she concluded that children from ages 8 to 12 learn a second language more quickly than do children ages 4 to 7.

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he three types of learning strategies that involve specific language competencies related to academic English register are:

Because we each have learned language in our early years within our home and cultural sellings. we may grow up thinking lhal our way of speaking and using Ian· guage is the "norm" (Gordon, 200G) and are surprised when someone suggests that we speak. wilh a dialect.

For example, phonologica~ differences are heard in the way words are articu-lated. For example, the word creek may be pronounced with an extended e sound ("creek," as in beet) or with the short i sound (as in pick), as "crick." Semantic dif-ferences occur when different labels are used to refer to the same object or action. In some locales in the United States, a drinking fountain is referred to as a bubbler. Syntactic differences involve differences in the way sentences are structured, For example, "I don't got no time to help" and "I have no time to help" reflect syntac-tic differences. Morphemic differences are found in the way verb endings or other inflectional endings are used, such as gonna or goin' compared with going to and going. When people are communicating in different dialects, these differences may result in communication that requires more negotiation or clarification.

Language Development Among Children of Linguistic Diversity * 61 Among these families, Hart and Risley (1995) identified five quality features in parents' language interactions with their children: 1. Language diversity. This is the variation and number of nouns and modifiers used by the parents. 2. Feedback tone. This is the positive feedback given to children's participation in an interaction. 3. Symbolic emphasis. This is the emphasis placed on focusing on names and associated relations of the concepts and the recall of those symbols. 4. Guidance style. This is parental interaction that uses asking rather than demanding in eliciting specific behavior from the child. 5. Responsiveness. This is parental responsiveness to requests or questions initiated by children.

Ono of the perspectives rosearche<l I.hen was tho verbal-deficit perspective. This perspective contended that anyone who did not use standard English did not have a valid language and thus was verbally deficient.

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Since the story was supported by detailed illustrations. Ms. Harper was able to engage Maria in a conversation (in English) about the story events. When the other Spanish-speaking children in the room heard their teacher reading in Spanish, they came over to join in the story sharing.

Healthy infants are able "lo learn any of the world's 3,000 languages" (Rushton, Eitelgeorge, & Zickafoose, 2003, p. 13).

Young children acquire knowledge of these prosodic features as well as the spe· cific sounds used in a language through interactions wilh people in their environ-ment. Children's auditory perception of these prosodic features contributes to both !heir phonological knowledge and their subsequent somantic knowledge. Infants' perception of the speech intonation of those around them is evident when they begin lo babble aud appear lo mimic the intonation of others. Infants learn to sense when U10ir parent or caregiver is happy, excited, calm, tense, or angry from the intonation, loudness, tempo, or rhythm of the adult's speech.