My older sister is about to have a baby, and it got me thinking about baby talk. Everyone googoos and gagas over babies (admit it), and I've heard different things about whether you are supposed to or not. I've heard the argument that it does not help children develop and you should speak to infants in regular speech so they develop normally. But I've also heard that it actually does help even if the words are meaningless. Some researchers say that it develops a personal intimacy, and baby talk is more likely to catch the baby's attention. It is supposed to help the baby, since it babbles and you babble back, the baby receives important verbal feedback. I found this article online about baby talk since I was interested, and it really surprised me by saying that babies need it to form verbal connections, even if the words aren't really words. I was also surprised to learn that "baby talk" has several different names. It is also called "motherese" or "parentese" and is called Child-Directed Speech by child development professionals. So next time you see a baby, pull out your "parentese" skills-you're helping form that child's verbal skills!
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