[zecho]

I find both of these analogies inadequate.

Spend more time around young children. They most definitely do not learn grammar before they can communicate. It is not a linear thing at all. People pick up parts of grammar like the Subject Verb Object syntax as they learn to mimmic diction and build vocabulary. They're constantly "wrong" and need to be corrected. With persistence and practice and, most importantly, interest, we acquire taste and style.

Communication is very much a trial and error kind of learning that is holistic rather than linear. "Learn x, then do y" versus "do y, then learn x" is a false dichotomy.