Moving Beyond Single Word Acquisition of Speech Sounds to Connected Speech Development With Dynamic Assessment.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to document speech sound development across early childhood from a dynamic assessment (DA) perspective that captures a breadth of linguistic environments using the Glaspey Dynamic Assessment of Phonology (Glaspey, 2019), as well as to provide normative data for speech-language pathologists to compare speech skills when making clinical decisions and provide historical context. Targets of English were evaluated via DA for the (a) age of acquisition in single words; (b) continued development through connected speech; (c) early, mid, and late sequence; and (d) differences between single word and connected speech productions.

Method: Data were extracted from the reported results of the norming study for the Glaspey Dynamic Assessment of Phonology, which included a representative sample of 880 children ages 3 years to 10;11 (years;months).