(Press-News.org) Contact information: Nicole Gardner-Neblett
nicole.gardner-neblett@unc.edu
919-966-5589
Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute
Early childhood educators hold the key to children's communication skills
High-quality interactions between children and adults foster growth
Researchers at UNC's Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute have completed a new examination of peer-reviewed science that reveals how early childhood educators can ignite the growth of language and communication skills in infants and toddlers. Earlier today, Nicole Gardner-Neblett and Kathleen Cranley Gallagher published the FPG team's research-based recommendations online.
"Early language and communication skills are crucial for children's success in school and beyond," said Gardner-Neblett, principal investigator for the FPG study. "Children who develop strong language and communication skills are more likely to arrive at school ready to learn and are more likely to have higher levels of achievement."
According to Gardner-Neblett, during the first years of life, children's brains are developing rapidly, laying the foundation for learning. The interactions children have with adults influence early brain growth and learning, giving early childhood educators a crucial opportunity to provide children with interactions that can support language and communication.
Language and communication skills include a child's ability to express himself or herself through words, gestures, or facial expressions, as well as the capacity to understand others.
Co-principal investigator Kathleen Gallagher said that when teachers provide children with higher levels of language stimulation during the first years of life, children in turn have better language skills. "When teachers ask children questions, respond to their vocalizations, and engage in other positive talk, children learn and use more words," said Gallagher.
The FPG researchers said that many early child care educators can do more to actively engage children and facilitate the development of language and communication. "More high-quality language interactions between children and adults will provide children with the kinds of experiences that can foster their growth," said Gardner-Neblett.
With a grant from the PNC Foundation, Gardner-Neblett and Gallagher reviewed the current science and then streamlined their findings into ten recommended practices. More Than Baby Talk: 10 Ways to Promote the Language and Communication Skills of Infants and Toddlers recommends one-on-one and small-group interactions that are tried and tested to support the development of language and communication in infants and toddlers from a variety of backgrounds.
Among the FPG team's recommended interactions are responding to children's vocalizations and speech, eliciting conversations, and using complex grammar and a rich vocabulary. Each practice includes the science that supports it and examples of how to use it.
The "Get Chatty" recommendation, for instance, suggests commenting on routines like hand-washing, as they occur: "We are washing our hands. We are making lots of big bubbles." Educators also can use longer sentences, draw connections between children's lives and books, and use songs to tell stories.
Gardner-Neblett and Gallagher said that many of the practices work well in combination with one another. They added that early childhood educators should keep in mind children develop differently and at varying rates.
In addition, while educators play key roles, they are not the only group that can make a marked difference for infants and toddlers.
"We think parents could use these same practices with their young children," said Gardner-Neblett. "By using these strategies at home, parents can provide children with the rich language exposure and opportunities they need to enhance their language and communication, helping them to achieve in preschool and beyond."
INFORMATION:
Early childhood educators hold the key to children's communication skills
High-quality interactions between children and adults foster growth
2013-11-07
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
US media consumption to rise to 15.5 hours a day -- per person -- by 2015
2013-11-07
US media consumption to rise to 15.5 hours a day -- per person -- by 2015
New study issued by SDSC researcher with USC Marshall School of Business
A new study by a researcher at the San Diego Supercomputer Center (SDSC) at the University of California, San ...
Movin' on out
2013-11-07
Movin' on out
Support of parents and peers vital for millennials leaving home: New study from Concordia University
This news release is available in French. Montreal, November 6, 2013 — Leaving home is an important milestone that signals entry into ...
Findings announced from landmark study on safety of adolescent bariatric surgery
2013-11-07
Findings announced from landmark study on safety of adolescent bariatric surgery
Initial results of a first and largest of its kind study focusing on the safety of adolescent bariatric surgery were published this week in JAMA Pediatrics. ...
New research shows tea may help promote weight loss, improve heart health and slow progression of prostate cancer
2013-11-07
New research shows tea may help promote weight loss, improve heart health and slow progression of prostate cancer
American Journal of Clinical Nutrition releases new proceedings from International Tea and Human Health Symposium
New York, NY—November 6, 2013: Decades worth of research ...
Sun sends out a significant solar flare
2013-11-07
Sun sends out a significant solar flare
The sun emitted a significant solar flare, peaking at 5:12 p.m. EST on Nov. 5, 2013. Solar flares are powerful bursts of radiation. Harmful radiation from a flare cannot pass through Earth's atmosphere to ...
Breastfeeding as a possible deterrent to autism -- a clinical perspective
2013-11-07
Breastfeeding as a possible deterrent to autism -- a clinical perspective
NEW YORK, NY - NOVEMBER 6, 2013: In an article appearing in Medical Hypotheses on September 20, a New York-based physician-researcher from the Touro College of ...
First foods most: Buffet dish sequences may prompt healthier choices
2013-11-07
First foods most: Buffet dish sequences may prompt healthier choices
Slim by design: How the presentation order of buffet food biases selection
When diners belly-up to a buffet, food order matters. When healthy foods are first, eaters are less likely to ...
MU study finds more accurate method to diagnose pancreatic cancer
2013-11-07
MU study finds more accurate method to diagnose pancreatic cancer
COLUMBIA, Mo. — Researchers from the University of Missouri have found a more accurate laboratory method for diagnosing pancreatic cancer, the fourth leading cause of cancer death ...
Defining allergy fact from fiction
2013-11-07
Defining allergy fact from fiction
The greatest allergy myths and misconceptions, debunked
BALTIMORE, MD. (November 7, 2013) – From gluten allergy and hypoallergenic pets, to avoiding the flu shot because of an egg allergy, ...
New study assesses injuries seen in the emergency department to children of teenage parents
2013-11-07
New study assesses injuries seen in the emergency department to children of teenage parents
Cincinnati, OH, November 7, 2013 -- Although the number of children born to teenage parents has decreased since the 1990s, these children continue to be at an ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
From octopus intelligence to smart artificial blood vessels: 2025 Schmidt Science Fellows to break new ground with interdisciplinary research
Experts challenge aspirin guidelines based on their undue reliance on a flawed trial
McGill discovery sheds new light on autism, intellectual disabilities
Cellular changes occur even below the hexavalent chromium limit
Study suggests a new way to curb social media’s body image toll
Plant doctor: An AI system that watches over urban trees without touching a leaf
Study tracks chromium chemistry in irradiated molten salts
Scientists: the beautiful game is a silver bullet for global health
Being physically active, even just a couple of days a week, may be key to better health
High-fat diet promote breast cancer metastasis in animal models
A router for photons
Nurses and AI collaborate to save lives, reduce hospital stays
Multi-resistance in bacteria predicted by AI model
Tinker Tots: A citizen science project to explore ethical dilemmas in embryo selection
Sensing sickness
Cost to build multifamily housing in California more than twice as high as in Texas
Program takes aim at drinking, unsafe sex, and sexual assault on college campuses
Inability to pay for healthcare reaches record high in U.S.
Science ‘storytelling’ urgently needed amid climate and biodiversity crisis
KAIST Develops Retinal Therapy to Restore Lost Vision
Adipocyte-hepatocyte signaling mechanism uncovered in endoplasmic reticulum stress response
Mammals were adapting from life in the trees to living on the ground before dinosaur-killing asteroid
Low LDL cholesterol levels linked to reduced risk of dementia
Thickening of the eye’s retina associated with greater risk and severity of postoperative delirium in older patients
Almost one in ten people surveyed report having been harmed by the NHS in the last three years
Enhancing light control with complex frequency excitations
New research finds novel drug target for acute myeloid leukemia, bringing hope for cancer patients
New insight into factors associated with a common disease among dogs and humans
Illuminating single atoms for sustainable propylene production
New study finds Rocky Mountain snow contamination
[Press-News.org] Early childhood educators hold the key to children's communication skillsHigh-quality interactions between children and adults foster growth