Play and Its Role in Language Development

Play forms the foundation for language learning. From early childhood to old age, people use language to understand, communicate, negotiate, and actively participate in the world around them. Early language skills are also central to later academic achievement. How do people learn language, and how do they so quickly transition from babies with no language to preschoolers with thousands of words and a grammar? The rich literature from cognitive and social development suggests that one platform that supports this growth might come through child's play. Although each approached constructivism differently, [Page 468]intellectual giants like Jean Piaget and Jerome Bruner shared a fundamental reliance on play as a context for learning. Indeed, Piaget went as far as stating, “Play is the answer to how anything new comes about.” Thus, the importance of play on child development is not a new insight. More recent work on the interplay between play and language builds on these ideas. Researchers are investigating how language play promotes not only vocabulary and grammar but also other cognitive skills. This entry offers a comprehensive overview of language play—from babbles and coos, to symbolic play, to more complex forms of language play. Different types of play contexts will be reviewed and related to language development, leading to contemplations and future directions.

In a recent chapter from the Oxford Handbook for the Development of Play, Gordon Burghardt outlined five qualities of play that are generally accepted across programs of research. The first addresses the nature of playful behaviors as not fully functional. While play can serve a purpose, it is not expressly intended to meet an immediate survival need. Second, play is joyful and voluntary. Third, play is often exaggerated. As Angeline Lillard highlights, eating and pretending to eat look very different in character. For example, a mother's motions are faster during pretense than in the corresponding real-life actions, with actions in the pretend context only approximating those of real life. Fourth, play often consists of repeated elements across time, allowing researchers to distinguish play from exploration. Fifth, play may only emerge when children's immediate physical needs are met. Despite this overarching and generally agreed-upon definition, finding criterial features of play has been (and remains) a source of dispute. Play remains what philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein referred to as a fuzzy concept that is not only somewhat elusive but that unfolds across a number of types (e.g., object play and symbolic play) and formats (e.g., guided play and pretend play).