Language Acquisition

The Basics

Paul Ibbotson

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2022
• eBook ISBN: 9781000592153
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Psychology
• Subtopic: Inclusive Education
• Index: Psychology

Language Acquisition: The Basics is an accessible introduction to the must-know issues in child language development. Covering key topics drawn from contemporary psychology, linguistics and neuroscience, readers are introduced to fundamental concepts, methods, controversies, and discoveries.

It follows the remarkable journey children take; from becoming sensitive to language before birth, to the time they string their first words together; from when they use language playfully, to when they tell stories, hold conversations, and share complex ideas. Using examples from 73 different languages, Ibbotson sets this development in a diverse cross-cultural context, as well as describing the universal psychological foundations that allow language to happen.

This book, which includes further reading suggestions in each chapter and a glossary of key terms, is the perfect easy-to-understand introductory text for students, teachers, clinicians or anyone with an interest in language development. Drawing together the latest research on typical, atypical and multilingual development, it is the concise beginner's guide to the field.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Series Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Contents
• The author
• 1 Making the ordinary extraordinary
• 2 Social and cognitive foundations of communication
• 3 The birth of language
• 4 Understanding and expressing language
• 5 Putting words together
• 6 The shape of development
• 7 The rules of conversation and how to break them
• 8 What we have learned, what we don't understand
• List of languages featured
• Glossary
• International Phonetic Alphabet
• References
• A general sketch of language development
• Index