Linda Thompson was a primary school teacher for many years before becoming a teacher educator. She is currently Senior Lecturer at the University of Durham, UK, on leave to the Department of English Language & Literature at the National University of Singapore. Her main research interests are in the field of young children learning language(s). Books include: The Teaching of Poetry: European Perspectives (Cassell, 1996) and Children Talking: The Development of Pragmatic Competence (Multilingual Matters, 1997).