Correlations between Early Numerical Skills and Spatial Language in Children with Developmental Language Disorder

Empirical investigations have established a correlation between the level of spatial language acquisition and the level of arithmetic performance. However, a gap exists in the literature concerning the examination of spatial skills, as prior data were derived from a sample of typically developing children. The present study addresses this gap by examining a group of children with Developmental Language Disorder (DLD). DLD is characterized by problems in language acquisition despite typical levels of intelligence, hearing, and vision. Preschoolers with DLD exhibit challenges in verbalizing object locations, and also experience difficulties in mastering arithmetic. However, no experimental studies have explored the correlation between numerical skills and spatial language in children with DLD. This study aims to elucidate the relationship between spatial language and early numerical skills in children with typical language development (TD) and children with DLD. Two cohorts (TD and DLD) were assessed using a battery of comprehension and preposition production items from the Basic Morphology Test Battery to measure spatial language and six counting items to measure mathematical skills, such as forward and backward counting, number naming and writing, number comparison, and symbolic ordinal judgment. Results indicated significant differences in spatial language and mathematical skills towards higher levels in TD children. Additionally, the relationship between spatial language and mathematical skills was confirmed in the TD group, while this correlation was not significant in the DLD group.