"Speaking and listening are part of the National Curriculum. By concentrating on what children achieve when they use talk, this book shows how young children's talk can be valued and encouraged. Each contributor presents a case study which shows children using talk to reflect upon and learn about their world. By revealing what happens when young children talk on the telephone, act as storytellers, chatter in the bath, sort out the complexities of punctuation, explore the past, and use oral language in many other situations, the contributors demonstrate just how important talk is in young people's development."--Jacket.