Communication develops through stages from birth. Children have different conversational styles like sociable, reluctant, own agenda, and passive based on personality and interactions. Language develops through 6 stages from discoverer to later sentence user as children's vocabulary and grammar skills grow. Factors like hearing, neurological issues, brain injury, disabilities, or physical impairments can affect speech and language development. Understanding a child's communication style and stage helps caregivers best support their development.

1. Communication and Language
Development in Children
By: Michelle Dempster
Please click on picture to watch how Ernie and Bert
communicate.

2. Why do we communicate?
The purpose of communicating is to meet our needs:
Physical needs are meet though physical interactions. Isolated people tend to have shorter life spans, and those lacking that
physical need have negative health affects. Example:
In Germany in 1196-1250, Emperor Frederick the II proved that lack of physical need can lead to death. He
forced nurses and foster mothers not cuddle or nurture babies including speaking to them. He only
allowed them to bath and feed the babies. He was trying to prove what Mother Tongue they would speak,
but was unsuccessful since all the babies died (Adler et al, 2012).
Social needs are pleasure, companionship, control and affection.
Identity needs are developed through others, seeing how people interact with one another and how they react to the individual
help shape one’s identity.
Practical goals are getting what we want from others (basic needs - food, air, and water).
(Adler et al, 2012)

3. Communication and Language
Development
Every child has different communication styles.
From birth, children use their environment to grow communication skills.
Along with each child's unique personality, the way that others interact with them help determine how
they will communicate.
According to authors Weitzman and Greenberg of “Learning Language and Loving It”, they have
identified four conversational styles that children develop as soon as they are born. These styles include
personality, early interactions with caregivers, and communication feedback and their interactions among
peers, caregivers and family.
Four Conversational Styles
- The Sociable Child
- The Reluctant Child
- The Child with Own Agenda
- The Passive Child

4. Conversational Styles
The Sociable Child
• Initiates interactions.
• Responsive to others.
• With a language delay this child may
be hard to understand or slow at
talking, but still wants to interact
with others (Weitzman, et al, 2002).
(www.hanen.org, 2015)

5. Conversational Styles
The Reluctant Child
• Seldom initiates.
• Usually not in a group - outsider.
• Difficulty with peer interactions and may
take time to warm up.
• With a language delay, this child may be
hard to understand, reluctant to initiate, or
can’t communicate properly. This child will
usually respond to others who try to
interact with him (Weitzman, et al, 2002). (www.hanen.org, 2015)

6. Conversational Styles
The Child with Own Agenda
• Plays alone.
• No interest in interacting with
others.
• May enjoy some social interactions
(Weitzman, et al, 2002).
(www.hanen.org, 2015)

7. Conversational Styles
The Passive Child
• Seldom initiates or responds.
• No interest in objects or people
around.
• Does not engage in social
interaction.
• Development delay if child is
consistently in this style (Weitzman,
et al, 2002).
(www.hanen.org, 2015)

8. Stages of Language Development
The following are stages identified by Weitzman and Greenburg, that each child
will pass through in their language development.
Stage 1 – Discoverer (birth to 8 months)
Stage 2 – Communicator (8 to 13 months)
Stage 3 – Firsts Words User (12 to 18 months)
Stage 4 – Combiner (18 to 24 months)
Stage 5 – Early Sentence User (2 to 3 years)
Stage 6 – Later Sentence User (3 to 5 years)
(Weitzman, 2002)

9. Stage 1 - Discoverer
“I cry, I smile, I make sounds and look –
Figure out what I mean by hook or by
crook!”
(Weitzman, 2002)
• Interested but doesn’t send any
messages.
• Expresses feelings through behaviour.
• Caregivers respond to the Discoverer by
watching their focus and state what the
discoverer is looking at.
Example – Caregiver sees baby looking at
stuffed animal. Caregiver says “Do you
want your stuff animal?”
A language delay at this stage would
indicate a significant delay. Other delays
can be evident such as cognitive or motor
development (Weitzman, 2002).

10. Stage 2 - Communicator
“With sounds, looks, and gestures I ’talk’
to you.
Now, help me learn a word or two.”
(Weitzman, 2002)
• The use of gestures, gaze, sounds and
expression help make messages mean
something.
• Sociable
• Goal Minded
• Joint Attention
• Sharing of information.
A language delay at this stage would
indicate child has difficulty learning how to
use words. Their understanding is more
advanced as compared to their ability to
use their expressive language (Weitzman,
2002).

11. Stage 3 – First Word User
“From my mouth the words now pour.
Your job is to give me more”
(Weitzman, 2002)
• One to two words along with gestures.
• Up to about 50 words in this stage.
• Converse briefly.
• Conversational turn-taking.
• Understanding of language.
A language delay at this stage would
indicate child may have difficulty
expressing themselves but can still
understand the language being spoken. Or,
the child may be delayed in both expressive
and language understanding. Children
delayed at this state may lack vocabulary
expansion and show difficulties in
participating in conversations. They may
use more pictures and signs to help them
communicate (Weitzman, 2002)

12. Stage 4 – Combiner
“I put words together and begin to chat-
Converse with me, it’s as simple as that!”
(Weitzman, 2002)
• Expands up to about 200 words in this
stage.
• Single words into two word-sentences.
• Increased conversational turn-taking.
A language delay at this stage would
indicate child may continue to use single
words and some two worded sentences.
Variations in receptive language plays a
part in whether child understand the
language. These children will take part in
conversations, but only briefly, unless the
caregiver can offer support in extending
conversation turn-taking. Children may also
have problems answering questions and
making comments (Weitzman, 2002).

13. Stage 5 – Early Sentence User
“My words and sentences now have
grown-
I can tell little stories on my own”
(Weitzman, 2002)
• Two to five word sentences.
• Short conversations. Longer if child
initiates them.
A language delay at this stage would
indicate child does not understand
grammar rules. Difficulties using pronouns
and verbs. Short sentences. Expressing
messages and explaining events with great
difficulty. Unable to turn-take in
conversations (Weitzman, 2002).

14. Stage 6 – Later Sentence User
“I’ve learned to talk and take my turn.
My job now is to talk to learn.”
(Weitzman, 2002)
• 5,000 words in vocabulary.
• Imagination, stories full of information,
events that are both current and future.
• Personal experiences.
• Sentences are four words long.
• Correct and complex grammar used with
few errors.
• Linking more ideas together to make
complex sentences (Weitzman, 2002).

15. What Can Affect Speech and Language Development
• Articulation - produces sounds incorrectly (e.g., lisp, difficulty articulating certain sounds, such as “l” or
“r”);
• Fluency - disrupted by sounds, syllables, and words that are repeated, prolonged, or avoided.
• Voice - has an abnormal quality to its pitch, resonance, or loudness; and
• Language - problems expressing needs, ideas, or information, and/or in understanding what others say.
Causes of Speech and Language Disorder
Hearing loss.
Neurological Disorders.
Brain injury.
Intellectual disabilities.
Drug abuse.
Physical impairments such as cleft lip or palate, and vocal abuse or misuse.
Most of the time cause is unknown.
When working with young children, understanding their styles and stages of their communication
development will help you create the best interaction possible. Teaching Preschool and being a Speech
and Language support worker, I gained experience working with children of all different ages. Each child
brought with them a particular style and each were at a particular stage.

16. Reference Page
Alder, R., Rolls, J., & Proctor II, R. (2012). Look (Canadian ed.). Toronto, ON: Nelson Learning
Deafine. (n.d.). Hard of hearing [online image]. Retrieved October 20, 2015 from http://deafine.tumblr.com/post/106492920090/im-deafhard-
of-hearing-uhhh-no
Hanen (n.d.) Communication Styles [online image]. Retrieved October 20, 2015 from
https://www.google.ca/search?q=reluctant+child&biw=1600&bih=775&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0CAYQ_AUoAWoVChMI
7rrMkYXzyAIVRM9jCh2bEwcD#tbm=isch&q=reluctant+child+hanen&imgrc=oi-dfrwxnbEf0M%3A
Parent Center Hub. (n.d.). Speech language. Retrieved October 20, 2015 from http://www.parentcenterhub.org/repository/speechlanguage/
Success For Kids With Hearing Loss. (n.d.). Twelve speech and language considerations [online image]. Retrieved October 20, 2015 from
http://successforkidswithhearingloss.com/12-considerations-speech-language/
Weitzman, E., & Greenberg, J.(2002). Learning language and loving it (2nd ed.). Toronto, ON: Transcontinental Interglobe Inc.
Sesame Street. (2015, October 20). Ernie and Bert can’t communicate. [video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjF4rKCR81o