The emergent literacy skills of 4- to 5-year-old children with and without a history of late talking

R. Hodges, Elise Baker, N. Munro, S. Masso

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

1 Citation (Scopus)

Abstract

Purpose: To explore the emergent literacy skills of 4- to 5-year-old children with a history of late talking (H-LT) and a history of typical development (H-TD) by: (1) determining if the two groups differ on measures of emergent literacy, and (2) identifying the proportion in each group presenting with weak emergent literacy profiles.

Method: The emergent literacy skills of 4- to 5-year-old children with a H-LT (n = 13) and a H-TD (n = 11) were compared on measures of phonological awareness, print awareness (including print concepts and letter-sound knowledge), and narrative. Cut-off scores reflecting weak performance for each measure were determined. Children scoring below the cut-off on at least two measures were identified as having a weak emergent literacy profile.

Result: Group means indicated poorer emergent literacy performance in children with a H-LT compared to a H-TD, however, comparisons were not statistically significant (p > 0.05). Proportionally, more children with a H-LT had a weak emergent literacy profile (8/13; 62%) compared to children with a H-TD (2/11; 18%).

Conclusion: Children with a H-LT may be more vulnerable for emergent literacy difficulties. By assessing multiple emergent literacy skills, individualised profiles for children can be determined and reported alongside between-group comparisons.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)96-104
Number of pages9
JournalInternational Journal of Speech-Language Pathology
Volume26
Issue number1
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2024

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 The Speech Pathology Association of Australia Limited.

Notes

WIP in RD

Keywords

  • toddlers
  • preschoolers
  • children
  • Emergent literacy
  • late talking

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