Beginnings of Language Development

Quick revise
Children all around the world seem to acquire language by passing through a similar
set of stages; although the time it takes to move from one stage to the next can differ
from child to child. The same pattern of development occurs regardless of the
language, but children do not develop at the same pace.
Stages of Development
Before birth
It is possible that even before birth a child has acclimatised to the sounds of its native
language. Research suggests that whilst in the womb, babies become used to the
rhythms and intonation of the language being spoken around them.
Crying
During the first few weeks of a childs life, the child can express itself vocally.
Different kinds of cry can be identified from one signalling hunger or distress for
example. This suggests that cries are distinctive noises and as such, cannot really be
described as language.
Cooing
Cooing, also known as gurgling or mewing, is another universal stage of
development and generally occurs when babies are around 6-8 weeks old. It is
thought that during this stage the child is discovering its vocal chords and sounds
like coo goo and ga-ga are made.
Babbling
This is the most important stage during the first year of a childs life. It usually
begins when the child is between 6 and 9 months. At the onset of babbling, the baby
begins to make sounds that more closely resemble adult language.
Combinations of sounds are produced such as ma ga and da. Sometimes these
sounds are repeated producing what is known as reduplicated monosyllables eg:
mama, dada, baba. Such sounds still have no meaning, but parents are often eager

to believe their child is speaking its first words. As well as babbling, the baby is likely
to blow bubbles and splutter.
Pre-expansion
This is where the number of different phonemes produced by the child increases
initially.
Phonemic expansion and contraction
During the babbling phase, the number of different phonemes (units of sound)
produced are increased, known as phonemic expansion. Later at about 9 or 10
months the number of phonemes occurs (phonemic contraction). In other words, the
child retains the sounds of its native language but discards the ones it knows arent
needed. We know this happens because research has shown that at this age, the
sounds made by babies from different nationalities are different.
Intonation and gesture
Another development during the babbling stage is the patterns of intonation begin to
resemble speech. For example, there might be a rising tone at the end of an utterance,
adding emphasis and rhythm. Another method of communicating without speech is
for a child to point at something with a facial expression that seems to say I want
that or whats that? These gestures show a desire to communicate.
Understanding
Although the child may not yet have begun to speak properly, it doesnt meant they
dont understand the meaning of certain words. The comprehension of phonological
patterns and the meanings that they represent develop more quickly than the childs
ability to reproduce them. Words that are recognised are likely to include family
members, responses to questions such as yes or no and basic expressions like byebye.
The first word stage
A child is usually about a year when it speaks its first recognisable word.