Their products have helped hundreds of thousands of students to become better readers and mathematicians at school, but the Pauls realized that the skills children need to excel academically are developed long before they arrive in the classroom.

Inspired by Hart and Risley’s study of the home language environment work — which involved transcribing and analyzing hundreds of hours of audio over more than two years — Terry wanted to automate the task of objectively measuring adult-child conversation. After six years of development and substantial financial investment, LENA technology was born.

Today, LENA has become the industry standard for measuring early talk, used by communities all over the world in programs for families and teachers.

Honoring Terry and Judi’s vision to level the playing field for all children, LENA programs pair our technology with actionable feedback to help caregivers foster early talk with young children — and ensure every child enters kindergarten ready to succeed.