Child directed speech

• Child directed speech


  Language used by adults & caregivers when addressing children

  • Divided into frameworks
  • Lexis
  • Grammar
  • Phonology
• Child directed speech language: Phonology


  • Exaggerated sing-along intonation

  "Would you like some milk~?

  • Exaggerated differences when asking questions
  • Speak more slowly
• Child directed speech language: Lexis & Semantics


  • Adopts child's own words for things

  e.g. 'Heffalump' instead of 'Elephant'

  • diminutive forms (e.g. doggie)
  • frequent use of child's name and absent for pronouns

  e.g. 'Smile for mummy' instead of 'Smile for me'
• Child directed speech language: Grammar

  • Repeated sentence frames

  e.g. 'that's a...'

  • Fewer complex sentences
  • Omission of past tense
  • More command, questions and tag questions
  • Use of expansions: (parents fill out child's utterances)
  • Use of recasting: (child's vocabulary put into new utterance)
• Child directed speech: Pragmatics


  • Lots of gestures and body language
  • Frequent stop for child's response
  • Supportive language
• Child directed speech aims to:


  1. Attract and hold babies attention
  2. Breaking down language to be understandable
  3. Make conversation predictable - referring to here-and-now
• (1/2) Interaction with caregivers

  Ages 2:

  • Early conversation usually imitated and maintained by adults
  • Short statement made by child that adults respond to - child doesn't really respond to adult

  Ages 2-4:

  • Start understanding turn taking and take part in dialogues
  • Understand need of listeners
  • Q&A show they can try illicit response from other speaker
  • Understand politeness forms and tries using names and adverbs to gain attention
• (2/2) Interaction with caregivers


  Starting school or nursery:

  • Develop more awareness of appropriate long given context

  e.g. being more formal in classrooms
• Interactions with other kids


  Around 2:

  • Limited conversations (children's lexis around 300 words)
  • Convos made of short, closed conversation
  • Not developed much skills for meaningful reply

  As children get older:

  • Use of grammar increases - more complex convos
  • Develop pragmatic skills to form relations & be persuasive
  • Imitate adult speech & develop awareness of types of speech to use in context

  e.g. older child may use CDS when talking to younger children
• Not all cultures use CDS

  • Some non western cultured babies are expected to 'blend in' with adult interaction and no special accommodation is made
  • Children still going through same developmental stages at roughly same time AS LONG AS THEY ARE EXPOSED TO LANGUAGE
• Socioeconomic status


  High SES:

  • Mothers use longer utterance and use varied vocabulary when talking to children
  • Approximately 1,000 utterances in a day
  • Mothers often use speech to elicit conversation from children

  Low SES:

  • Children have larger vocabulary than their mothers
  • Talk less and use less varied vocabulary during interaction than high
  • 700 utterances
  • Often use speech to direct children's behaviour