OSAT Early Childhood Education (205)

Before producing words, infants communicate through crying, cooing, and babbling. Cooing (vowel sounds) appears around two months. Babbling (consonant-vowel combinations) appears around six months.

Joint attention, where infant and caregiver focus on the same object, supports language development. Gestures such as pointing and reaching precede words.

First words typically appear around twelve months. Early vocabulary consists mainly of nouns referring to familiar objects and people. Vocabulary grows slowly at first, then accelerates during the vocabulary spurt around eighteen months.

Overextension occurs when children use words too broadly (calling all four-legged animals "dog"). Underextension occurs when children use words too narrowly (only calling their own pet "dog").

Around eighteen to twenty-four months, children begin combining words. Telegraphic speech includes content words without grammatical markers ("daddy go" rather than "daddy is going").

Word order follows the patterns of the child's language. Children express semantic relations including agent-action, action-object, and possession.

Vocabulary grows rapidly during the preschool years. Children learn five to ten new words daily. They acquire grammatical morphemes including plurals, verb tenses, and articles.

Syntax becomes increasingly complex. Children use longer sentences, combine clauses, and ask questions. Overregularization occurs when children apply rules to exceptions ("goed" instead of "went").

Pragmatics, or social uses of language, develop during the preschool years. Children learn conversational turn-taking, topic maintenance, and adjusting speech for different listeners.

Language continues developing throughout the school years. Vocabulary expands to include more abstract and specialized words. Syntax becomes more complex with passive voice and embedded clauses.

Metalinguistic awareness, the ability to think about language itself, develops during the school years. Children can define words, recognize ambiguity, and appreciate humor based on language.

Language development requires exposure to rich language input. Teachers should talk with children throughout the day using varied vocabulary and complex sentences.

Classroom environments should provide materials that encourage language use including books, props for dramatic play, and materials for collaborative activities.

Responsive strategies support language development. Expansion adds grammatical elements to children's utterances ("Dog running" becomes "Yes, the dog is running fast"). Extension adds semantic information ("The dog is running to catch the ball").

Self-talk describes what the adult is doing. Parallel talk describes what the child is doing. Both strategies model language in meaningful contexts.

Open-ended questions encourage extended responses. Wait time allows children to formulate answers. Follow-up questions extend conversations.

Direct vocabulary instruction teaches important words explicitly. Effective instruction provides student-friendly definitions, multiple exposures in varied contexts, and opportunities to use new words.

Incidental vocabulary learning occurs through conversation and reading. Rich language environments support incidental learning.

Word consciousness involves awareness of and interest in words. Word walls, word games, and discussions of interesting words build word consciousness.

Classrooms should contain abundant environmental print including labels, signs, charts, and children's work. Functional print serves purposes such as sign-up sheets and message boards.

Libraries should contain diverse, high-quality books at varied reading levels. Books should represent diverse characters and experiences. Both fiction and nonfiction should be available.

Writing centers with varied materials invite children to write. Paper, writing tools, and model texts support writing attempts.

Daily read-alouds expose children to books and model fluent reading. Interactive read-alouds engage children in discussion before, during, and after reading.

Book selection should include varied genres, authors, and topics. Consideration should be given to vocabulary richness, text structure, and curriculum connections.

Dialogic reading techniques encourage children to participate actively. Adults ask questions, expand on children's responses, and encourage predictions.

Family literacy involvement supports children's development. Teachers should communicate the importance of reading at home and provide resources and strategies.

Book lending programs provide access to books. Family literacy events engage families in literacy activities. Communication in families' home languages supports involvement.