3V0893.1

3V0893.01 Excuses: [No. I’m keeping my ears warm.] (7/3/80) Miriam returned from Boston with a hat I bought her, like the one I bought Robby the week before. The hats are too large for the children unless adjusted to their minimum size. While Peggy ran around with her head submerged in Miriam’s hat (which Robby …

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3V0882.2

3V0882.02 Counting: pauses at places where sequence goes wrong (6/22/80) Peggy was up late last night. Around eleven o’clock, while Robby played with Miriam, I heard Peggy counting to herself: “one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven,…eight,…twelve,…nine… ” (where the dots represent short pauses).

3V0882.1

3V0882.01 More on “crack” and “bang”: [It DOES say ‘crack’] (6/21/80) Peggy sits across the room from me, reading “The Calculus Affair.” A few moments ago she read at the end of the book, “I love him and that one. I love Snowy and Captain Hack-uck.” (pointing at the pictures) I agreed Snowy was a …

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3V0876.1

3V0876.01 More role articulation: (toilet training) (6/26/80) Peggy has been much engaged with toilet training (mainly from social pressure plus a little direct instruction). For example, when I called home from Boston last week, she was so proud of herself she explained having taken off her coat and dress and that she had pissed in …

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3V0865.1

3V0865.01 Counting with Mimi: alternate counting game (6/5/80) Miriam announced a game she and Peggy have been playing – a game of alternate counting. Miriam and Peg count alternately: M1, P2, M3, P4, M5, P6, M7, P7, M8, P9, M10, P11, M12, P12 6/8 note: Peg fast count from 4-11 by herself in the other …

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3V0862.2

3V0862.02 Beginning reading: reading from Puppies book (6/2/80) reconstructed from a journal entry of 6/2/80 ) When Peggy offered to read to me (“Daddy, I read you”), I joined her on the floor. Her specific reconstruction of three pages via pictures were these: TERRIERS: “Once a morning, puppy want a dig a hole (this reflects …

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3V0862.1

3V0862.01 Roots of reading (6/2/80) Peggy has started reading to us. It began last night when I came to bed and found Peggy reading a Tintin book to herself. She offered to read to me, open[ed] to the first page and began: “once a morning, a ship (was) in the water…” then closed the book …

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3V0856.2

3V0856.02 Need to document funny reasons: we should do this (5/27/80) After we had just put up some screen doors, in a context I no longer recall, I asked Peggy why she had closed the screen door. She replied, “Hard…other side open.” This is not a good example of anything — but it does point …

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3V0852.2

3V0852.02 More imitation: (Bob with cast on leg, using Rob’s boot) (5/23/80) Peggy was playing with one of Miriam’s old cowboy boots. She put it on one foot and stumped around remarking, “I have cow boot. I have a cast on my leg.” [bob had broken his foot on Good Friday, and has had a …

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3V0851.1

3V0851.01 Inappropriate color names: red and blue are green also (5/22/80) Peggy is sensitive to color as an important descriptor. She interprets color names as such and uses them in her speech — but the application is all wrong. Her favorite color term is green — she applies it generally (and with no obvious uneasiness) …

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3V0846.2

3V0846.02 Directed speech: Peggy in multiple roles and reading (5/17/80) Peggy found the other day a toy candy dispenser with a rabbit head on top. Today she sat on the floor, playing with it and reading the Britannica ‘Thinking’ book. She asked the rabbit: Peggy: Wanta read it to me rabbit ? Rabbit: That’s a …

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3V0841.1

3V0841.01 Causation: {Scurry did it. She bumped my head.} Under her overlong bangs, I noticed a bruise on Peggy’s forehead and asked what had happened to her. She replied, “This? (pointing to bruise). Scurry did it. She bumped my head.” (This is not a quotation but records the sense of what she said.

3V0839.2

3V0839.02 L” missing (5/10/80) Peggy played with her magnetic letters and plastic tray. After inserting in all their holes the letters available, she pointed to the space for “L” and said “L missing.”

3V0839.1

3V0839.01 Assimilation example: dragon/’snake’ (5/10/80) Miriam brought home from the library a recording of “The Hobbit.” Pictured on the cover is the dragon, ‘Smaug’ (as Tolkein notes, a “low gothic joke.,” the past participle of “smugen” to extrude from or through a hole). No one, I believe, has even mentioned dragons to Peggy and no …

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3V0836.1

3V0836.01 Imitation of role: (bob in chair, chasing away kids) (5/7/80) Peggy was sitting in Bob’s big recliner, reading. When Miriam came along, Peggy said to her, “Go away, Mimi… I trying to work.” At about the same period or slightly later, she chased Robby out of that same chair, telling him to leave because …

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3V0829.1

3V0829.01 Counting; conventional now to six (4/30/80) Robby and I discussed Peggy’s counting and he informs me she counts now beyond four, to six, quite conventionally. He has waked and heard her counting in her crib “one, two, three, four, five, six, nine, ten” This is further evidence of the influence of hide and seek.

3V0827.1

3V0827.01 Reading: naming and describing (4/28/80) When Peggy reads pictures, she primarily identifies, i.e. names the characters. Thus in Richard Scary’s books, she might exclaim, “There’s lowly worm.” Encountering some rarer figure, she asks “Who’s that?” Beyond naming, Peggy has begun to go on to interpretation of the pictures, describing what the character is doing.

3V0825.1

3V0825.01 Words and pictures: [Peggy read pictures. Daddy read words.] (4/26/80) Peggy has taken a fancy to an old issue of National Geographic (she looks through it for the “ladies”). she brings it over to my chair, climbs in my lap, and asks (expects, commands) to be read to. Sometimes I ask her to read, …

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3V0824.2

3V0824.02 Hide and seek (4/25/80) Miriam and Peggy play “hide and seek” — and Peggy’s imitation is prominent. The place she picks to hide is always where Miriam hid immediately before. Counting has resurfaced as an issue in this context. Peggy hides her head and counts (1, 2, 3, 4…) then runs to find Miriam. …

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3V0821.1

3V0821.01 Varying “why?” : [why to distraction] (4/22/80) Talking to Peggy about something…. She replied “Why not?” [a valid question in the context, and the first time I heard her use it. She has been saying “why” to distraction lately.] Gretchen

3V0820.2

3V0820.02 Past form (4/21/80) Peggy very clearly said, ” I wanted grape, like this.” When we discussed my earlier mistake in getting her milk instead of orange juice.

3V0820.1

3V0820.01 Pronouns (4/21/80) “I spilled stuff in my dress. It’s juice.”

3V0819.2

3V0819.02 She-teddy (4/20/80) Gender is not a forward distinction for Peggy yet. She played with her Teddy bear, saying, “Teddy tired…(lays it down)… He’s a good girl.”

3V0819.1

3V0819.01 Progressive Verbs (4/20/80) Peggy has used present participles as progressive verb forms in a descriptive mode (as on last page). In two incidents, the context makes clear her richer semantic framework served by those forms. Yesterday I sat on the front stoop. Peggy came up the path and before reaching the stairs said to …

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3V0811.4

3V0811.04 Surprising syngnosticity (4/12/80) Peggy’s toy elephant she names “Arroot.” Miriam received as a birthday present a pig hand-puppet which Peggy very much admires. She asked the name and Miriam called it “Alfred,” since which Peggy has been chasing and pestering her for “My arroot.” The resolution a half hour later: Peggy came in the …

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3V0801.1

3V0801.01 Counting (4/2/80) As I put her floride drops into juice, Peggy counted out as she has heard me do, “One…two….three…” Bob notes Peggy counted: one, two three four (checkers) Gretchen

3V0799.1

3V0799.01 Walking something like a dog (3/31/80) Peggy carried two empty beer cans from the kitchen to me in my chair (after all, they were mine). Plunking them down vertically on my knee, still holding on, she began twisting the cans in opposite directions around their common vertical center, and explained, unbidden, “walking like a …

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3V0797.1

3V0797.01 Expression of temporal order (3/29/80) At breakfast (possibly lunch) Peggy posed a specific but unsuccessful demand, “want juice for cup.” (this cup has a frog sitting on the bottom; it is revealed when the cup is half emptied.) I brought her the cup, but it contained milk requested earlier, “Drink the milk, Peggy.” She …

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3V0792.1

3V0792.01 Context appropriate verbal accompaniment: remembered rhyme (3/24/80) Sitting with Peggy on my lap, I became aware that she was babbling to herself. As I listened, I realized she was reciting an appropriate jingle… something like “Go horsie… go town… take-a Peggy…all fall in.” Gretchen

3V0791.2

3V0791.02 Book all words (3/21/80) Sometimes Peggy tries to claim one of my books that I am reading as hers. Then I tell her, no, it’s my book, and look, there are lots of words but no pictures. Today, Peggy picked up an adult book, leafed through it, and remarked, “Book all words.” Gretchen

3V0785.3

3V0785.03 Letters in cards (3/17/80) The “school desk” set I gave Peggy in P112 (or P111) has card board cards as part. These cards have cut outs for letter insertion for the letters in the names of objects printed on them. Peggy has been fitting letters into those slots. 3/22/80 Peggy has been fitting the …

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3V0785.1

3V0785.01 New toys (3/17/80) Peggy discovered the rest of the set of stacking cups, neatly stacked. She carefully separated then, setting them down in an irregular row. Then she put them back into a stack, apparently in random order so that some nested and others did not. She repeated the taking apart and re-stacking. The …

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3V0781.1

3V0781.01 “Peggy Lawler” – what symbols mean to her (3/13/80) Ever since Miriam’s gift of the Grover Book (wherein she wrote PEGGY LAWLER on the inside cover to show ownership), Peggy has interpreted any group of letters as meaning “Peggy Lawler.” She distinguishes (more or less) between four things: letters, seen as individuals; pictures in …

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3V0780.3

3V0780.03 Shoe Daddy off: clear example of non-standard syntax (3/12/80) Peggy said this as I removed my shoes. It is perfectly clear she was describing what I did and it is also clear what she meant, “Daddy is taking off his shoe.” the syntax appears quite non-standard.

3V0780.1

3V0780.01 Conversation at dinner: multiple “thanks” (3/12/80) Peggy dropped her fork and Robby retrieved it. P: Robby get fork.” G: Yes, Robby got the fork for you. Peggy, you should say ‘thank you.’ P. Thank oo. R: You’re welcome. P. /dats./ [Thanks, idiosyncratic] R. You’re welcome. Gretchen.

3V0777.1

3V0777.01 Analogies — their incomprehension; deep role in cognition. (3/9/80) Peggy woke me at midnight, she had a stuffy nose and was crying for her Mommy. we played in the sitting room, she in my lap. Pointing to a foxy, she said ‘Get foxy.’ I replied ‘Too far away.’ She continued ‘Like a fader.’ Surprised, …

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3V0776.2

3V0776.02 An inference (3/8/80) Peggy ran from the dining room to me in the living room. Holding out her hand to me (I responded to take whatever it might be), Peggy dropped coins in my hand. She said, ‘Money on table. Somebody left it.’ Not only is this a two-sentence speech act, it also exhibits …

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3V0774.2

3V0774.02 Keeping warm (3/6-8/80) While the older children clustered around the stove in the morning, Peggy picked up her ‘Bear Hug’ from the floor across the room and brought it to the stove. Holding it up and close, she said, ‘Bear keep warm.’ Two days later, before an open fire in our sitting room fireplace, …

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3V0774.1

3V0774.01 Jokes as communication protocols (3/6/80) Miriam has been telling (surely in Peggy’s hearing) a knock-knock : M : Knock knock. V : Who’s there ? M : Tim. V : Tim who ? M : Tim – ber ! At supper this evening, Peggy said : P : knock knock. B : Who’s there …

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3V0771.2

3V0771.02 Scurry and cookies Peggy all too often shares her food with the dog, sometimes on purpose, sometimes not so. Today she took some cookies from a little easter basket made by Miriam and carried them over to Scurry. she then said (and repeated 3 more times) “Scurry eat some.” Here Gretchen censured Peggy, telling …

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3V0769.4

3V0769.04 Contrast: reading Cat in the Hat (3/1/80) I read this to Peggy for the first time today. It was very difficult to keep her interested in any specific page long enough for me to read aloud the relatively extensive text on each page. Realizing early that this was a problem, I decided to see …

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3V0769.3

3V0769.03 Reading Hop on Pop (3/1/80) Peggy sat reading in the middle of the study floor. Was Gretchen sitting with her ? I can’t recall., but I know she was least in the room. Peggy turned the first page, pointed at the picture and said, “Up // Pup.” (This is the large letter text of …

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3V0769.2

3V0769.02 “cake tastes good” (3/1/80) Spontaneous sentence apropos a piece of cheesecake left over from my birthday.

3V0767.1

3V0767.01 Don’t rub your eyes”; imitation as analysis by synthesis (2/28/80) So, Gretchen reminded me. I sat in my chair with Peggy and one of her books on my lap. (My eyes get itchy from allergic reactions and I rub them excessively, almost without noticing). Peggy turned, looked at me (after I had stopped) and …

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3V0764.1

3V0764.01 Many Lawlers: extended family (2/25/80) going through the catalog again: P: “Peggy Lawler… Mimi Lawler…Tree Lawler…” G: “Tree Lawler?” P: “Out there (gesturing).” Gretchen.

3V0755.2

3V0755.02 Many Lawlers (2/16/80) Riding in the car, Peggy spoke to herself up in her car seat. “Peggy Lawler. Mimi Lawler. Robby Lawler. Mommy Lawler. Daddy Lawler.”

3V0749.1

3V0749.01 Words and Numbers; primary roots of discrimination (2/10/80) Miriam and Peggy play with my yardstick a lot (a free one from a local hardware store, it has the measure and advertisements on it). Miriam marches around with it on her shoulder: “hup, two, three, four; hup…” Peggy marches too, “hup, two, three; hup, two, …

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3V0747.3

3V0747.03 Number/temporal names (2/8/80) Miriam tells me she has asked Peggy the time and Peggy responded “eleven.” The answer was not correct but was significant as a number name. Peggy may have been imitating a specific response heard from some one else in response to the same question. Miriam asked again of Peggy, in my …

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3V0733.1

3V0733.01 [chin hurts] Variation anchor, abetted by questioning. (1/25/80) Peggy somehow hurt herself, and when asked what was the matter, replied, ‘Chin hurts.’ A few days previously, as I was changing her diaper, I became aware that she was talking away. P : ‘…neck….hurt (or hurts, I could not notice)…’ G : ‘Your neck hurts, …

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3V0731.1

3V0731.01 At the Childrens’ Museum (1/23/89) Peggy and the rest of us came to Boston for her birthday. My reasons for proposing this trip were that I though she would enjoy the infant’s castle at the children’s museum, to introduce her to the Kuehnle’s, and to introduce her to Logo. We all went to the …

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