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Parents adopting children ages 3 and older have many more questions to
ask about language development. Unlike younger children who are
barely talking, the older child should be conversing in simple sentences
and beyond. Parents need to gather as much information as possible
about the child's language abilities. This is especially true for
children adopted at age 4 or older who need to begin school soon after arriving home. Older children have to quickly learn English in order
to survive academically. Research indicates that skills in the
first language are the best predictors for success in learning a new
language (Cummins, 1991). Therefore parents need to determine whether a child is
doing well or
delayed in the first language.
If videotapes of the child are available, or parents are able to meet
the child, questions should be supplemented with direct observations. At older ages some children are quite charming and easily
converse with anyone; others are shy and won't talk to strangers. Without knowing
ahead of time what type of personality
a child has, videotapes should be made of
the child interacting with a familiar adult caregiver in a
situation that is comfortable. Parents meeting children for the first
time should later ask to watch the child interacting with well-known adult
caregivers in a room that is familiar to the child and should videotape
the interaction. Try to avoid having the interactions turn into
question-answer interrogations. Questions usually result in one word
answers and the goal is to get samples of the child's longest and best
sentences. These videotapes are an important record and may be needed to help the child qualify for
extra services after adoption.
The following questions are appropriate for children speaking in 3-4
word sentences and beyond.
 | Expressive Language
 | Is the child speaking appropriately for
his or her age? If not, ask the staff to estimate the age
level of the child's speech and to describe the aspects of speech
that are different or delayed. |
| How many words can the child put together
in the longest sentences? |
| Try to obtain translated examples of the
child's 5 best (usually longest) sentences. |
| Is the child adding grammatical markers
such as plurals, verb tense, or articles to sentences? Get a
list of grammatical markers the child is using correctly more than
50% of the time. |
| Is the child making errors in
grammar? For example, is the child saying the equivalent of
"Them is nice?" If so, ask for descriptions and
examples of these errors. |
| Does the child's vocabulary seem age
appropriate? Ask for examples of some advanced vocabulary
words the child is using correctly. |
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| Receptive Language
| Is the child understanding language
appropriately for his or her age? If not, ask the staff to
estimate an age level for the child's comprehension abilities. |
| What types of questions or commands does
the child easily understand? |
| What types of questions or commands are
difficult for the child to understand? |
| Does the child need lots of gestures added
or repetitions of information to improve understanding? |
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| Articulation/Pronunciation
| Does the child pronounce words typical for
his or her age level? If not, ask for an estimate of the
child's pronunciation age level. |
| Get a list of sounds the child has
difficulty pronouncing. |
| For each sound that is not pronounced
correctly, ask for an example of a word the child
mispronounces. Try to phonetically spell the correct
pronunciation of the word and then spell the child's
mispronunciations of the same word. |
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| Social Interaction
| Does the child enjoy interacting with
adults or with other children who are familiar? |
| Does the child make eye contact when
conversing with others? |
| Does the child interact well with other
children during play or group activities? |
| Would the child be described as shy all of
the time, shy with strangers but friendly to familiar persons,
friendly to anyone, or somewhere between? |
| Does the child engage in pretend play?
(pretending to cook or playing school). If yes, get
some examples of pretend play activities the child enjoys. |
| Is the child's pretend play based on
situations from real life, or fantasy situations? For
example, does the child pretend to cook dinner or pretend to be a
dinosaur? |
| Does the child engage in constructive
play? (building with blocks, coloring, and puzzles). If yes,
get examples of constructive play activities the child enjoys. |
| When playing, does the child prefer to
play alone or with other children? |
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If the child is attending school, parents should ask orphanage staff
and/or teachers the following questions.
| Literacy
| Are the child's reading abilities at, above, or below grade
level? If reading is below grade level, how far below?
Ask for examples of the types of reading problems that have been
observed. |
| Ask to see an example of a book or other text that the child can
read. If possible, videotape the child reading the
book. If not, ask for a written translation of a few pages
of the book. |
| Are the child's writing abilities at, above, or below grade
level? If writing is below grade level, how far below?
Ask for examples of the types of writing problems that have been
observed. |
| Ask to bring home examples of the child's writing. Make
sure dates are noted on each example. |
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| Academic Abilities
| What subjects are easy for the child to learn? For each
"easy" area, ask if the child is learning at, above, or
below grade level. |
| What subjects are difficult for the child? Ask if the
child is learning at, above, or below grade level in each
difficult subject. |
| For each area of difficulty, ask if the staff knows why
the child is having difficulty. |
| Does the child have more difficulty than his or her classmates
paying attention to the teacher during class? |
| Does the child have more difficulty than his or her classmates
sitting at a desk during class? |
| When compared to classmates, does the child work independently,
or need frequent re-direction to complete tasks? |
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