BACKGROUND A number of contrasting hypotheses have been put forward concerning mathematical performance deficits in children with specific language impairment (SLI). However, debate as to the nature of this deficit continues. The present study analyzed whether the trajectories of SLI-children may be attributed to the use of symbolic vs. linguistic assessment tasks, or to a deficit in the magnitude system. METHOD SLI-children (N=20) and typically achieving children (N=20) were monitored between kindergarten and first grade. Four tasks were designed, each with varying demands on language, symbolic, and domain-specific skills. RESULTS The groups only differed in the trajectories of those numerical tasks involving high language demand. CONCLUSIONS These findings indicate that SLI children present an early deficit in the development of numerical skills that require retrieval from long term memory and articulation of a phonological representation. Number skills involving greater language demand should be included as part of SLI early detection and intervention protocols.

中文翻译：

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特定语言障碍儿童的数字处理技能轨迹。

背景技术关于具有特定语言障碍（SLI）的儿童的数学表现缺陷，已经提出了许多相反的假设。但是，关于这种赤字的性质的辩论仍在继续。本研究分析了SLI儿童的轨迹是否可能归因于使用符号与语言评估任务，还是归因于幅度系统的不足。方法在幼儿园和一年级之间对SLI儿童（N = 20）和通常有成就的孩子（N = 20）进行监测。设计了四个任务，每个任务对语言，符号和特定领域的技能都有不同的要求。结果这些小组的不同之处仅在于那些涉及高语言需求的数字任务的轨迹。结论这些发现表明，SLI儿童在数字技能发展方面存在早期缺陷，需要长期记忆和语音表达的清晰表达。SLI早期检测和干预协议的一部分应包括涉及更大语言需求的数字技能。