Psychologists at Lancaster University studied 120 children at 21 months, the age when they are learning faster than at any other time in their lives.
In one group, to assess spontaneous speech, researchers recorded what children said and what was said to them by the person caring for them during a 30-minute play session at home. Another group was assessed on thinking and reasoning skills. They found that children who were able to work out how to put puzzles together, and who could pretend, for example that a building block was a car, were better at language.
Children with the best language skills were those who were able to say a new word when an adult asked them to repeat it, or could match an unfamiliar sound to a picture.
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