We all do it. Our brains are wired to categorize. Almost anyone has a joyful collection of something. Your child may love collecting Legos© or baseball cards or Barbies©. I loved collecting stamps and coins as a child which turned into a collection of how many countries on the map I could check off. This, in turn, morphed into a love of travel and collecting adventure experiences. How many hikes, waterfalls, hot springs, etc. can we explore in our free time? How many different types of comfort foods can we try from around the world? One of my favorites was how my step-father collected how to say “butterfly” in every language he encountered. You name it, our brains try to collect or, in essence, categorize it.
What is this skill? Rather, let’s think of the utter chaos it can be if we don’t develop it or if we lose it. Categorization is a key language skill that helps us retrieve our language. We organize and store our nouns from our verbs from our adjectives and all the little function words in between that help us string together our thoughts to effectively communicate to others. Although the brain is entirely more complex than this, think of it as analogous to keeping all your socks together in your sock drawer. Just having a sock drawer is a form of categorization. The efficiency of grouping the socks together is critical for rapid retrieval. Without proper categorization, we waste precious moments each day picking out proverbial socks one by one in hopes of finding a match… that is a lot of time depending on how many socks you own!
How do we use categorization skills in speech and language therapy?
1) We categorize word meanings. Word meanings themselves are categories. With synonyms and antonyms, we teach the variety and richness of language. Oh no! I can’t go on vacation. Which words are going to let you know exactly how I’m feeling over the simple “sad?” unhappy, disappointed, sorrowful, downbeat…. Wait, it was a false alarm, and I can go! What are some other words we can use when “happy” isn’t quite enough? glad, cheerful, jolly, merry, joyful, gleeful, upbeat, mirthful, delighted, enraptured, elated, thrilled, overjoyed, ecstatic, jubilant, exultant … pleased as punch, in seventh heaven!
2) We categorize words into subcategories and multiple categories. This teaches cognitive flexibility, expansion and creativity. Apples are not just a fruit, but they are round, grow on trees, are red, are eaten for a snack, have seeds, are crunchy, and fit into a hand. We still agree that an apple is an apple (because I might be allergic to oranges), but we can’t be so rigid that they only fit into one category. We also have to remember that language is living and word meanings can change over time, distance, and specialties. Is a crabapple technically an apple? If we all agree to call it an apple, we’re good unless we’re taking a botany test.
3) We categorize word roots. How many words have the word root “phon” meaning “sound?” telephone, phonetics, microphone, megaphone, phonograph, saxophone, phonology, phonics, cacophony. We group these words together to then find the commonality to expand our vocabulary, auditory recognition, and spelling skills.
4) We categorize our emotions. Once we label them, we open a pathway for how to respond to them and express them constructively. Whoa! I am angry… wait, is it more that I am frustrated? or embarrassed? or lonely? or confused? or all of the above? Now we’re talking!
Our language and communication depend on categorization and on the ability to determine the flexibility within those categories. Now, if I can only find that sock that always mysteriously disappears when I do laundry.