Show Me the...Talking!

Be honest, have you ever heard someone talking to an infant in that high-pitched tone of voice, the one that people often use with babies and small children, and thought: “Oh man, she has got to stop talking like that?” Well, you’re not alone; I think it crosses all of our minds at times. But, even though it can sometimes sound a little annoying to adults, according to the book Amazing Minds by Jan Faull, that high-pitched, melodic voice--called child-directed speech or parentese--is actually preferred by infants. Research has shown that parentese holds a baby’s attention longer than regular adult speech. According to Amazing Minds: “With babies, it is not so important what you say to them, but how you say it.” And, interestingly enough, a version of parentese is used all around the world, in every language. It’s really an automatic, subconscious change that we make to our voices. If you really think about it, wouldn’t it be weird to hear someone talk to a baby in a normal tone of voice?

Not only does the way we talk have an impact, but the amount that we talk does, too. I know that I’ve brought up the importance of talking a lot to your kids before, but because of its significance, I feel like I can’t stress it enough. In fact, I was watching a webinar the other day that said that 2-year-olds who have a caregiver who’s very talkative have 295 more words in their arsenal than kids their age whose caregivers don’t talk as much. Similarly, kindergarteners whose caregivers were chatty knew 1,500 more words than their peers who grew up without a big talker around! Additionally, since research has shown that children who are proficient communicators are generally successful readers, it is even clearer that the impacts of talking to your little ones are profound and abundant.

Whether or not you already do a lot of talking with your child, try making a conscious effort to do more. Your child will benefit immeasurably, and pretty soon it will become second nature for you.

Be Bold

...with your pattern choices - in fashion and board book illustrations.  I love how eye-catching a sharp houndstooth or a retro chevron stripe can be. The authors of Amazing Minds would have us adopt this style sensibility when choosing books for very young babies.  Here's why: "When babies stare at strong contrasting edges, they're determining where objects begin and end.  The bolder the edge, the easier it is to determine, hence the attraction toward strong and obvious contrast of black-and-white stripes, checkerboards, and bull's-eyes."  This title expertly combines scientific studies on child behavior with useful tips and tricks for parents.  What babies are capable of, even in the first few hours of life, will astound you!

So, resist the urge to fill your baby's bookshelf solely with soft pastels and Pat the Bunny look-alikes.  Instead, opt for bold black and white books and ones with bright colors in both the negative and positive space. Peter Linenthal's newest Look Look Outside! is the gorgeous houndstooth scarf of board books.

What's in a Name?

So I've been reading the book Amazing Minds by Jan Faull, which talks about simple things parents can do to nuture their child's mind during the newborn and toddler years. Being a parent of a 16-month-old, I'm always interested to learn about the way a child's brain develops and see it play out in my son. Right now he's learning new words like crazy, and one of the first words he recognized was his name.

Research shows that babies as young as 4 and 1/2 months old can recognize their names. According to Faull, using your toddler's name in conversation can be a powerful tool to support and reinforce behavior. So when your child does something good, like help clean up her toys, use her name when talking about how she helped and she'll pay attention and likely repeat the behavior. When your child gets a little older, she'll be able to recognize her name in print. And when she starts to learn letter names and sounds, the most important letter to her will be the first letter in her name.

Knowing letter names and sounds is an important precurser to learning how to read. So start with the letters in your child's name and point them out on signs, menus, in books, wherever. Talk about what sounds those letters make and look for objects that begin with the same sounds. In our weekly storytimes, each child has a nametag, and it's amazing to watch them learn which one is theirs - they always look for that first letter! Sometimes they can even recognize that letter in another child's tag. So don't underestimate the importance of a name - it's more of a learning tool than you think. And have fun helping your child recognize her name and everything that goes into it! Guest post by Shelly P.