I knew that it was really important for parents to start reading to their children at a very early age, long before a child begins to speak, but I did not realize how, even before birth, parents help their children get ready to learn one or more languages.
I have just read about some amazing research that emphasizes just how much influence you have on your child’s learning.
Research published in Psychological Science shows that language learning starts in the womb. Newborn babies whose mothers spoke two languages (English and Tagalog) showed equal interest in both languages – this was measured by the rate they sucked on their pacifiers- those newborns whose mothers only spoke one language were only interested when they heard that language, they were not attracted to the other language.
Researchers wondered if the babies could distinguish between the rhythm and melodies of the two languages and decided that babies have a preference for what is familiar at birth. The researchers suggest that even at birth babies can distinguish between languages so we should be less concerned about exposing young children to two languages than we might be.
My thinking is that if babies are learning about language in the womb -
1. They are indeed wonderful learning machines
2. Your influence on learning is greater than even I knew
3. Start talking to your child as soon as you know you are pregnant!
I am always amazed at a child’s capacity to learn. Let’s make sure we give them the learning opportunities they need to be all that they can be.
