Short expressive language evaluation by French teachers during children's fourth year (SELEFT4)

Abstract Introduction In France, most children aged 3 to 4 years old attend preschool but tools to measure their language are missing. Objective Our aim was to built a tool for teachers to evaluate children's expressive language during the fourth year of life: the SELEFT4. Method It comprises a total of 65 items presented in four sections: vocabulary, grammar, pragmatics and intelligibility. Data were obtained from 303 children during the fourth year. Results Results showed that at this age, expressive language intelligibility plays a major role. We provided also norms by trimester of age. Conclusion Results are discussed in relation to other studies and tools assessing language development at this age. SELEFT4 appears to be a simple and reliable tool for teachers.