First language

High school (ages 12+)
People & Society

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/first-language

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the acquisition window?Learned from birth or within the critical period for language development
2. What is the cognitive impact?Forms the foundational cognitive framework for thought and learning
3. What is my first language?Your first language is the language you learn from the moment you are born, or while you are still very young. It is the main way you talk, think, and understand the world.
4. Why are my first words so important?They help you build the way you think and how you make friends. The words you learn first become part of who you are and how you see everything around you.

Critical Period Hypothesis: The idea that there is an optimal time window for acquiring language naturally.
Linguistic Relativity: The concept that the language one speaks influences how one thinks and perceives the world.
Mother Tongue: The language learned from one's primary caregiver, often carrying significant cultural and emotional weight.