Talk back

One human organ that scientists still know little about is the brain. But
thanks to new technology, recent research has enabled neuroscientists to
re-evaluate how the brain works.

Do boys need different language learning opportunities from girls? Opal Dunn explains why they do and what activities you can offer

One human organ that scientists still know little about is the brain. But thanks to new technology, recent research has enabled neuroscientists to re-evaluate how the brain works.

Scientists now accept that there are fundamental differences between the sexes' learning skills, communication abilities and interests. These differences show up from the first months in the way that babies develop, but also in the way that adults mould them to fit the cultural stereotypes of male and female behaviour.

'Fatherese' language

In most Western societies, adults speak differently to boys from birth.

Boys are also treated to more vigorous 'rough and tumble' play by males with different accompanying language ('fatherese'). This results in boys picking up and using male-type language.

Toddler boys in the feminine environment of many early years settings are likely to miss the stimulation of male company and 'male' activities. This can cause frustration, which is exacerbated when children live with mothers in single-parent families.

This frustration may be compounded where boys recognise that girls are achieving more quickly, monopolising conversations and rarely letting boys contribute anything. As a result, some boys switch off from the dialogue and continue to work silently at their own speed.

Bilingual children

To understand the needs of bilingual children, we need to consider cultural expectations for boys and girls both at home and in an English-speaking early years setting.

In some societies, for example, the sons are treated with great respect as they carry the family name into the next generation. This can make the first years of education difficult for bilingual boys, as they have to sort out the behavioural expectations of their two different lifestyles and, at the same time, learn English. This is an even greater task when little English is understood at home.

Brain development

The brain grows most in the first three years of life. In the first month alone neuroscientists say three million connections are being made per second between the neurons in the cortex. From four to six years of age, growth is slower but neural pathways continue to be made.

The connections made through learning a language from nought to six years are used to learn many other things, including music and maths. The better the connections, the more a child is able to learn from appropriate experiences that stimulate.

Newberger explains that, although the adult male brain is 15 per cent larger than the female, more important than size are the different ways the male and female brains function and whether the lobes are used appropriately in given tasks. The key appears to be how children's brains are connected and it is on connectivity that researchers are now focusing.

For a long time we divided the brain into left and right hemispheres, attributing verbal skills and logical thinking to the left and visual, spatial and creative patterns to the right. We said that girls tended to be more left-brained and boys more right-brained.

Oxford Brookes University neurologist Professor John Geake's latest research reveals that, in fact, language activity occurs in both hemispheres. The left side tackles the mechanics of grammar and speech production, while the right hemisphere tackles meaning and the speaker's actions and feelings.

The large bundle of nerve fibres that connects the two hemispheres is thicker in girls and this is thought to explain girls' tendency to use both sides of the brain. According to Geake, successful boys combine the connectivity of the girls' brains with the expertise of boys'.

Girls are more bilateral than boys, tending to use both hemispheres, giving rise to the multi-tasking abilities for which they are known. Boys are more likely to be lateralised using specific areas on either side of the brain for functions.

Professor Simon-Cohen at Cambridge University states that boys' brains are a more systemising organ, whereas women's tend to be empathising. Boys tend to concentrate on one thing for hours, and the emergence of first words such as 'car' indicate the beginnings of an interest which can lead to a boy identifying makes of car by the age of three.

Testosterone

The male sex hormone, testosterone, acts more on the right brain hemisphere of the male foetus during pregnancy, inhibiting the left's development.

Testosterone tends to make boys more restless, inattentive and, as they get older, more competitive and disruptive. Planning appropriate activities needs to take this into account, as boys generally lose interest long before girls.

Developmental differences

It is generally accepted that girls reach the accepted 'developmental milestones' earlier than boys. Toddler girls generally talk before boys so have a head start in using language, picking up language and using it in dialogue. It appears that girls process language more easily than boys.

Their chattering gives them more practice and the opportunities to acquire different types of language and vocabulary, particularly between two and three years when they are breaking through into fluent speech.

Hearing

Newberger points out that girls' senses of hearing, touch and smell are also better developed than boys. In the early years boys may have less sensitive hearing which can reflect on their ability to imitate and pick up language and songs. Girls tend to be better listeners than boys, which could be linked to their superior hearing and their ability to concentrate for longer periods than boys.

Voice

Many boys appear to have less control over their voice than girls, who find it easier to modulate their tone. Boys in the early years need more opportunities to use their voice in speech and singing as it is only in using it that they will gain finer control.

Muscular control and eye co-ordination Boys seem to develop hand-eye co-ordination later than girls. Adults need to make allowances for this in all activities, including routine ones such as mealtimes.

Helping boys

Our challenge is how to help boys, especially those who sense they are lagging behind girls. Although each boy is unique, the following suggestions may be helpful: Nurturing the 'feel good' factor. Boys need frequent encouragement if they are to complete a task successfully. Boys need to feel confident that what they are doing is appreciated. Justified praise stimulates and helps to develop self-esteem.

Additional one-to-one language support. Babies and young toddler boys generally need more 'parentese' opportunities than girls to pick up language. In a busy childcare setting it is important to plan and record daily one-to-one dialogues and assess progress weekly.

Props for extending language. Some dialogues are child-led and spontaneous, arising from what children say, others can be planned around props like toys, picture books and rhymes. Young children cannot be made to play.

However, setting a scene of toys each day ready for play and accompanying the play that develops with supportive language, scaffolding and open questions can extend learning and develop communication.

Books that reflect their interests. Some boys, even at an early age, are more interested in facts and systems than stories. Picture books can reflect their interests. Boys have a robust humour which can be brought out through fun picture books, not always appreciated by girls, like the story of Dirty Bertie (Little Tiger Press).

Nursery rhymes. Boys need more time to pick up rhymes, but once they begin to join in they soon pick up courage. Reciting rhymes provides opportunities for boys to use a lot of language unconsciously. Particularly popular with boys are rowdy rhymes and songs with animal noises and sounds that go 'bang' and 'boom'.

Parents

Monolingual English parents with 'normal' boys still not talking by the end of their second year often pass on their own worry to their sons.

Parents need help to understand that learning is taking place and that they must be patient. They should continue talking even more than usual and give their sons encouragement.

Suggest that the parents read picture books and say rhymes already used in the setting. This will provide the parents with a chance to hear how much their own child already knows and can say.

It is normal for bilingual boys to have some delay in speaking English, as they are learning two languages.

Language learning from nought to three takes place in dialogues with a sympathetic older speaker who knows how to use 'parentese' skills. Where this includes planned appropriate activities around which dialogue arises naturally, a boy will have more opportunities to become a more able communicator.

Further reading

* Making Gender work by Judith Baxter (Reading and Language Information Centre, University of Reading)

* The men they will become - the nature and nurture of the male character by Eli H Newberger (Bloomsbury)

* Learning through Play - Babies, Toddlers and the Foundation Years by Tina Bruce (Hodder & Stoughton)

* 'Why men aren't from Mars' by Stephanie Northen (TES, 3 September 2004)

* 'First words' by Opal Dunn (Nursery World 1 April 2004)