Hi everyone! We are back today with another blog post on Natural Language Acquisition or Gestalt Language Processing. Last time we discussed the differences between Analytic Language Processing and Gestalt Language Processing. Today we are going to discuss some of the behaviors/signs that could indicate that your child is a Gestalt Language Processor (GLP).
- Listening to the same songs or video clips over and over: It is very common for GLPs to watch or listen to the same video/song clips on repeat. They may even rewind to listen to a specific part of the song. They may like to sing along with the clip or they might be silent as they listen.
- On a related note, you might hear your child repeating lines from songs and movies even when the video is not playing: A hallmark sign of Gestalt Language Processing is something called “Delayed Echolalia.” Delayed echolalia, also known as scripting or using gestalts, is the repetition of a message that was previously heard either from a song, movie, or another person. At times these scripts may appear to be relevant to the context or play, but more than likely they may not without some further detective work. For example, your child may love the movie Frozen and specifically the song “Do You Want to Build a Snowman?” While splashing in a pool, you hear them say, “Do you wanna build a snowman? Come on let’s go and play!” There most likely are no snowmen in the pool but something triggered this memory and singing. (More on this in future blog posts!)
- Singing, humming or speech with rich intonation: GLPs are sometimes referred to as “intonation babies.” This refers to the idea that their vocalizations often contain a lot of emotion and may even be melodic. Some GLPs first vocalizations may even be songs or humming rather than “words”.
- The last indicator of Gestalt Language Processing that we are going to touch on today is childrenusing long strings of vocalizations that are unintelligible but appear to be consistent with the same intonation and rhythm: At first listen, it may appear that some of the vocalizations are random or meaningless. However, with some detective work you may notice that many of the vocalizations are more gestalts from favorite shows or videos.
If your child displays some or all of these characteristics, it is possible that they are a GLP. If you are unsure, your speech language pathologist can help you investigate further and determine your child’s language processing style. As we discussed last time, it is important to remember that both ALP and GLP are natural and normal ways to learn language. One is not better than the other. They are simply just different and require different therapy strategies. Stay tuned for future blog posts about GLP and the different stages of development.
-Hannah-
