The Consequences of Conversation with Children

Studies have shown the relationship between language development in early childhood and later success in reading. Parents and other family members have great influence on a child’s development of language and other pre-literacy skills.

More than 40 families were observed over several years to study how, and how often, parents talk with children. Researchers found a tremendous variety in the amount of words spoken to children in the first three years of life and in the quality of feedback they received. These verbal interactions with adults are major predictors of how prepared children will be to succeed in school.

Quality of Conversations

The way some parents talk teaches children about language, although they may not realize it. Called "incidental teaching," this occurs when a parent responds to a topic introduced by the child, and then prompts the child to elaborate or relate the topic to other words and experiences. The "teaching" concludes when the parent expresses appreciation of the child’s use of language. These brief, but frequent encouragements help children learn.

Other parents may not make the most of the teaching opportunities offered by conversations with their child. These parents may discourage the child from practicing language skills by talking at, rather than with, the child or by stopping or correcting the child too often. Frequent prohibitions limit a child’s opportunities to learn words and to explore the world they describe.

Quantity of Conversations

The frequency of parent/child interactions can expand the positive or negative impact on learning. Frequent, positive talking during everyday activities exposes children to more words and expressions, and more chances to practice and receive approval. Children who are often discouraged from speaking or exploring will limit themselves and their growth.

Influence of Income

The study found that while family income was highly related to levels of children’s language exposure, the relationship was not absolute. Some middle-income families behaved more like high-income families, preparing their children for higher achievement through vocabulary development and other language skills. Other middle-income families behaved more like low-income families, with a paucity of language exposure for children.

An average child growing up in a low-income family receiving welfare hears one-half to one-third as many spoken words as children in more affluent households. At these rates the low-income child would know about 3,000 words by age 6, while the child of the high-income family would have a vocabulary of 20,000 words.

To provide the low-income child with weekly language experience equal to that of a child from a middle-income family, it would require 41 hours per week of out-of-home word exposure as rich as those heard by the most affluent children.

Source: Hart Risley, 1995. Meaningful Differences in the Everyday Experiences of Young Children