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1. Language experience matters for the emergence of early numerical concepts

   https://doi.org/10.1038/s41539-023-00202-w  

   Santos, Stacee; Brownell, Hiram; Coppola, Marie; Shusterman, Anna; Cordes, Sara (December 2023, npj Science of Learning)

   Abstract Research has shown a link between the acquisition of numerical concepts and language, but exactly how linguistic input matters for numerical development remains unclear. Here, we examine both symbolic (number word knowledge) and non-symbolic (numerical discrimination) numerical abilities in a population in which access to language is limited early in development—oral deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) preschoolers born to hearing parents who do not know a sign language. The oral DHH children demonstrated lower numerical discrimination skills, verbal number knowledge, conceptual understanding of the word “more”, and vocabulary relative to their hearing peers. Importantly, however, analyses revealed that group differences in the numerical tasks, but not vocabulary, disappeared when differences in the amount of time children had had auditory access to spoken language input via hearing technology were taken into account. Results offer insights regarding the role language plays in emerging number concepts. 

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2. Visual Sequence Repetition Learning is Not Impaired in Signing DHH Children

   https://doi.org/10.1093/deafed/enab007  

   Terhune-Cotter, Brennan P; Conway, Christopher M; Dye, Matthew W (May 2021, The Journal of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education)

   Abstract The auditory scaffolding hypothesis states that early experience with sound underpins the development of domain-general sequence processing abilities, supported by studies observing impaired sequence processing in deaf or hard-of-hearing (DHH) children. To test this hypothesis, we administered a sequence processing task to 77 DHH children who use American Sign Language (ASL) and 23 hearing monolingual children aged 7–12 years and found no performance difference between them after controlling for age and nonverbal intelligence. Additionally, neither spoken language comprehension scores nor hearing loss levels predicted sequence processing scores in the DHH group, whereas ASL comprehension scores did. Our results do not indicate sequence processing deficits in DHH children and do not support the auditory scaffolding hypothesis; instead, these findings suggest that factors related to experience with and/or proficiency in an accessible language during development may be more important determinants of sequence processing abilities. 

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3. The development of early numeracy in deaf and hard of hearing children acquiring spoken language

   https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.13793  

   Shusterman, Anna; Peretz‐Lange, Rebecca; Berkowitz, Talia; Carrigan, Emily (June 2022, Child Development)

   Abstract Most deaf and hard‐of‐hearing (DHH) children are born to hearing parents and steered toward spoken rather than signed language, introducing a delay in language access. This study investigated the effects of this delay on number acquisition. DHH children (N = 44, mean_age = 58 months, 21F, >50% White) and typically‐hearing (TH) children (N = 79, mean_age = 49 months, 51F, >50% White) were assessed on number and language in 2011–13. DHH children showed similar trajectories to TH children but delayed timing; a binary logistic regression showed that the odds of being a cardinal‐principle (CP) knower were 17 times higher for TH children than DHH children, controlling for age (d = .69). Language fully mediated the association between deaf/hearing group and number knowledge, suggesting that language access sets the pace for number acquisition. 

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4. Early Access to Sign Language Boosts the Development of Serial Working Memory in Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Children

   https://doi.org/10.3390/bs15070919  

   Terhune-Cotter, Brennan; Dye, Matthew (July 2025, Behavioral Sciences)

   Deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) children are often reported to show deficits on working memory (WM) tasks. These deficits are often characterized as contributing to their struggles to acquire spoken language. Here we report a longitudinal study of a large (N = 103) sample of DHH children who acquired American Sign Language (ASL) as their first language. Using an n-back working memory task, we show significant growth in WM performance across the 7–13-year-old age range. Furthermore, we show that children with early access to ASL from their DHH parents demonstrate faster WM growth and that this group difference is mediated by ASL receptive skills. The data suggest the important role of early access to perceivable natural language in promoting typical WM growth during the middle school years. We conclude that the acquisition of a natural visual–gestural language is sufficient to support the development of WM in DHH children. Further research is required to determine how the timing and quality of ASL exposure may play a role, or whether the effects are driven by acquisition-related corollaries, such as parent–child interactions and maternal stress. 

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5. The Challenge of Rich Vocabulary Instruction for Children With Developmental Language Disorder

   https://doi.org/10.1044/2020_LSHSS-20-00110  

   McGregor, Karla K.; Van Horne, Amanda Owen; Curran, Maura; Cook, Susan Wagner; Cole, Renee (April 2021, Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools)

   null (Ed.)

   Purpose The aims of the study were to explore responses of children with developmental language disorder (DLD) to rich vocabulary instruction and to identify potential factors that contribute to outcomes. Method Children with DLD participated in a language intervention embedded within a science camp. Using parent and clinician reports, standardized tests, probes, notes, and video, we derived descriptions of seven of the campers who received a vocabulary intervention that incorporated principles of rich instruction. We present them here as a case series. Results Five cases responded to the intervention with modest gains in Tier 2 science vocabulary and science knowledge. One case demonstrated no response, and another was unable to complete the intervention. The latter two cases presented with triple risks: DLD, executive function deficits, and stressors associated with poverty. In comparison, the best responder also lived in poverty and had DLD, but he had intact executive function, strengths in extant vocabulary, stronger knowledge of science, better engagement in the science and language intervention activities, and was older. Other factors that seemed to contribute to outcomes included the complexity of the word forms and dosage. Conclusions Translating research on rich instruction to clinical practice is challenging. This case series motivated hypotheses about the nature of the challenge and what to do about it, the primary one being that the modest success of rich vocabulary instruction for children with DLD is not a limitation of the approach itself but rather a reflection of the difficulty of delivering the intervention while tailoring the targets, approach, and dosage to the needs of individual children with DLD. Supplemental Material https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.13667699 

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