Translating Baby Talk: Kids Corner

Aired on Superstation WGN
Saturday, February 5 and March 19, 2005
Show 205

So who do you think are the best students in the world? Some would argue it's babies. They begin learning the moment they're born. In fact, after seven days, they can distinguish their mother's voice and a week later, their father's. And what are these cute little babies hearing? Baby talk. Baby talk is the way infants begin the process of understanding language. There's even an official language for it, motherese or in politically correct terms, parentese. Babies tend to respond more to a high pitched voice and we naturally speak to them in more of a high pitched voice. We also like to use more facial expression, because that also gets their attention. Although it seems like natural innocent play between a parent and an infant, scientists suggests that what's actually happening, is parents are modifying their speech to be more compatible with their child's developing linguistic and cognitive capabilities. Researchers at the national institutes of health and other institutions have discovered that an area of the brain, previously thought to be quiet during the first few months of life, is actually quite active. The right pre-frontal cortex, deals with attention and effort, and is activated by exposure to speech. In fact, baby talk stimulates your child's brain as early as the third trimester of pregnancy. Parents are talking to their babies at the level they understand. And because baby talk is more understandable to them, infants get an early start to better speaking and literacy skills. No one has to teach us baby talk, we all seem to do it naturally. In fact, parents speak baby talk to their infants around the globe, regardless of culture or language. We use small words and short sentences and talk about the things that are familiar. Eventually, our babies start to make the association with the things around them. Baby talk comes naturally to parents around the world and for good reason. No matter how you communicate with your child, it's more than just play time. You're actually helping them learn.