When adults purposefully talk more with children,
children develop larger vocabularies (Hart
& Risley, 1999; Hoff & Naigles, 2002).
• When children have larger vocabularies, they become
better readers in middle childhood (Snow,
Burns, & Griffin, 1998).
• When adults talk to children with longer, more
complex words and sentences, children have
higher IQ scores (Hart & Risley, 1999).
• When adults talk with children in a responsive
and sensitive way, they encourage children’s social
and emotional development (