Language is fundamental for social interaction, personal development and abstract thinking. For the majority of people, acquiring a language during childhood occurs unconsciously, automatically and mostly naturally. Every individual develops an internal set of language rules based on communicating with others who use the same language. Language development is thus a creative process that requires a child to actively process the information he or she receives.

As we now know, hearing children get this information by hearing spoken language in natural interaction with other people in the environment, not through imitation or training.