Because eligibility for speech-language services often is based on the relationship between the child's cognitive ability and language performance, this study examined the agreement of measurement practices used in the cognitive referencing model of eligibility determination. Administration of 5 measures to 26 preschool children with delayed…

Background: In the context of the established finding that theory-of-mind (ToM) growth is seriously delayed in late-signing deaf children, and some evidence of equivalent delays in those learning speech with conventional hearing aids, this study's novel contribution was to explore ToM development in deaf children with cochlear implants. Implants…

Converging evidence supports the hypothesis that the most common subtype of childhood speech sound disorder (SSD) of currently unknown origin is genetically transmitted. We report the first findings toward a set of diagnostic markers to differentiate this proposed etiological subtype (provisionally termed "speech delay-genetic") from other…

The study investigated the role of social reinforcement, when teaching two preschoolers with no functional vocal verbal behavior first instances of echoic responses, using rapid motor imitation responding. The dependent variables for the experiment were: (1) echoic tacts (echoics presented under the controlling variables of tacts) and (2)…

Early interventionists are accountable for the progress of children receiving their services. Technically adequate measures of the progress of individual children are needed. While the Early Communication Indicator (ECI) for infants and toddlers is one such measure, data to support its use are limited to a single research report. In this…

This guide offers suggestions to promote social interaction and communication of preschool children, thereby facilitating inclusion of children with speech and language delays into community settings. A preschool scenario is presented to illustrate problem areas in classroom communication. Guidelines are then offered for integrating learning…

An assessment battery, measuring multiple aspects of language, was administered to 29 children between 4 and 5 years of age who had been born prematurely. The children, who weighed less than 2,500 grams at birth after less than 37 weeks of gestation, were recruited from a cohort of children originally admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit…

This informational document is intended to help answer questions commonly asked by families, professionals, and the general public concerning Down Syndrome. Medical problems associated with Down Syndrome include heart conditions, upper respiratory disorders, ear infections and hearing loss, vision/eye problems, cervical problems, and…

This study used several measures to compare 40 toddlers with delays in expressive language and 40 children acquiring language normally. Findings indicated that children with small expressive vocabularies at 2 years of age are not different from their normally speaking peers in terms of hearing, history of ear infections, birth order, or pre- or…

The eight articles in this journal issue deal with the classroom study of language. They address such topics as dealing with student dialects and teaching about dialects; creating environments in which "languaging" can take place; using stylistic analysis to explain a literary text; teaching high school students to write research papers on aspects…

Examined were the home verbal environments of three multiply handicapped language impaired children (3, 6, and 8 years old). Each child wore an FM transmitter-microphone for 3 1/2 consecutive days. Prliminary analysis of the acoustic data was in terms of actual data time, parental lesson time, and number of engaged (verbal interactions) and…

Directed both to parents and to professionals, the manual explains factors involved in normal and abnormal language development. Language disorders are discussed, and methods and sources of help are described. (JD)

Designed as a diagnostic tool for assisting early childhood and kindergarten teachers, the Sentence Repetition Task seeks to distinguish children who speak a different dialect and are normal in language development from children who speak a different dialect and are developmentally delayed. This technique is based on the work of Menyuk (1964),…

Language-impaired children (N=87) were assessed at the ages of 4, 4 1/2, and 5 1/2. In 37%, the language disorder resolved by 5 1/2 years (44% resolution in those with normal nonverbal ability). Outcome for individuals could be predicted with 90% accuracy at four years. (Author/KM)

This edited volume investigates the connections between the earliest human sounds and subsequent language development. With special attention to tracheostomies, Downs syndrome, deafness, and speech-motor impairments, the interaction between speech and language is examined in typical development as well as the effect that the interaction has on…