PARTICIPANT REQUIREMENTS:
Ages 15-22 months
Male and female
English speaking only
Normal hearing

PURPOSE:
We are interested in children’s earliest multi-word speech, especially children who are developing rapidly.  We want to understand periods of rapid change in children’s language and the developments that occur at this time. We are also interested in learning how parents speak to children.

LENGTH:
A preliminary session of approximately 1 hour will help us determine whether it is the best time to work with your child or whether it is perhaps too soon. If we find that your child’s language is in the stage of rapid change, you will be invited to participate in 1 to 12, 1-hour long sessions, held approximately once a week.

PROCEDURE:
In the study, we ask parents to talk in a “natural” way with their children, perhaps assisted by looking at books together.