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What is language processing and reasoning?
What is language processing and reasoning?
Language processing and reasoning is how our brain understands and uses words and sentences to communicate and solve problems. These skills are crucial to how we interact with and make sense of the world, and they impact nearly every aspect of our lives, from academic performance to social interactions and daily functioning.
How can we help develop language processing and reasoning skills?
How can we help develop language processing and reasoning skills?
Research shows that we can help develop language processing and reasoning skills. This involves using a mix of strategies, lots of practice, and ongoing support. Here’s how we can do it:
Create a rich language environment:
Give your children lots of chances to learn and use new words and sentences in various settings to help them get better at using language.
Talk with your children when you’re playing, cooking, or shopping to help them learn how to use words in real-life situations.
Read books together, ask questions about the story, and talk about what’s happening.
Help children come up with their own stories and have them share these stories with you.
Boost vocabulary skills:
Encourage children to read different types of books and talk about new words they find.
Before starting a new topic or lesson, go over important words. This makes it easier for them to understand the new material.
Create cards with new words and their meanings. Add visuals to make the words easy to understand.
Go over new words regularly to help remember and use them. Repetition is key to learning new vocabulary.
Encourage active listening:
Have children use audiobooks, recordings, or practice active listening in everyday conversations with family, friends, or classmates.
Teach children to focus their attention.
Have them summarize what they've heard or ask questions so that they can show their understanding.
Improve sentence structure:
Use exercises to help build and break down sentences (adapt activities from Sentence Combining to use orally).
Work on basic grammar rules with fun activities (5 Fun Grammar Games for Kids) to help children use correct grammar in their writing and speech.
Practice oral expression skills:
Have children practice oral expression through activities like debates, presentations, and role-playing.
Allow extra time for responses.
Actively have conversations with children and encourage them to elaborate on what they are saying.
Practice taking turns using a game such as Conversation Uno (see: Using Uno to Engage in Conversation).
Solve verbal puzzles and games:
Encourage children to play games like Scrabble, do crossword puzzles, and work on riddles and logic puzzles.
These activities involve thinking about words and their meanings in a fun way, which can help with verbal reasoning.
Develop executive functioning skills:
Develop executive functioning skills:
Effective problem-solving is closely linked to various aspects of executive functioning like cognitive flexibility (the ability to switch between different ideas and ways of thinking), working memory (the ability to hold and work with information over short periods), and inhibitory control (the ability to control quick, impulsive reactions).
For information on ways to develop executive functioning skills, please see the executive functioning page of this site.
Practice critical thinking using language:
Practice critical thinking using language:
Engage in conversations where you ask thinking questions like, "What is the main point of this argument?" or "What evidence supports this claim?"
Pose open-ended questions and real-life scenarios.
Work through problems with them. For example, if they’re struggling with a homework assignment, discuss possible solutions and steps to take.
How can we tell when someone is struggling with language processing/reasoning?
How can we tell when someone is struggling with language processing/reasoning?
Some common signs to watch for that may mean someone is struggling with understanding, using, or organizing language are:
Trouble following multi-step directions or understanding complex instructions.
Using a restricted range of words or trouble finding the right words.
Difficulty recalling or pronouncing words during conversation.
Misunderstanding what others say or taking things too literally.
Trouble understanding abstract ideas or figurative language (e.g., idioms, metaphors).
Struggling to link ideas or concepts together logically.
Showing signs of frustration or anxiety when asked to communicate or solve problems.
Difficulties in social situations, such as understanding social cues or maintaining conversations.
How can we support language processing and reasoning difficulties?
How can we support language processing and reasoning difficulties?
For those with language processing and reasoning difficulties, these strategies can help:
Support comprehension:
Use modelling, demonstrations and visuals to improve understanding.
Break information and instructions down into smaller parts and present them one by one.
Provide repetition as needed. Encourage students to ask questions for clarification.
Have students put instructions into their own words to make sure they understand task demands.
Repeat and review information:
Regularly review new vocabulary to help children remember and build on what they’ve learned.
Repeat instructions.
Use aids and alternatives to help understand tasks and instructions:
Model tasks and guide children through the first problem or initial steps of an activity.
Provide work samples that can be used as models.
Use tools like story maps or mind maps to help organize thoughts visually.
Use assistive technology.
Support oral expression and other types of communication:
Use ideas from this resource to help develop and manage oral expression skills: TDSB SLP Language Ideas.
Use augmentative communication systems such as PECS and assistive technology.
Get help when needed:
Encourage children to ask educators, parents/caregivers or peers for help.
Consult with the School Support Team, which includes a Speech-Language Pathologist, for recommendations and support.
Resources
Resources
Language.pdfLanguage Handout
For more information, please check out the following links:
TDSB Department of Speech-Language Pathology for Parents/Caregivers
TDSB Speech-Language Pathology Site for Staff
References:
References:
Anderson, P. J., & Reidy, N. (2012). Assessing executive function in preschoolers. Neuropsychological Review, 22(4), 345-358.
Beck, I. L., McKeown, M. G., & Kucan, L. (2013). Bringing Words to Life: Robust Vocabulary Instruction. Guilford Press.
Biemiller, A., & Slonim, N. (2001). "Establishing a Relationship Between Oral Expression and Cognitive Reasoning in Children: A Controlled Study." Child Development, 72(3), 917-932.
Gogtay, N., & Greenough, W. T. (2009). "Critical thinking skills and their impact on reasoning development in children." Developmental Psychology, 45(4), 1012-1022.
Goswami, U., & Bryant, P. (2007). "The Role of Verbal Puzzles in Developing Reasoning Skills in Children: A Longitudinal Study." Cognitive Development, 22(2), 209-225.
Graham, S., & Hebert, M. (2011). "Writing to Read: Evidence for How Writing Can Improve Reading." Carnegie Corporation of New York.
Harris, M., & K. Damico. (2014). "The Effects of Oral Expression on Children’s Language Processing: A Longitudinal Study." Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 57(6), 2334-2345.
Hart, B., & Risley, T. R. (1995). Meaningful differences in the everyday experience of young American children. Brookes Publishing.
Hirsh-Pasek, K., Golinkoff, R. M., Berk, L. E., & Singer, D. G. (2009). A critical look at the role of language-rich environments in early language development. Child Development Perspectives, 3(3), 169-175.
Kidd, C., & Donnelly, S. (2013). "The Effect of Verbal Puzzles on Language Processing Abilities in Early Childhood." Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 114(4), 453-467.
Kuhn, D., & Pease, M. (2006). "Do children and adults reason alike? A review of critical thinking research." Journal of Cognitive Development, 7(1), 49-78.
Nippold, M. A., & Scott, C. M. (2007). "The Role of Active Listening in Language Development: Insights from a Study of Kindergarteners." Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 50(3), 650-660.
Snow, C. E., & Dickinson, D. K. (2010). Handbook of Early Literacy Research, Volume 3. Guilford Press.
Van der Lely, H. K. J., & Harris, J. (2013). "The Effect of Sentence Structure Training on Children's Reasoning and Comprehension." Journal of Child Language, 40(2), 320-340.
Vaughn, S., & Swanson, E. A. (2010). "Active Listening and its Impact on Language Processing in Children with Learning Disabilities." Learning Disabilities Research & Practice, 25(2), 85-98.
Welsh, J. A., & Pennington, B. F. (2010). Executive function and problem solving in children: A review. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 51(7), 621-634.
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