Picture-book reading with a child with severe learning disability: a case study

Abstract

Interactions between parent and child in joint picture-book reading have received considerable interest in studies of normal language acquisition. Less attention has been paid to the language-disabled child in this context. This single case study looks at the interaction between a severely impaired language learner and his professional caregiver during an episode of joint book reading. An examination is made of the nature of the interaction, the incidence of labelling, and the types of clarification requests used. It is shown that this context provides a framework within which a dialogue is developed between child and adult, with both contributing to the initiation of topics. These are then extended by means ofpredominantly open-ended question forms on the part of the caregiver. Future case studies are recom mended of individuals with different levels of language disorder, and the implications for practice are discussed.