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.
Researcher Dr Katie Alcock said that children who were poor at moving their mouths were particularly weak at language skills. She said that the findings could help child experts identify those who would be likely to have difficulty with understanding word and speech in later years.
Dr Alcock said, 'We plan to follow up this study when the children are older to find out which skills give the best indication of later language abilities and problems.'
She said that the next stage was to examine factors such as parents' level of education and children's home environment.
For a copy of The vocabulary burst and individual differences see www.esrctoday.ac.uk or e-mail alexandra.saxon@ esrc.ac.uk.