Constructing a LanguageIn this groundbreaking book, Tomasello presents a comprehensive usage-based theory of language acquisition. Drawing together a vast body of empirical research in cognitive science, linguistics, and developmental psychology, Tomasello demonstrates that we don't need a self-contained "language instinct" to explain how children learn language. Their linguistic ability is interwoven with other cognitive abilities. |
Contents
| 1 | |
| 8 | |
3 Words | 43 |
4 Early Syntactic Constructions | 94 |
5 Abstract Syntactic Constructions | 144 |
6 Nominal and Clausal Constructions | 196 |
7 Complex Constructions and Discourse | 243 |
Other editions - View all
Constructing a Language: A Usage-Based Theory of Language Acquisition Michael Tomasello Limited preview - 2005 |
Common terms and phrases
adult adult-like analogy Animacy basic Cambridge chil Child Development Child Language children learn children’s early cognitive Cognitive Linguistics communicative intentions complements complex comprehension conceptual construction grammar context cues developmental Developmental Psychology discourse dren English English-speaking children Erlbaum example expressions function gestures Gleitman grammaticalization guage hear human hypothesis infants intention-reading interaction intransitive intransitive verb Inuktitut involved item-based constructions joint attentional frame Journal of Child kinds language acquisition language development lexical linguistic items linguistic symbols MacWhinney meaning modal morphemes morphology noun phrases nouns novel verb object overgeneralization particular passive patterns percent perceptual perspective phemes phrases Pinker pivot schemas produce pronoun reversal pronouns psycholinguistic Psychology reference referential relative clauses semantic skills Slobin speaker specific speech structions structure tense theory things tion tive Tomasello transitive types understanding universal grammar University Press usage-based utterance-level constructions utterances word learning word order young children