"Put your lunchbox inside your bag." "Wait until I've finished." "Get the big one, not the little one."
Instructions like these seem straightforward to us as adults, but they're actually packed with concepts — spatial, temporal, quantitative, and conditional words that children need to understand before they can follow through. When a child struggles to follow directions, it's not always about listening or behaviour. Very often, it's about concept knowledge.
At Speaking Speech Pathology, understanding a child's concept development is a key part of how we assess and support language. Concept gaps are one of the most under-recognised reasons a child struggles in the classroom, and one of the most treatable. In this article, we'll explain what concepts are, when children typically learn them, and how they connect to the ability to follow instructions at home and at school.
What Are "Concepts" in Speech Pathology?
In speech pathology, concepts refer to the words and ideas that describe relationships — between objects, between events, and between ideas. They're the glue that holds instructions, explanations, and stories together. We typically group concepts into several types:
Spatial Concepts
These describe where things are: in, on, under, behind, between, next to, above, below, through, around, in front of.
Temporal Concepts
These describe when things happen or the order of events: before, after, first, then, next, last, while, until, during, already.
Quantitative Concepts
These describe amount, number, and size: more, less, many, few, all, none, some, each, every, most, a lot, a little.
Qualitative Concepts
These describe characteristics: big, small, long, short, heavy, light, same, different, rough, smooth.
Conditional Concepts
These describe rules and conditions: if, then, unless, except, or, instead, either.
These might sound simple, but they're surprisingly complex for young children. Each concept requires a child to understand an abstract relationship — and abstract thinking develops gradually over the early years. Concept words also sit at the heart of building vocabulary depth, because they add precision and nuance to the words a child already knows.
When Do Children Learn Different Concepts?
Concept development follows a fairly predictable progression, though of course every child moves at their own pace. Here's a general guide, based on developmental research and resources like the Raising Children Network (n.d.):
By 2 years:
- Basic spatial concepts: in, on
- Basic size concepts: big
- Some quantity concepts: more
By 3 years:
- More spatial concepts: under, next to, out
- Basic temporal concepts: now, soon
- Quantity: one, two, all
- Quality: same, different (beginning)
By 4 years:
- More spatial: behind, in front of, between
- More temporal: before, after, first, last
- Quantity: many, few, some
- Quality: long, short, heavy, light, full, empty
By 5 years:
- Complex spatial: above, below, through, around
- Complex temporal: while, until, during
- Conditional: if...then (beginning)
- Comparisons: bigger, smallest, more than
By 6–7 years:
- Complex conditionals: unless, except, instead
- Abstract quantity: least, most, equal
- Temporal sequences with multiple steps
Ann Boehm's extensive research on concept development (Boehm, 2001) demonstrated that many children arrive at school without a solid grasp of the basic concepts their teachers assume they know. Her work showed that concepts like "between," "fewest," and "skip" were among the most commonly misunderstood by children in the first years of school — and that gaps in concept knowledge significantly affected children's ability to follow classroom instructions and participate in learning.
How Concept Knowledge Underpins Following Directions
Following directions isn't just about hearing the words — it's about understanding what each word means and holding the whole instruction in mind long enough to carry it out. Concept words are often the most critical part of an instruction, because they tell a child the how, where, when, and which.
Consider this classroom instruction: "Before you line up, put your pencil inside your tray and push your chair under the desk."
To follow this, a child needs to understand:
- Before (temporal — do this first, then do that)
- Inside (spatial — where the pencil goes)
- Under (spatial — where the chair goes)
- The sequence of three steps, held in working memory
Concepts like these are also the building blocks of more complex sentences, which rely on conjunctions such as before, after, when, and until to link ideas together.
If a child doesn't fully understand "before," they might line up first and then try to put their pencil away. If they're unsure about "under," the chair might end up beside the desk. It's not that they weren't paying attention — it's that the instruction contained concept words they haven't yet mastered.
Links to Classroom Demands
The connection between concept knowledge and school success is significant. From the very first year of school, children are expected to:
- Follow multi-step instructions that use spatial and temporal concepts
- Understand maths language that relies heavily on quantitative and comparative concepts (more, less, equal, before, after, first, last)
- Participate in group activities that use conditional language ("If you're in the blue group, go to the mat")
- Understand story language that relies on temporal and sequential concepts
The Australian Curriculum (ACARA, n.d.) embeds concept language across all learning areas — not just English. Maths, science, geography, and even physical education all require children to understand and use concept vocabulary. A child who hasn't yet mastered these words may look like they're not paying attention, not trying, or not understanding the content — when actually, it's the language of instruction that's the barrier.
The Raising Children Network (n.d.) notes that difficulties following instructions are one of the most common reasons parents seek a speech pathology assessment — and concept knowledge is frequently at the heart of it.
What Does It Look Like When a Child Struggles with Concepts?
Children with concept difficulties might:
- Frequently seem to "not listen" or "not follow instructions"
- Watch other children to see what they're doing before starting a task
- Guess at what's expected rather than following the specific instruction
- Struggle with early maths concepts (especially comparison and quantity)
- Have difficulty with reading comprehension when texts include complex concept language
- Become frustrated or anxious in situations with lots of verbal instructions
In my experience, teachers are often the first to pick this up — and more than once, a child flagged as "not listening" has turned out to be missing the underlying concept words. It's really important to recognise that these children are often trying their best. The issue isn't motivation or attention — it's that the language being used contains words they haven't fully grasped yet.
One thing always worth asking: has your child had a recent hearing check? When kids miss the small words in an instruction — the "not", the "before", the "under" — it isn't always about understanding. Sometimes they just didn't hear it clearly, and that changes everything.
What Can Be Done?
If you're noticing that your child struggles to follow instructions — particularly instructions that contain spatial, temporal, or quantitative concepts — a speech pathology assessment can pinpoint exactly which concepts are solid and which need support. From there, targeted intervention can make a real difference, because concepts respond very well to explicit, hands-on teaching.
In our next article, we'll share practical strategies for building concept knowledge and helping children follow directions more confidently — at home and at school.
Ready for practical strategies? Read our companion article: Helping Children Follow Directions: Strategies That Work | Brisbane Speech Pathologist
Alexandra Bouwmeester is a Senior Speech Pathologist (MSPA, CPSP) with over 14 years' experience supporting children's language comprehension. She offers mobile speech pathology to families across Brisbane's south side and Logan.
If your child is struggling with directions at home or in the classroom, a language assessment can clarify exactly what's going on. Contact Speaking Speech Pathology — we're here to help Brisbane families across the south side and Logan.
References
- ACARA (Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority). (n.d.). The Australian Curriculum.
- Boehm, A. E. (2001). Boehm Test of Basic Concepts (3rd ed.). Pearson.
- Raising Children Network. (n.d.). Language development: An overview. Raising Children Network (Australia).
