This chapter discusses different ways that grammar has been viewed, and answers questions such as: Is there always just one grammatical form that’s correct? and How do linguists and lay people think about grammar? The chapter reviews different ways of understanding and investigating grammar learning such as pedagogical grammar, systemic functional linguistics, contrastive analysis, CALF (complexity, accuracy, lexical complexity, and fluency), language-related episodes, and languaging. The chapter then explores several issues that are specific to grammar learning, such as rule-learning and developmental stages. In particular, it discusses processability theory, teachability theory, and communicative competence. The chapter continues by examining possible answers to the question What’s the best way to teach grammar? The chapter includes the traditional, explicit approach to grammar instruction, and continues with other approaches that are more communicative. Different approaches include proactive and reactive grammar teaching, isolated and integrated form-focused instruction, focused and unfocused tasks, and concept-based instruction.

In this chapter, we advocate for a neurodiversity approach as a way to eschew deficit perspectives on disability and to articulate fully inclusive educational practices. With a specific focus on autism, we show the value of conversation analysis (CA) as a method for (1) discerning dimensions of communicative competence in children who communicate through unconventional or non-verbal means; and (2) identifying interactional processes that afford or constrain children’s participation in communication exchanges. The chapter offers illustrations of how early childhood educators might use insights and strategies from CA to identify autistic children’s social-communicative competencies within everyday settings, and to understand how interactions can be mediated to support neurodiversity and inclusion.