if (1) the children would use their knowledge of…