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Atypical Behaviors in Receptive and Expressive Language

 

see also: Main Story | Innovative Assessments | Atypical Gross Motor Development Patterns | Table 1 | Table 2 | References

Receptive Language Red Flags

  • Major expressive-receptive split in language abilities
  • Uneven developmental progress in perception vs. symbolic language
  • Inordinate difficulty learning relational concepts in comparison to other words
  • Difficulty understanding basic questions
  • Difficulty generalizing beyond learned contexts, or manipulating basic concepts without objects present
  • Slow rate of language learning, where gap between chronological and language age increases over time
  • Difficulty integrating multiple sources of information

Expressive Language Red Flags

  • Major receptive-expressive split
  • Frequent cross-category semantic errors ("Daddy holed the ground with a big fork")
  • Difficulty participating in conversation about non-present topics
  • Oral-motor or fine-motor issues influencing motor planning and sequencing
  • Prolonged use of simple vocalizations, limited consonants in spite of strong
    auditory skills
  • Difficulties producing intelligible signs
  • Language organization challenges affecting narratives
  • Slow rates of learning in both receptive and expressive language; language age/chronological age gap widens


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