Cognitive Aspect of Early Linguistic Education in the Context of the Original Method of Dialogue and Narration in the Early Speech Therapy

Abstract

The early linguistic education follows the natural order of speech development. It is crucial to base this education on its obvious connection with the cognitive processes. Thus, the core of the early speech therapy should be focused on the content presented to children. The narrative is the perfect and complete form of cognition, including the realm of values, as it allows for the immersion in the lively structures of storytelling language and speech. The narrative is also a great starting point of conversation and dialogue. The article presents the origins and objectives of the narrative and dialogue method. This original method has been implemented and successfully used in therapy for over 20years by the therapists in the Deaf Children Diagnosis and Therapy Center in Gdańsk, Poland. The method is accompanied by comprehensive resource packs entitled ”Świat opowiadany” (roughly translated to English as „The World as We Tell it”) published and printed by Harmonia Publishing House.