Research
• Updated
14 December 2020
LSCP

Kotoboo, a peek into language acquisition under the scientific microscope

Kotoboo.org is a website for science-based information about language learning in childhood through comics.

This initiative was born from a team of scientists who works across the globe, from Japan to Canada, but whose links were mainly forged in Paris at the Laboratoire de Sciences Cognitives et Psycholinguistique where some of them are and where others have completed their PhD and post-PhD.

Kotoboo
The Kotoboo team

The idea of creating the Kotoboo.org website was born from the questions and concerns of parents and educators met by the members of kotoboo through their activities. It was also driven by the desire to spread research on language learning beyond the scientific community and to reach a broader audience, in a fun way. The idea was there, but it was difficult to find the time to make it real. Then the Coronavirus appeared and caused a major health crisis, bringing the world to a standstill. "Our worlds were turned upside down by Covid-19. It was this topsy-turvy new world that brought us together and that marked the beginning of an adventure that almost made confinement fun" say the team members. "We created Kotoboo to help caregivers and educators, during the pandemic but also beyond"

Une myriade de bilingues
A kaleidoscope of bilinguals - Top left: "What do you want to do?" "I want to dance with you Mummy!" (English)
Top right: "Let's go to the movies!" (Spanish) "And we'll have popcorn!" (English)
Bottom right: "Would you like to make a cake, honey?" (English) "Yes, Granny!" (Spanish)

Since then, fifteen comic strips have been created on subjects as diverse as bilingualism, learning through interaction, children and screens, sign languages and learning languages in the world. The scientific sources (publications) from which the comic strips are created are systematically cited and can be consulted.

The team meets every Thursday, by videoconference, to exchange ideas, choose a subject that will be promoted and then shared through a new comic. The Kotoboo team supports a barrier-free science. The site is already accessible in three languages (English, French, Japanese). The team hopes to increase the number of translations. " We are also actively working to make our site accessible to the visually and hearing impaired. "

To find out everything you need to know about language acquisition, go to https://kotoboo.org/index.php/fr/ !