Tracking development from early speech-language acquisition to reading skills at age 13

Previous studies have indicated a link between speech-language and literacy development. To add to this body of knowledge, we investigated whether lexical and grammatical skills from toddler to early school age are related to reading competence in adolescence.

Twenty-three typically developing children were followed from age 1;6 to 13;6 (years;months). Parental checklists and standardized tests were used to assess the development of mental lexicon, grammatical and reading capacities of the children.

Direct assessment of early speech-language functions positively correlated with later reading competence, whereas lexical skills reported by parents were not associated with this capacity. At (pre-) school age, larger vocabulary and better grammatical abilities predicted advanced reading abilities in adolescence.

Our study contributes to the understanding of typical speech-language development and its relation to later reading outcome, extending the body of knowledge on these developmental domains for future early identification of children at risk for reading difficulties.