Contractible auxiliary examples

SPA 340 Project 1

SPA 340 – Language Development
Project 1: Preschool Language: Development of Early Syntax

Due Date: See Syllabus

Guidelines for answers:

For this assignment you do not need to describe context.

Please use quotes or highlights when you refer to something a child has said within your text. For example, a child may omit a word; you must transcribe sentences exactly as it was said.

Your assignment should be typed. Put your answers in list form, not essay.

· Please underline the portion of a sentence that answers the question.

i.e. Find a contractible auxiliary. ‘I am going to the store later.’

· Please use table format provided for your answers.

· A transcription of Ella and Molly's conversations will be available for you to use during your analysis.

Children you will be observing on video:

Ella: 21 months

Molly: 2;10

Questions
Child 1: Ella 21 months

1. Find one example where Ella clearly imitates her mother’s 3-word utterance. (3 points)

2. Find an utterance where Ella omits a pronoun. What pronoun did Ella omit? (3 points)

3. Find 1 example where Ella produces an utterance with contractible copula. (3 points)

4. Find an utterance that contains a Brown’s Semantic Relation. Write the utterance and state which semantic relation it is. (3 points)

5. Find an utterance that contains an infinitive (not semi-infinitive). (3 points)

6. Find an utterance that contains an uncontractible copula. (3 points)

7. Use the handouts of Brown’s Stages provided to you. Which stage characterizes Ella’s language? Provide at least three points why her language is appropriately characterized by that stage. (6 points)

Child 2: Molly 2;10

8. Find 1 utterance where Molly produces negation. (3 points)

9. Find 1 other utterance where Molly produces negation with irregular third person. (3 points) (This utterance should be different than the example in #8)

10. Molly produces an utterance in which she omits an obligatory ‘to be’ form. Provide the utterance and the name of the form (Brown’s grammatical morpheme). (3 points)

11. Listen for the following morphological structures in Molly’s language. Provide the number of examples requested for each. Give the entire utterance but specify which aspect represents the target utterance. (12 points). 2 examples each of: regular third person, irregular past tense, present progressive tense,

12. Find 2 utterances in which Molly produces subject-auxiliary inversion. One is with a modal (write the modal in italics). (5 points)

13. Find one example in which Molly produces a conjoining sentence (a coordinate conjunction). (5 points)

14. Give an example of Semantics, Morphology, Phonology, Syntax, and Pragmatics in Molly’s conversation. Keep your answers short, but include an example. EXAMPLE of how to write answers: Semantics: use of pronoun “I” (5 points).

Name:

#

Question

Answer

Child 1: Ella 21 months

1

Find one example where Ella

clearly imitates her mother’s

3-word utterance. (3 points)

Vans are on.

2

Find an utterance where Ella

omits a pronoun.

What pronoun did Ella omit?

(3 points)

(Uh, I/’ll open), I’ll open.

(Uh, I/’ll open it), I’ll open it.

3

Find 1 example where Ella

produces an utterance with

contractible copula. (3 points)

That/’s [concop] a song man.

4

Find an utterance that

contains a Brown’s Semantic Relation. Write the utterance.

State which semantic relation it is. (3 points)

5

Find an utterance that

contains an infinitive (not semi-infinitive). (3 points)

I want to see that monkey.

6

Find an utterance that

contains an uncontractible copula. (3 points)

Those are[unconcop]Ruthie/'z wipe/s.

7

Use the handouts of Brown’s

Stages provided to you. Which stage characterizes Ella’s language?

Provide at least three points why her language is appropriately characterized by that stage. (6 points)

Stage: