Child Language Development

Overall Instructions: You will write a total of three paragraphs; one L2 acquisition and two L2 acquisition paragraphs.

L1 Acquisition: Watch the video and, in one paragraph, describe what you see happening as if to an expert, using terms from child language development. Points will be deducted for a paragraph with no reference to specific terms from our first day of class.

L2 Acquisition: Through most of the class, you are asked to apply what you have learned in SLA to yourself. In the final exam, you are asked to apply what you have learned about SLA to another person.

Instructions: Apply at least two SLA approaches/models/theories/hypotheses. Using information from your chosen approaches/models/theories/hypotheses, write:

1. One paragraph a to a language acquisition expert how/if your chosen person will be successful acquiring their target language. This paragraph should have six to eight full, thorough, compelling sentences reflecting upper-division university work, then
2. Write a second paragraph to your person to describe how they will acquire their target language. but explain it in a way they would understand.

Wajma is a young mother in an ESL/family literacy class. She has three small children who she brings to the child care program. Wajma has been in the country for one year. Her ESL class has been running for two months, and she actively seeks out opportunities to use her L2 outside of class with women she meets at the store and around town. Wajma wants to have better English so she can find a job, but she attends class infrequently, and she cannot read or write in her native Farsi.