Hartford one of five U.S. cities launching language development program for young children

Article Summary:

The city of Hartford is launching an early childhood program to support language development, inspired by an initiative launched in neighboring Rhode Island called Providence Talks. Brown University studied the Providence Talks program and found that 56 percent of children who participated in a home visitation model showed growth in the number of adult words they heard each day and 42 percent increased the number of turns they took in conversation. Hartford Talks will expand on Words Count, a vocabulary-building program The Village for Families and Children piloted in 2017 through home visits with parents and caretakers. “Making sure our youngest minds are prepared for kindergarten can have a powerful impact on their long-term development and success, and we are thrilled to bring this proven model to Hartford,” Mayor Luke Bronin said.