Language and mentalization ability intertwine and affect one another. Language ability and communication skills nourish the reflective ability, since the child is more prone to making contact and to interacting with others. The reflective ability nourishes the language and communicative skills of the child since it's more inclined to function well in groups and with peers.  

 

Studies have suggested that children with impaired language tend to exhibit more antisocial behavior. Research suggests that language is connected to affect regulation, attention and academic performance. Conclusions drawn from these findings suggest that more interventions directed at language development should be undertaken with children who exhibit inattentiveness or antisocial behavior.

 

During the intervention with Kamratkompassen, the parent's task is therefore to help the child develop his or her language ability by reading together according to a well-known method called Paired Reading. This method was developed by Morgan in 1976. In Kamratkompassen, there are instructions to the method and further information can be gathered on the internet. Research on the method has shown that it's an effective method with positive side effects. The child's reading capacity increases and the relationship between the adult and child strengthens. This has been the case with foster parents, but also with biological parents and their children. The cooperation between school and home has also improved.  

 

Paired Reading means that the child and the parent read one or more books together. The book should be a novel. The procedure states that the parent and child read out loud together. As the child becomes steadier and more skilled, he or she gets to read alone. When the child mispronounces or can't read the sentence or a single word, the parent then resumes the reading by repeating the word or sentence correctly. They then continue to read out loud again, and as the child's reading begins to flow, the parent stops reading, enabling the child to read alone again. The procedure then repeats itself, going back and forth.

 

This intervention demands a cooperation with the child's teacher, since he or she most likely is the one most suited to select an appropriate book. It is of utmost importance that the parents get hands-on instructions regarding the method