How Do Small Children Learn Their First Language

How do small children learn their first language? Discuss some environmental factors and internal factors involved in language acquisition. â€Å"Children are extremely perceptive and absorb what goes on around them long before they can talk or even comprehend the language†. -Theodore Isaac Rubin, psychiatrist and author. But, have you ever thought about how children learn their first language. Do they certainly learn by absorbing what they hear around them or is there more to that? Maybe we do not give enough credit to the brain and how it functions when it comes to learning a native language. Children learn by imitation, analogy, reinforcement, and structure input. However, are these factors enough to explain how kids learn their native language? As we all know language can be extremely complicated, still young children are able to master this skill at a very young age. They might not speak it or express themselves like an adult would but by the age of five they are completely understandable. However, if children do not memorize sentences and no one teaches them the language grammar how are they able to learn the language in such a short period of time? There are theories that try to explain how this is possible. Some think that children extract the rules of the language they hear around them. Therefore, no matter the language a kid is exposed to they will be able to learn the language until puberty. Meanwhile, other linguists believe that children are born with a brainShow MoreRelatedThe s Theory On Language Acquisition Essay1365 Words   |  6 Pagesexposed to extreme brightness, one of the most unique human instincts is language. Language is the system in which humans can communicate amongst each other, an incredible phen omenon, and yet for many years psychologists and scientists have yet to come up with one set theory as to how we acquire the languages we have. There are two fundamentally different theories on language acquisition that I will be presenting, the first by linguist Noam Chomsky and the second by psychologist B.F Skinner. ToRead MoreThe First Type Of Communication1348 Words   |  6 Pages 1. The first type of communication in infants is reflexive this includes movement, crying, and facial expressions. The first type of vocalization that is non crying is the infants cooing. Cooing makes up a variety of speech sounds like oooooooh, eeeeeeeeh, and aaaah. These are sometimes produced accidently. The infant is not born to intentionally produce sounds. The infant when practicing can eventually can produce the speech sounds of their native language, but they have reinforcement to accomplishRead MoreHow Do People Learn (Language)?829 Words   |  4 PagesHow do people learn (language)? How we teach language should be based on how people learn language.  Ã‚   Do we learn language the way we learn everything?   Or is there some special way our brains learn language?   Today we will talk about some of the hypotheses which have been suggested for how people learn (in general) and learn language (in particular).      This child has learned sign-language from his parents – but how?   NATURE vs. NURTURE    People who argue for language learning by NATURERead MoreThe Montessori Method Of Education By Observing Behaviors1674 Words   |  7 PagesDr. Maria Montessori developed the Montessori Method of education by observing behaviors in young children which formed the foundation of her educational method. Montessori method is a child-centered educational approach based on scientific clarifications of children from birth to adulthood. Dr. Montessori’s Method has been time tested, with over 100 years of success in diverse cultures throughout the world. It is a view of the child as one who is naturally eager for knowledge and capable of initiatingRead MoreThe Problem Of Learning Languages1092 Words   |  5 Pageslearning languages is very important in the contemporary world. Foreign languages are socially demanded especially at present time when the progress of science and technology gas led to an explosion of knowledge and has contributed to an overflow of information. The total knowledge of mankind is known to double every 7 years. Foreign languages are needed as the main and the most efficient means of information exchange of the people on our planet. On the base of the first (native) language people chooseRead MoreLinguistic Nativism: There’s Something Between the Ears Language is something that humans use and1300 Words   |  6 PagesLinguistic Nativism: There’s Something Between the Ears Language is something that humans use and encounter every day. Whether it be writing a paper, reading an email, talking to your best friend on the phone, or asking someone for directions, the use of language is broad and heavily intertwined with experiencing the world in the human condition. But the question of how humans come from being silent babies to speaking children is still unanswered. Linguistic nativism is one theory that addressesRead MoreVolunteering At North Elementary And I Am Working Through The Refugee Development Center1491 Words   |  6 Pagesworking through the Refugee Development Center. The children that I am working with are named Rofaida and Khalid, whose first language is Arabic. The first time I met the two I was very excited to see them and get to know a little bit about them. However, during their snack time when they first came in I noticed that they were very rambunctious and were often yelling at eachother in their native language. I was a little put o ff by them at first, just because I did not know if they would be able toRead MoreEssay on The Power of Words1029 Words   |  5 PagesThe Power of Words Communication and language are not always synonymous. Gesticulations and facial expression can convey certain messages that often make verbal expression unnecessary. Although I appreciate the endless possibilities that are associated with speaking, our primary means of communication, I have discovered that the human capacity for speech might not be as extremely innate as the linguist Noam Chomsky claimed. A few years ago, I had the privilege of encountering a thirty-five year-oldRead MoreThe Procedure Of Language Learning Of The Infants1402 Words   |  6 Pagesin a foreign language that they studied in a U.S. classroom,† states Amelia Friedman in The Atlantic. â€Å"That’s noteworthy considering that in 2008 almost all high schools in the country – 93 percent – offered foreign languages† (Friedman). This has resulted in, as Brad Marshall, a teaching fellow of languages and literatures, notes, [the] widespread belief that adults will inevitably have problems and will certainly never become fluent, while children are supposed to pick up languages with ease.Read MoreBilingual Education for Children1219 Words   |  5 Pagesto learn a certain language. They stress that anybody can learn a new language at whatever age. Others do argue that using bilinguals is prepositioning the child on a wrong footing on how to learn the first language and the second language. Whether this people have a point or not is the major point of writing this paper. One thing bilingual education critics forget is that people come from different backgrounds that have differing cultures and language. If everybody was to speak his language, then