I would say that to fully use "Talkability" a child would have to have a language age of 4, in terms of looking at some of the more complex stuff about tuning in/false beliefs etc as that involves abstract language about thinking/seeng etc.
I would say Talkability does assume a child can speak fluently in sentences, but not that a child has full comprehension - so that a child may need prompting to answer questions relevantly.
But there's some good stuff about linking in understanding of the world/play/story telling/pretend play to help language/social play that is suitable for younger children. The chapter on social play/play coaching is particularly good and even has some visual cue cards, and starts off basic, so would be relevant to a child who has difficulty joining in at all with play, as well as children who are OK with that.
In terms of conversation -
first the book talks about structuring the conversation - ICE - initiate/continue/end - i.e. how to behave at points in a convo
Then it talks in more detail about the "I-Cues" - to keep the convo going -
so to help you take your turn, you
*Include your child's interests, ideas and words, Interpret his message,
*Introduce your own Ideas,
*Insist on a change of topic,
and to tell your child that it's his turn you
*comment and wait,
*ask a question and wait,
*make it easier to answer your question and wait
*hint and wait
*make a suggestion and wait
*tell your child what to say or do, and wait.
The more conceptually complex stuff is to do with tuning in to other people - they separate it into 5 stages .
- want words - so understanding different people want different things
- think words - encouraging child to think about what others are thinking - e.g. I think that cloud looks like a car, what do you think it looks like. focus on words like "think/know/forget".
- understanding that seeing leads to knowing. so letting your child know you don't see what he sees. e.g What are you doing? Playing with THIS. Daddy can't see the train, tell him you're playing with your train
- Understanding hidden feelings. Start with talking about what somebody else is saying that isn't directly to the child (e.g. daddy says it's cold today). Then highlight difference with what people say and mean E.g. he says he's not hungry but he really wants a cookie.
- Understanding false beliefs. E.g. the children in the story had 2 different opinions about monster in the story and only one of them was true.E.g. LIttle Red Riding Hood.
In summary - it's useful and builds on ITTT - you could argue either way as to purchasing it now - as on the one hand you won't get full use of the more subtle social skills chapters- but on the other hand, there's no harm in percolating the ideas as your child's language develops
(creepy wannabe stalker emoticon required) - but if any of you lovely ladies are in Liverpool/Manchester area I would be happy to come over, meet for coffee and let you flick through the book to see if it appeals.