ABSTRACT
Considerations of ontogenesis have played an important part in evolving the arguments of this book and they have supplied several of the key concepts, among them the ideas of sensory-motor representation, signs, and semiotic extension. This chapter examines the data of children's language from the point of view of these concepts. In part, my purpose is to gather evidence in support of the analysis of conceptual structures in terms of syntagmata and semiotic extension and to do this by showing that the various theoretically proposed ingredients of the speech system can be seen emerging in language ontogenesis. In part, also, my purpose is to shed further light on the concept of semiotic extension itself, by taking the unique perspective of language ontogenesis. The topics to be considered are the following:
1. Semiotic extension can be demonstrated at the same time the child begins to form multiword utterances.
