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Key Concepts
- As young children learn to talk, they progress through stages of imperfect grammar, such as speaking in one-word sentences or dropping articles and word endings (“Mommy get bowl”).
- Scientists have long questioned whether these stages exist because a toddler’s brains cannot handle complex grammar or whether they are necessary stepping-stones in language development at any age.
- By studying international adoptees of varying ages, researchers found evidence that the stages of language usage are essential and not dependent on mental development.
More from this issue of Mind
September
2009 Issue- Calendar Calendar: Mind events in September and October
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Editor's Note: This article was adapted from Mind Matters, www.ScientificAmerican.com/MindMatters, a column edited by Gareth Cook, a Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist at the Boston Globe, and Jonah Lehrer, the science writer behind the blog The Frontal Cortex, http://scienceblogs.com/cortex
The setting: a nursery. A baby speaks directly to the camera: “Look at this. I’m a free man. I go anywhere I want now.” He describes his stock-buying activities, but then his phone interrupts. “Relentless! Hang on a second.” He answers his phone. “Hey, girl, can I hit you back?”
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