The Second Year

How many words are spoken during the Holophrastic stage?

One word per utterance

At what age does the holophrastic stage occur?

12-18 months

What percentage of children’s first utterances are nouns?

60 percent

What did Katherine Nelson’s research on first words find?

That first words are often the names of objects that are small and easily handled by a child, or are things that move or make a noise

What errors may occur in the acquisition of vocabulary?

Overextension and underextension

What do errors evidence?

That a child is learning as they test out the applications of words

At what age does the two-word stage occur?

Around the age of two

How many words do children have in their vocabulary at the two-word stage?

Around fifty words

How many words are utterances at the two-word stage?

Most are only two words as the child begins to put words together

Are there any inflections at the two-word stage?

No - there are no inflections to mark number, person or tense.

Are there any pronouns at the two-word stage?

They are rare, though children may use ‘me’ to refer to themselves.

How long are utterances at the telegraphic stage?

They can be any length once a child has started stringing more than two words together; they can be 2,3,4,5 words or longer.

At what age does the telegraphic stage occur?

At around two to three years of age.

What are utterances at the telegraphic stage characterised by their lack of?

Function words - there is generally an absence of prepositions, conjunctions and articles.W

What do utterances at the telegraphic stage typically consist of?

Content words, such as nouns and verbs.W

Where does the telegraphic stage get its name from?

The utterances’ omission of all but the most important words.