Growth and Decline in Language and Phonological Memory Over Two Years Among Adolescents With Down Syndrome.
Toddlers with Down syndrome who point and show during play understand more words half a year later.
01Research in Context
What this study did
The team watched toddlers with Down syndrome during play.
They scored how often each child pointed or showed toys to an adult.
Six months later they tested how many words each child understood.
What they found
Kids who shared attention early understood more words later.
The link stayed strong even with other skills ruled out.
Early joint attention gave a head start in receptive language.
How this fits with other research
Witecy et al. (2017) saw that receptive grammar keeps growing only until the teen years, then levels off.
Burrows et al. (2018) now show the climb starts in toddlerhood when kids first point and show.
Together the two papers trace one long arc: toddler joint attention sparks vocabulary, which later plateaus after adolescence.
Ferguson et al. (2020) add that poor sleep makes toddlers forget faster.
So both attention and sleep shape early language memory in Down syndrome.
Why it matters
You can’t change genes, but you can teach pointing and showing.
During play, pause and wait for the child to look at you and then at the toy.
Reinforce that moment with the item’s name.
Six months later you may hear the child understands that word.
Track these tiny social bids as seriously as you track mand trials.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
BACKGROUND: Because of their difficulties in language development, various studies have focussed on the precursors of linguistic skills in children with Down syndrome. However, data on the predictive role of joint attention on language development in this population are inconsistent. The present study aimed to analyse attention behaviours in a group of children with Down syndrome. The existence of both concurrent and longitudinal relationships between joint attention and vocabulary development was investigated. METHOD: The participants were 18, 24-month-old, Italian children with Down syndrome. The children's attention skills were assessed during semi-structured free-play sessions in interaction with their mothers. A nominal exhaustive scheme was applied to code the children's behaviour. Moreover, the children's vocabulary development (both receptive and expressive) was assessed with the Italian version of the MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventory at both 24 and 30 months. RESULTS: Data analyses showed that children with Down syndrome spent a large part of the interactive play session in joint attention situations. Moreover, the children's behaviour of proposing a joint attention focus to their communicative partners appeared to be a significant predictor of the children's vocabulary comprehension skills as assessed 6 months later. CONCLUSIONS: These results support the hypothesis of continuity between preverbal precursors and vocabulary development in a population with atypical development.
American journal on intellectual and developmental disabilities, 2018 · doi:10.1111/jir.12191