Why is “Core Language” Important for Early Language Development?

It is an exciting time for a parent to hear their child say their first word, no matter when that happens! As a speech-language pathologist, we often have caregivers state that their young child uses words but that they are using the same word for so many different things. Something heard quite often is “He can say Dada, but he says it for everything, not just when referring to dad”. This is common amongst early language users and it’s known as overextension.

What is Core Language?

This is where core language comes into play and why it’s used as a focus during early language intervention. What is Core Language exactly? Core language is a term used to describe a variety of words/vocabulary that comprises more than 70-90% of the words that we use on a daily basis.

Core vocabulary is extremely powerful in the sense that it provides so much meaning across contexts. Examples of core language terms include but are not limited to: “go”, “want”, “up”, “I”, “you”, “see”, “my”, “help”, “do”, “more”, “no”, “yes”, “play”, “like”, “finished”, “what, “where”, “have”, “open”, “stop”, “get” , “down”, etc.

Fringe Vocabulary

On the contrary, many of the words that children learn to use in their early stages of language development are considered to be “fringe” language or vocabulary. This term simply relates to a child’s specific likes, wants and needs. Fringe vocabulary is different from core vocabulary in that it does not provide much meaning and is very specific to the person using the term. Examples of fringe vocabulary include but are not limited to: “Elmo”, “bird”, “dinosaur”, “orange”, “Peter”, “rainbow”, “milk”, “cookie”, etc. 

Let’s take a look at examples of how using fringe vocabulary can be very limiting. A child says “Elmo” across his day. What is his/her real implication of saying Elmo? Do they want to play with Elmo? Did they see Elmo on T.V? Are they asking where their toy Elmo is?

You can instantly notice the limitations of just saying the word “Elmo” for both this child and their caregivers. So, let’s add some core vocabulary around that word and see how it provides more meaning.

Examples include: (Underlined words =core terms)

 “I LIKE Elmo”, “Where’s Elmo”, “YOU HAVE Elmo?”, “ALL DONE Elmo”, “Elmo EAT”.

As you can see, core terms are very valuable for young children to learn in their early stages of language development. Although it is extremely important for children to know names of objects and people, providing them input to core language is just as equally, if not more important to your child’s overall language development!

Questions or Concerns?

If you are working with your child on early language development and continue to have questions or have concerns that you would like addressed, please reach out to our speech and language specialists.  Our pediatric speech pathologists at Chicago Pediatric Therapy & Wellness Center are available to do a full assessment to help you and your family with this core language development! They can be reached today at 773-687-9241.