Rhythm reproduction in kindergarten, reading performance at second grade, and developmental dyslexia theories.

Temporal processing deficit could be associated with a specific difficulty in learning to read. In 1951, Stambak provided preliminary evidence that children with dyslexia performed less well than good readers in reproduction of 21 rhythmic patterns. Stambak's task was administered to 1,028 French children aged 5-6 years.

[Behavior difficulties, attention difficulties and learning problems in children aged from 3.5 to 8 years: a longitudinal school study].

Aim: To evaluate the long term impact of teacher's report of behavior difficulties in children aged 3.5 years.

Method: Teachers assessed behavior and attention difficulties in 2054 children by questionnaire; reading performance, and behavior and attention difficulties were re-assessed in 695 of these children at second grade (7-8 years).

[Language and behavioral difficulties at age 3 and half and reading delay in grade 2].

Background: Early detection of specific language impairment and dyslexia in children is an important public health problem. Longitudinal studies are needed for the distinction of real impairments from simple transitory delays.

Methods: Teachers filled a 29-item questionnaire on language and behavior for 695 children aged 3.

[Screening by teachers for language and behavior difficulties in 2059 children aged 3,5 years].

Background: Several tools have been proposed for screening for specific language impairment and behavioral problems in pre-school children. These disorders are risk factors for later poor school achievement and social life. However, presence of real disorders must be differentiated from environmental factors, such as low educational level of the parents or bilingual family.

[Intrinsic and co-intrinsic vowel characteristics in cerebellar and parkinsonian dysarthrias].

Few studies were made on the intrinsic and co-intrinsic vowel characteristics in neurologic dysarthrias. This work evaluates these parameters in a group of 4 subjects with cerebellar dysarthria suffering from a cerebellar degenerative syndrome and a group of 4 subjects with Parkinson disease suffering from parkinsonian dysarthria. These subjects were compared with 10 control subjects.

Oral language deficits in dyslexic children: weaknesses in working memory and verbal planning.

This paper focuses on the relationships among language processing (word- and sentence-level), working memory, and verbal/nonverbal linguistic output. The study examined oral language abilities in a group of 26 French-speaking dyslexic children, compared to two control groups (26 normally developing age-matched children and 26 normally developing younger children). The experimental procedure consisted of tasks involving auditory memory skills (digit span, unfamiliar word repetition, sentence repetition), word retrieval (with semantic, phonological and grammatical criteria), and sentence processing (with verbal and act-out production).

Short-term memory impairment and unilateral dichotic listening extinction in a child with Landau-Kleffner syndrome: auditory or phonological disorder?

The neuropsychological profile of a child with a Landau-Kleffner syndrome is presented here. The observed cognitive difficulties included verbal short-term memory and seemed partially compensated for when the experimental assessments bypassed the auditory channel. This case study is especially challenging since the child, whose phonological skills were quite efficient and who exhibited a dichotic listening unilateral extinction, had developed average reading and spelling abilities.

Child speech and language assessment and measurement.

The necessity of using standardized and norm-referenced tests in assessing speech and language of impaired children has now been recognized. Thus it seems useful to summarize based on the literature principles for founding such testing methods. These include: a) the necessity for a neuropsycholinguistic model that allows the speech-language pathologist to relate the observed linguistic behavior to underlying language processes, b) the knowledge of the psychometric characteristics required for language tests, and c) a discussion of some of the difficulties or controversed points from clinical practice.

Electromyographic activity of strap and cricothyroid muscles in pitch change.

The EMG activity of the cricothyroid muscle (CT) and the three extrinsic laryngeal muscles (thyohyoid, TH; sternothyroid, ST, and sternohyoid, SH) were recorded throughout the voice range of one female and one male subject, both untrained singers. The voice range was examined using rising and falling glissandos (production of a sustained sound with progressive and continuous variation of fundamental frequency). Muscle activity was observed at various pitches during the glissandos.

[Change in laryngeal vibratory mechanism: a physiological entity].

The purpose of this paper is to examine the change of laryngeal vibratory mechanism in 10 males and 9 females trained and untrained singers. The electroglottographic (E.G.

Individual differences in the production of word classes in eight specific language-impaired preschoolers.

The production of word classes in eight 53-62-month-old specific language-impaired (SLI) children was described and compared with that of 30 normal 24-33-month-old children in the same play situation. SLI subjects and nonimpaired children were selected within specified mean length of utterance ranges (low MLU versus high MLU). Production of word classes by subjects was evaluated in order to determine (1) whether SLI children showed a similar or a different word-class profile among themselves and when compared with non-impaired children and (2) whether MLU related to word classes would be useful as a single clinical index in assessment of language acquisition.

Paravermal infarct and isolated cerebellar dysarthria.

A patient with isolated cerebellar dysarthria is reported. Computed tomography showed a small infarct in the left paravermal zone of the rostal cerebellum (lobulus simplex and semilunaris superior) in the territory of the medial branch of the superior cerebellar artery. This patient demonstrates the important role of this area of cerebellum in the control of voice.

A follow-up case study of transitory developmental apraxia of speech: 'L'enfant à voyelles'.

It is well known that the acquisition of consonants can be a more difficult developmental process than of vowels. In this study the authors describe a case of 'transitory developmental apraxia of speech' (TDAS) in which a French-speaking child, although he acquired the whole vowel system, showed a significant delay in consonant acquisition and usage. The results of systematic observations and assessments of general cognitive and specific language functioning cover a period of 4 years (age 3:8 to 7:1l), from first clinical assessment to evidence of a good academic achievement.

Early detection of deafness in young children.

It is generally accepted that early detection and intervention for children with hearing defects, either congenital or acquired, is both necessary and advantageous. Detection before the end of the first year of life seems to improve speech acquisition, lessen the likelihood of behaviour problems and decrease the cost of education. The methods for early detection are discussed and a procedure is recommended.

[Tachylalia: clinical and acoustic study of 149 subjects (author's transl)].

Speech was studied subjectively (listening to recordings) and objectively (measurement of durations) in 67 Parkinsonians, 10 subjects with neurological disorders and 72 psychiatric patients. Acceleration of speech was greatest in the Parkinsonians (8.5 syllables per second).