developed any language. Subsequent efforts to teach her English were fraught
with difficulty.^11
Such cases confirm that language is inextricably linked to social interaction
and will not develop without it. As Pinker (1995) noted, in all recorded cases in
which children grew up lacking a social environment, “The outcome is always
the same: the children, when found, are mute. Whatever innate grammatical
abilities there are, they are too schematic to generate concrete speech, words,
and grammatical constructions on their own” (p. 152).
Fortunately, the number of children who are abused in this way is small. The
majority of parents delight in the presence of their children and seem com-
pelled, perhaps owing to evolution, to talk to them at every opportunity. Other
adults display similar behavior. As a result, infants are immersed in a lan-
guage-rich environment during nearly all of their waking hours.
During the 1styear, infants produce a range of babbling sounds that are un-
derstood to be the precursors of language. Some scholars (de Boysson-Bardies,
2001; Pinker, 1994) have proposed that these sounds represent the full range of
possible human utterances and that they are part of a procedure in which chil-
dren strive to match the sounds of their home language. In addition to babbling,
infants engage in preverbal communicative behavior involving gestures and
expressions. An upward reaching gesture to a parent, for example, signals
“pick me up!” Infants also learn a great deal about the world around them by
observing the behavior of others; they seem to be highly motivated to structure
their environment. By 8 months, they typically know that cups are used for
drinking, spoons are for eating, beds are for sleeping, and so on. Stimulation in
a meaningful context triggers language.^12
Infants understand many simple words before they can produce them, such
as “baby,” “no,” “night-night,” and “bottle.” Actual language appears in most
children at around age 1, regardless of culture (Clark, 1993). Their first utter-
ances are about their world, and Nelson (1973) reported that these fall into three
main categories—animals, food, and toys—but they also include body parts
and household items. The people they name most often are “dadda,” “momma,”
and “baby,” respectively. By age 18 months, children have a vocabulary of
about 50 words, but they are able to use, first, single-word utterances and then
TEACHING GRAMMAR 37
(^11) In addition, “Genie” did not develop normal social skills after her rescue, and she never learned to
care for herself. She has spent her adult life in a private facility with a staff that can accommodate her spe-
cial needs. 12
Note that the context must be meaningful, communicative, and involve direct human interaction.
We easily understand that a dog’s bark will be nothing but noise to an infant. By the same token, dis-
course that comes out of a TV or radio will not trigger language acquisition; to the infant, it will be as
meaningless and noncommunicative as the dog’s bark. Sitting infants in front of a TV and turning on a
program, therefore, cannot lead to language development. This finding naturally has important implica-
tions for children’s television programming, such asSesame Street.