Talking It Up - Language Development and the Role of Adult Supports

Oct 15, 2026

The article argues that play supports children’s language development by drawing on socially interactive and cognitively engaging elements that promote language skills. It emphasizes that while much evidence is correlational, intervention studies point to adult support as a key linking variable. Guided play, in which adults scaffold child-initiated learning, is presented as especially effective. The discussion also frames learning as dependent on the specific type of play and its outcomes, rather than asking whether play causes language in general.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages16

Reading Time40 min

AccessFree to download

Play as a Context for Language Development

An Issue of Definitions

Talking It Up 0LAY􀀌 ,ANGUAGE $EVELOPMENT􀀌 AND THE 2OLE OF !DULT 3UPPORTs Deena Skolnick Weisberg Jennifer M. Zosh Kathy Hirsh-Pasek Roberta Michnick Golinkoff Play helps children learn language, the authors claim, and they review the evidence for it. They suggest that play beneﬁts children’s language development because it incorporates many of the socially interactive and cognitive elements known to enhance language skills. Although much of this evidence proves correlational, they point to a series of recent intervention studies that offer evidence of a key variable linking play and language: adult support. In particular, guided play during which adults scaffold child-initiated learning seems ideal for developing language skills. Based on this evidence, they argue that understanding the efﬁcacy of play for learning requires paying careful attention to the type of play involved and to its results. Keywords: guided play; language skills; play and language development; scaffolding; sociodramatic play; symbolic play Play as a Context for Language Development Language is the currency of social interaction and school achievement, so it is hardly surprising that thousands of pages have been devoted to understanding and encouraging optimal language acquisition in children (Clark 2003; Clark and Clark 1977; Dickinson et al. 2012; Frank, Goodman, and Tenenbaum 2009; Golinkoff and Hirsh-Pasek 1999; Golinkoff et al. 2000; Harris, Golinkoff, and Hirsh-Pasek 2011; Hoffand Naigles 2002; Hollich, Hirsh-Pasek, and Golinkoff 2000). Many of these investigations ﬁnd that language thrives when children are interacting with adults and peers in a playful manner (Hirsh-Pasek and Golinkoff 2003; Smith 2010; Vygotsky 1967; Zigler and Bishop-Josef 2004), 39 American Journal of Play, volume 6, number 1 © The Strong [Contact Deena Skolnick Weisberg at deena.weisberg@psych.upenn.edu](Contact Deena Skolnick Weisberg at deena.weisberg@psych.upenn.edu) suggesting that play can make important contributions to the learning of language. Evaluating just how play inﬂuences language, however, is a relatively new enterprise. In a recent and inﬂuential paper, Lillard, Lerner, Hopkins, Dore, Smith, and Palmquist (2013) describe three categories of potential links between pretend play and other cognitive or social skills, based on Smith (2010) . The strongest link one could posit is that play constitutes a unique and crucial component in the development of cognitive or social skills, which would not develop without it. This causal view holds that children cannot achieve, say, a kind of selfcontrol if they do not engage in play; this skill would be impossible to acquire otherwise. Another claim suggests the link between play and learning is one of equiﬁnality: play has a causal effect on the development of such skills but is only one of many activities that do so. In this case, play would help children gain self-control, but other activities would, too, and equally well. The third—and weakest—claim holds that play has no role at all in such development but is merely an epiphenomenon or a byproduct of learning the skills. This means that children’s development of self-control involves play but not because of anything intrinsic to play itself. Rather, something connected to the play situation—such as increased social interaction—aids the development. Although the categories Lillard and her colleagues present clearly delineate several relationships that play could have with cognition and, in particular, with language development, phrasing the options in such stark terms may inadvertently lead researchers to discount the more complex relationship that exists between language and play. Put simply, asking whether play causes language development may be the wrong question. Instead, we rephrase the question to ask: “What aspects of play might promote language development?”In answering this question, it becomes clear that play contains many of the ing

FAQs

为什么作者认为游戏有助于儿童语言发展？

作者认为游戏能融合许多与语言能力提升相关的社会互动和认知要素，因此有助于语言技能的发展。

作者提到的“成人支持”在证据中扮演什么关键作用？

作者指出，近期干预研究显示成人支持是连接游戏与语言的重要变量，尤其是成人在引导性游戏中进行搭建式支持时更有效。

作者如何看待“游戏是否导致语言发展”这一提问方式？

作者认为这可能是错误问题，并改为关注游戏中哪些具体方面会促进语言发展，从而更全面地理解二者关系。

Oct 15, 2026

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