title: The pace of vocabulary growth helps predict later vocabulary skill.
abstract: Children vary widely in the rate at which they acquire words--some start slow and speed up, others start fast and continue at a steady pace. Do early developmental variations of this sort help predict vocabulary skill just prior to kindergarten entry? This longitudinal study starts by examining important predictors (socioeconomic status [SES], parent input, child gesture) of vocabulary growth between 14 and 46 months (n = 62) and then uses growth estimates to predict children's vocabulary at 54 months. Velocity and acceleration in vocabulary development at 30 months predicted later vocabulary, particularly for children from low-SES backgrounds. Understanding the pace of early vocabulary growth thus improves our ability to predict school readiness and may help identify children at risk for starting behind.
authors.affiliation: University of Chicago, USA. mrowe@umd.edu
authors.forename: Meredith L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Rowe
authors.forename: Stephen W
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Raudenbush
authors.forename: Susan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Goldin-Meadow
mesh_terms: D001076:Aptitude; D002663:Child Language; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D005868:Gestures; D006801:Humans; D007206:Individuality; D007223:Infant; D007804:Language Development; D008297:Male; D015233:Models, Statistical; D009633:Nonverbal Communication; D016487:Parenting / Q000523:psychology; D011379:Prognosis; D012931:Social Environment; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D014706:Verbal Learning; D014825:Vocabulary