Talking to Babies

A babies' first encounter with language occurs via listening to their caregivers' speech.

Babies start listening to the speech of their mother while they are still in the womb.

During the first years of the baby's life, caregivers continue using a special type of speech when addressing their young babies known as infant directed speech or baby talk.

At the MARCS BabyLab we study how infant directed speech may assist babies in the challenging task of learning their language.