Miswriting (Especially Mirror Writing) of the Digits: An Ecological Assessment Using ELFE Data

2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-17
Author(s):  
Jean-Paul Fischer ◽  
Xavier Thierry
Keyword(s):  
Mixed Effects ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Left Hand ◽  
National Cohort ◽  
Smartphone Use ◽  
Second Year ◽  
École Maternelle ◽  
The Right ◽  
Age Of Entry

The French National Cohort of Children Study (Etude Longitudinale Française depuis l'Enfance—ELFE) tested the literacy and numeracy skills of 4- to 5-year-old typically developing children in the second year of école maternelle. Tasks were administered by more than 4,000 teachers at schools across France. One of the study's numeracy tasks required participants to write the number of ducks (up to 5) they had counted. Analyzing the digits written by 14,904 children showed that miswritings were much more common for the digit 3 than for the digit 4. This result is consistent with the right-orienting rule, which young children in Western cultures apply when they do not know a digit's orientation, and which leads them to write, for example, ε instead of 3.The nature and frequency of miswritten digits did not differ significantly between the 466 children presumed to have written with their left hand and the 3,531 children presumed to have written with their right hand. However, a logistic mixed-effects regression showed that two other factors—age of entry to école maternelle and very early smartphone use—had a (modest) influence on the percentage of digits that were miswritten.

Laterality and Force of Handgrip during the First Two Years at School

1989 ◽  
Vol 68 (3) ◽  
pp. 955-962 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heinz Krombholz
Keyword(s):  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Superior Performance ◽  
First Year ◽  
Left Hand ◽  
Lateral Dominance ◽  
Repeated Measures Design ◽  
Left Handed ◽  
Second Year ◽  
Paper And Pencil ◽  
The Right

The connection between lateral dominance and force of handgrip was investigated by means of a repeated-measures design. 521 children participated. Performance on a paper-and-pencil task and force of handgrip were measured at the beginning of the first year at school and at the end of the first and of the second years at school. On the paper-and-pencil task 84% of the children were classified as right-handers, 8% as left-handers, and 8% as ambidexterous. About 2% of children classified as right-handers at the beginning of the first year at school were classified as left-handers at the end of the second year at school while 18% of left-handers shifted to right-handedness. 52% of children attained their best performance on handgrip with the right hand and 39% with the left hand. No differences could be found either for the right or for the left hand in force of handgrip between right- and left-handed and ambidexterous children. For right-handers, however, the more skilled hand showed superior performance in force of handgrip. These results indicate that left-handers are less strongly handed than right-handers.

scholarly journals Acquiring diminutive allomorphs: taking item-specific characteristics into account

2019 ◽  
Vol 46 (3) ◽  
pp. 567-593
Author(s):  
Tiffany BOERSMA ◽  
Judith RISPENS ◽  
Fred WEERMAN ◽  
Anne BAKER
Keyword(s):  
Mixed Effects ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Linear Mixed Effects ◽  
Phonological Complexity

AbstractPhonological characteristics and frequencies of stems and allomorphs have been explored as possible factors causing differences in production accuracies between allomorphic forms. However, previous findings are not consistent and the relative contributions of these factors are unclear. This study investigated target and erroneous productions of the Dutch diminutive, which has five allomorphs with varying type frequencies and of which the selection depends on the phonological characteristics of the stems. Typically developing children (N = 115, 5;1–10;3) were tested on their production of real and nonce diminutives. Linear mixed effects modelling was used to analyse the data taking nonverbal IQ into account. Type frequencies of the allomorphs and differences in phonological characteristics of the stems were found to be related to differences in production accuracies between the allomorphs. However, phonological characteristics of the stems appeared to have a bigger impact, mainly due to the phonological complexity of these characteristics.

scholarly journals A Synoptic and Theoretical Account of Character (Digits and Capital Letters) Reversal in Writings by Typically Developing Children

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 137 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean-Paul Fischer ◽  
Christophe Luxembourger
Keyword(s):  
Educational Psychology ◽  
Visual Processing ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Left Hand ◽  
Comprehensive Theory ◽  
Early Visual Processing ◽  
Mirror Generalization ◽  
Hand Writing ◽  
Neuropsychological Findings

Reversing characters (digits and letters) when writing, and complete mirror writing, raise one of the oldest and most mysterious questions in developmental and educational psychology: Why do five-year-old children write symbols (e.g., ꓱ for E) they have neither learnt nor seen? Attempts to draw up a complete explanatory theory of character reversal in writings by typically developing children were long hindered by the existence of a seemingly satisfactory explanation (left-hand writing), the failure to bring together research in neuropsychology and educational psychology, and the failure to consider the shape and structure of the characters. The present paper remedies this situation by describing a new, comprehensive theory based on recent neuropsychological findings and extensive empirical observations. The theory assumes that a character’s orientation, detected in the early visual processing area, is deleted (or made inaccessible) by the mirror generalization process during transfer to memory. Consequently, there is a period, usually around age five, during which children have representations of the characters’ shapes but not their orientations. Hence, when asked to write a character, children have to improvise its orientation, and the orientation they choose (implicitly, non-consciously) is often derived from the writing direction in their culture.

Repetition Versus Variability in Verb Learning: Sometimes Less Is More

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-15
Author(s):  
Sabrina Horvath ◽  
Sudha Arunachalam
Keyword(s):  
Eye Gaze ◽  
Mixed Effects ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Regression Analyses ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Less Is More ◽  
Late Talkers ◽  
Consistent Condition ◽  
Initial Representation

Purpose This study examined whether 2-year-olds are better able to acquire novel verb meanings when they appear in varying linguistic contexts, including both content nouns and pronouns, as compared to when the contexts are consistent, including only content nouns. Additionally, differences between typically developing toddlers and late talkers were explored. Method Forty-seven English-acquiring 2-year-olds ( n = 14 late talkers, n = 33 typically developing) saw scenes of actors manipulating objects. These actions were labeled with novel verbs. In the varied condition, children heard sentences containing both content nouns and pronouns (e.g., “The girl is ziffing the truck. She is ziffing it!”). In the consistent condition, children heard the verb an equal number of times, but only with content nouns (e.g., “The girl is ziffing the truck. The girl is ziffing the truck!”). At test, children were shown two new scenes and were asked to find the novel verb's referent. Children's eye gaze was analyzed as a measure of learning. Results Mixed-effects regression analyses revealed that children looked more toward the correct scene in the consistent condition than the varied condition. This difference was more pronounced for late talkers than for typically developing children. Conclusion To acquire an initial representation of a new verb's meaning, children, particularly late talkers, benefit more from hearing the verb in consistent linguistic contexts than in varying contexts.

Productive Vocabulary Size Predicts Event-related Potential Correlates of Fast Mapping in 20-Month-Olds

2008 ◽  
Vol 20 (7) ◽  
pp. 1266-1282 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janne von Koss Torkildsen ◽  
Janne Mari Svangstu ◽  
Hanna Friis Hansen ◽  
Lars Smith ◽  
Hanne Gram Simonsen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Word Processing ◽  
Event Related Potential ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Fast Mapping ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Vocabulary Size ◽  
N400 Effect ◽  
Second Year ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Vocabulary Spurt

Although it is well documented that children undergo a productive vocabulary spurt late in the second year, it is unclear whether this development is accompanied by equally significant advances in receptive word processing. In the present study, we tested an electrophysiological procedure for assessing receptive word learning in young children, and the impact of productive vocabulary size for performance in this task. We found that 20-month-olds with high productive vocabularies displayed an N400 incongruity effect to violations of trained associations between novel words and pictures, whereas 20-month-olds with low productive vocabularies did not. However, both high and low producers showed an N400 effect for common real words paired with an incongruous object. These findings indicate that there may be substantial differences in receptive fast mapping efficiency between typically developing children who have reached a productive vocabulary spurt and typically developing children who have not yet reached this productive spurt.

scholarly journals The syntactic and semantic features of two-year-olds’ verb vocabularies: a comparison of typically developing children and late talkers

2019 ◽  
Vol 46 (3) ◽  
pp. 409-432 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sabrina HORVATH ◽  
Leslie RESCORLA ◽  
Sudha ARUNACHALAM
Keyword(s):  
Language Development ◽  
Retrospective Analysis ◽  
Language Disorders ◽  
Mixed Effects ◽  
Group Classification ◽  
Semantic Features ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Expressive Vocabulary ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Late Talkers

AbstractChildren with language disorders have particular difficulty with verbs, but when this difficulty emerges is unknown. We examined syntactic (transitive, intransitive, ditransitive) and semantic (manner, result) features of two-year-olds’ verb vocabularies, contrasting late talkers and typically developing children to look for early differences in verb vocabulary. We conducted a retrospective analysis of parent-reported expressive vocabulary from the Language Development Survey (N = 564, N(LT) = 62) (Rescorla, 1989). Verbs were coded for the presence or absence of each syntactic and semantic feature. Binomial mixed-effects regressions revealed the effect of feature on children's knowledge and whether feature interacted with group classification. Our results revealed mostly similarities between late talkers and typically developing children. All children's vocabularies showed a bias against verbs that occur in ditransitive frames. One feature showed a difference between groups: late talkers showed a bias against manner verbs that typically developing children did not.

scholarly journals Investigating the white matter correlates of reading performance: Evidence from Chinese children with reading difficulties

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. e0248434
Author(s):  
Natalie Yu-Hsien Wang ◽  
Hsiao-Lan Sharon Wang ◽  
Yi-Chun Liu ◽  
Yi-Peng Eve Chang ◽  
Jun-Cheng Weng
Keyword(s):  
Reading Comprehension ◽  
White Matter ◽  
Word Recognition ◽  
Corpus Callosum ◽  
Reading Difficulties ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Poor Reading ◽  
Medial Frontal Gyrus ◽  
The Right

Purpose Reading comprehension is closely associated with word recognition, particularly at the early stage of reading development. This association is reflected in children with reading difficulties (RD) who demonstrate poor reading comprehension along with delayed word recognition or reduced recognition accuracy. Although the neural mechanisms underlying reading comprehension and word recognition are well studied, few has investigated the white matter (WM) structures that the two processes potentially share. Methods To explore the issue, behavioral scores (word recognition & reading comprehension) and diffusion spectrum imaging (DSI) were acquired from Chinese-speaking children with RD and their age-matched typically developing children. WM structures were measured with generalized fractional anisotropy and normalized quantitative anisotropy to optimize fiber tracking precision. Results The children with RD performed significantly poorer than the typically developing children in both behavioral tasks. Between group differences of WM structure were found in the right superior temporal gyrus, the left medial frontal gyrus, the left medial frontal gyrus, and the left caudate body. A significant association between reading comprehension and Chinese character recognition and the DSI indices were found in the corpus callosum. The findings demonstrated the microstructural difference between children with and without reading difficulties go beyond the well-established reading network. Further, the association between the WM integrity of the corpus callosum and the behavioral scores reveals the involvement of the WM structure in both tasks. Conclusion It suggests the two reading-related skills have partially overlapped neural mechanism. Associating the corpus callosum with the reading skills leads to the reconsideration of the right hemisphere role in the typical reading process and, potentially, how it compensates for children with reading difficulties.

Age Norms for Auditory-Perceptual Neurophonetic Parameters: A Prerequisite for the Assessment of Childhood Dysarthria

2020 ◽  
Vol 63 (4) ◽  
pp. 1071-1082
Author(s):  
Theresa Schölderle ◽  
Elisabet Haas ◽  
Wolfram Ziegler
Keyword(s):  
Assessment Tool ◽  
Developmental Trajectories ◽  
Voice Quality ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Age Norms ◽  
Elementary School Age ◽  
Speech Characteristics ◽  
Substantial Progress ◽  
Computer Based

Purpose The aim of this study was to collect auditory-perceptual data on established symptom categories of dysarthria from typically developing children between 3 and 9 years of age, for the purpose of creating age norms for dysarthria assessment. Method One hundred forty-four typically developing children (3;0–9;11 [years;months], 72 girls and 72 boys) participated. We used a computer-based game specifically designed for this study to elicit sentence repetitions and spontaneous speech samples. Speech recordings were analyzed using the auditory-perceptual criteria of the Bogenhausen Dysarthria Scales, a standardized German assessment tool for dysarthria in adults. The Bogenhausen Dysarthria Scales (scales and features) cover clinically relevant dimensions of speech and allow for an evaluation of well-established symptom categories of dysarthria. Results The typically developing children exhibited a number of speech characteristics overlapping with established symptom categories of dysarthria (e.g., breathy voice, frequent inspirations, reduced articulatory precision, decreased articulation rate). Substantial progress was observed between 3 and 9 years of age, but with different developmental trajectories across different dimensions. In several areas (e.g., respiration, voice quality), 9-year-olds still presented with salient developmental speech characteristics, while in other dimensions (e.g., prosodic modulation), features typically associated with dysarthria occurred only exceptionally, even in the 3-year-olds. Conclusions The acquisition of speech motor functions is a prolonged process not yet completed with 9 years. Various developmental influences (e.g., anatomic–physiological changes) shape children's speech specifically. Our findings are a first step toward establishing auditory-perceptual norms for dysarthria in children of kindergarten and elementary school age. Supplemental Material https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.12133380

Editorial Note

1946 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 2-2
Keyword(s):  
Editorial Note ◽  
Speech Sounds ◽  
Left Hand ◽  
Hand Column ◽  
Right Hand ◽  
Infant Speech ◽  
The Right

In the article “Infant Speech Sounds and Intelligence” by Orvis C. Irwin and Han Piao Chen, in the December 1945 issue of the Journal, the paragraph which begins at the bottom of the left hand column on page 295 should have been placed immediately below the first paragraph at the top of the right hand column on page 296. To the authors we express our sincere apologies.

Is the Future the Right Time?

2010 ◽  
Vol 57 (4) ◽  
pp. 308-314 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marc Ouellet ◽  
Julio Santiago ◽  
Ziv Israeli ◽  
Shai Gabay
Keyword(s):  
Auditory Task ◽  
English Speakers ◽  
Visual Modality ◽  
Opposite Pattern ◽  
Time Line ◽  
Temporal Reference ◽  
Left Hand ◽  
Reading Direction ◽  
Mental Time Line ◽  
The Right

Spanish and English speakers tend to conceptualize time as running from left to right along a mental line. Previous research suggests that this representational strategy arises from the participants’ exposure to a left-to-right writing system. However, direct evidence supporting this assertion suffers from several limitations and relies only on the visual modality. This study subjected to a direct test the reading hypothesis using an auditory task. Participants from two groups (Spanish and Hebrew) differing in the directionality of their orthographic system had to discriminate temporal reference (past or future) of verbs and adverbs (referring to either past or future) auditorily presented to either the left or right ear by pressing a left or a right key. Spanish participants were faster responding to past words with the left hand and to future words with the right hand, whereas Hebrew participants showed the opposite pattern. Our results demonstrate that the left-right mapping of time is not restricted to the visual modality and that the direction of reading accounts for the preferred directionality of the mental time line. These results are discussed in the context of a possible mechanism underlying the effects of reading direction on highly abstract conceptual representations.

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