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June 17, 2022
By Emily DaviesQuality child care foundational for children’s futures
An investigative television reporter in North Central Wisconsin explores the importance of conversational turns in child care settings.
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May 15, 2022
By Natasha AndersonPandemic has made babies and toddlers miss talking and reading milestones
Multiple studies show that infants are talking less because parents haven't been able to engage them in language developing conversations due to COVID.
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May 10, 2022
By Natalie WexlerCovid-Era Babies Are ‘Talking’ Less, Signaling Future Reading Challenges
We know the pandemic has had a serious negative impact on the academic achievement of school-age children. But recent evidence shows we also need to worry about Covid-era babies and toddlers.
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April 18, 2022
By Jo NapolitanoNew Research: Babies Born During COVID Talk Less with Caregivers, Slower to Develop Critical Language Skills
Infants born during the pandemic produced significantly fewer vocalizations and had less verbal back-and-forth with their caretakers compared to those born before COVID.
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April 8, 2022
By Sarah D. SparksPandemic Kids Need Early Language Support. Here’s How Teachers Can Help
To avoid widespread school readiness gaps, experts say teachers and parents need to give children born since the pandemic an immediate language infusion.
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April 7, 2022
By Sarah D. SparksBabies Are Saying Less Since the Pandemic: Why That’s Concerning
Amid the stress and disruption of the pandemic, parents and caregivers have had less time and energy to engage their babies and toddlers in conversation—and the lack of talk already shows in their language skills.
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December 16, 2021
By Economist FilmsCan science help poor kids earn more?
In a provocative video, Economist Films explores the role conversational turns may play in what they call "breaking the class ceiling."
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August 31, 2021
By Leah WatersMesquite ISD offering free classes for parents of young kids to help promote verbal development
Outside Dallas, Texas, Mesquite Independent School District is gearing up for LENA Start through its Read, Play, Talk initiative.
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August 10, 2021
By Walter IsaacsonParenting: It takes a village
In this podcast episode, host Walter Isaacson and guests discuss parenting, how it's evolved from a group activity to something more singular, and how experts and technology are filling in the gaps for new parents.
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May 18, 2021
By Coastal Point StaffFamilies find success in LENA Start program
Read Aloud Delaware's LENA Start program, launched in September 2020, has made an impact for families in a short span of time.
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February 21, 2020
By Michelle MorganteNew “Babies” Series on Netflix Features UC Merced Professor’s Research on Development
A professor who uses LENA technology to study the relationship between children’s motor development and language development is featured in Netflix’s new series, Babies.
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February 3, 2020
By Kim EckhartNot just ‘baby talk’: Parentese helps parents, babies make ‘conversation’ and boosts language development
Researchers at the University of Washington coached parents on how to boost child language development and used LENA technology to measure significant results.
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January 26, 2020
By Albany Herald StaffPhoebe Child Development Center performs above national average
For a local child care center in Georgia, using LENA Grow has boosted high-quality caregiving and led to measurable differences in both teachers and students.
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November 22, 2019
By Jason BittelCan ‘word pedometers’ boost toddlers’ cognitive development?
New devices that measure words as they are spoken, similar to the way a FitBit tracks steps, promise a way to kickstart early development.
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November 20, 2019
By Alexis WilliamsImpact Series: Agape’s Thrive by Five program enhances children’s conversation skills in preparation for kindergarten
A new program is helping to boost adult-child conversation in Memphis.
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October 23, 2019
By Brendan LoweAfter One City Experiments With Toddlers Wearing Recorders and Sees the Number of Words They Hear Grow 50%, 5 More Mayors Will Pilot Innovative ‘Word Gap’ Program
Backed by promising research and a nearly $12 million investment from Bloomberg Philanthropies, the Providence Talks model is expanding to five cities across the country.
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October 14, 2019
By Katherine HafnerTalk pedometers may boost your baby’s brain development
A growing body of research about early childhood education and cognitive development suggests that chatting with children, particularly from birth to age 3, is crucial. That thinking is at the heart of the program that Virginia Beach is now expanding with a nearly $450,000 grant from Bloomberg Philanthropies.
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October 13, 2019
By Katherine HafnerTalk pedometers may boost your baby’s brain development
A growing body of research about early childhood education and cognitive development suggests that chatting with children, particularly from birth to age 3, is crucial. That thinking is at the heart of the program that Virginia Beach is now expanding with a nearly $450,000 grant from Bloomberg Philanthropies.
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October 13, 2019
By Associated PressTalk pedometers may boost your baby’s brain development
A growing body of research about early childhood education and cognitive development suggests that chatting with children, particularly from birth to age 3, is crucial. That thinking is at the heart of the program that Virginia Beach is now expanding with a nearly $450,000 grant from Bloomberg Philanthropies.
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October 10, 2019
By Sarah CodyConnecticut Families Extra: More Conversation equals more Brain Growth
Scientists are researching how kids’ brains respond to words and what families can do to help language development.
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October 6, 2019
By Katherine HafnerDoes speaking to your baby boost brain development? Virginia Beach uses “talk pedometers” to help parents find out
A growing body of research about early childhood education and cognitive development suggests that chatting with children, particularly from birth to age 3, is crucial. That thinking is at the heart of the program that Virginia Beach is now expanding with a nearly $450,000 grant from Bloomberg Philanthropies.
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October 3, 2019
By Michelle DunawayPositive Parenting: Conversations
Scientists are researching how kids’ brains respond to words and what families can do to help language development.
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October 3, 2019
By Nicole GuadianoWhat went missing when Vice President Biden talked about the ‘word gap,’ record players and poor children
The former vice president correctly referred to recent research about poor children hearing 4 million fewer words, on average, than those in wealthier families, said Jill Gilkerson, the lead author of a 2017 study that the Biden campaign says he was citing. But she adds that there’s way more to the story when it comes to increasing a child’s verbal ability and IQ through early language.
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October 1, 2019
By Melissa HogenboomWhy the way we talk to children really matters
There could be a simple way to help young children’s brains improve for the better, with long-lasting benefits.