The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails.
-William Arthur Ward
"If everyone talked to their young children the same amount, there would be no racial or socioeconomic gap at all." This controversial claim was made in a New York Times article, "The Power of Talking to Your Baby," by Tina Rosenberg. Some excerpts from this article based on the research of Betty Hart and Todd R. Risley at the University of Kansas:
"Children whose families were on welfare heard about 600 words per hour. Working-class children heard 1,200 words per hour, and children from professional families heard 2,100 words. By age 3, a poor child would have heard 30 million fewer words in his home environment than a child from a professional family.... Hart and Risley... found that parents talk much more to girls than to boys (perhaps because girls are more sociable, or because it is Mom who does most of the care, and parents talk more to children of their gender). This might explain why young, poor boys have particular trouble in school.
"And the disparity mattered: the greater the number of words children heard from their parents or caregivers before they were 3, the higher their IQ and the better they did in school. TV talk not only didn’t help, it was detrimental."
The Beginnings Workshop Book on Literacy contains insightful articles on creating readers, children's conversations, multi-language programs, bilingual education, storytelling and much more.
Comments (6)
Displaying All 6 CommentsExchange Press
United States
Sandi--Thank you for your feedback. We are currently working on making it possible to share specific EEDs on Facebook.
Seattle, WA, United States
After getting to the bottom of this page, I realize I can join you on facebook and then share your posts! Thank you!
Seattle, WA, United States
I wish there was a way for us to share your articles with others on facebook. This is a particularly important one in my mind. Thank you for your inspiring and informative daily exchanges.
United States
This human developmental research is a critical support for the time-tested practice of The EducaringTM Approach staunchly advocated by infant specialist and author Magda Gerber over three decades ago. Her organization, Resources for Infant Educarers, (www.rie.org) continues to influence thousands of adults worldwide, those talking with as they care for very young children from the beginning of their lives, fostering the whole child's development in all domains. Not only are the babies benefiting, but also the adults, whether professional or parental, supporting authentic presence in their relationship to themselves as well as those in their care.
ECC
cambria heights, ny, United States
Started talking to my child before her birth and she was an early talker, a motivated early walker and a math wiz before age two- we still enjoy conversations and moments of meaningful quest and she has just started pre-school
Berkeley, CA, United States
So glad you picked up on this stimulating article
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