The LENA Foundation announced today that its researchers have developed an automatic autism screen based on detectable acoustic patterns in the recorded vocalizations of children with autism.
Oh, gee. Who hasn't plunked an infant or toddler down in front of the tube every now and again? (Never mind those of you who don't own a TV. You have other vices, we know that you do.)
In the mosaic of America, three groups that have been unusually successful are Asian-Americans, Jews and West Indian blacks — and in that there may be some lessons for the rest of us.
Teens and young adults are more likely in their free time to check their Facebook page than read a book. And they are dumber for it.
Last October, on the plane from Miami to San Salvador, Shakira stared into her MacBook, pondering.
In a new study, young children and their adult caregivers uttered fewer vocalizations, used fewer words and engaged in fewer conversations when in the presence of audible television.
Remember when your parents told you not to watch too much TV. They said it wasn't good for you? Turns out they were on to something.
The LENA Foundation (formerly Infoture, Inc.) was started five years ago by Terry and Judi Paul in Boulder, Colorado.
On Feb. 24, 2008, The New York Times Magazine featured a device called LENA (Language ENvironment Analysis) in its "Idea Lab" column. LENA is being marketed to families who have children between birth and 3 years of age.
NBC's chief medical editor Dr. Nancy Snyderman shares the story of how one boy broke autism barriers.
Rupert Isaacson believes in the healing power of horses. It was a horse named Betsy, after all, that Isaacson credits with helping to heal his son Rowan, who was diagnosed with autism just after his second birthday in 2004.
NBC's chief medical editor Dr. Nancy Snyderman shares the story of how one mom is trying to help her autistic son deal with his surroundings.
Robots are now being used to help socialize children with autism. NBC's chief medical editor Dr. Nancy Snyderman and robot creator Marek Michalowski discuss the treatment.
Scientists researching autism are getting help from a friend in cyberspace: IAN.
News Archives
LENA: Language assessment at home? A new tool for parents and researchers
4/3/2009
There is a new product on the market to assess language for children between the ages of 0-48 months. It is called the LENA (Language Environment Analysis) System.
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Progress Is Slow in the War Against Autism
4/2/2009
William Searing is an Eagle Scout who loves hiking, adventure, art and sports. At age 19, he's in an education program that bridges the gap from high school to getting a job. Wil has autism.
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Autism rate higher for Somali kids in Minneapolis
4/1/2009
Young Somali children in the Minneapolis public schools are over-represented in autism programs, the Minnesota Health Department reported, confirming the observations of many Somali parents and educators.
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Five Studies at International SRCD Meeting in Denver Use Technology from Boulder Foundation
3/31/2009
The not-for-profit LENA Foundation is putting forth a strong presence at the 2009 Biennial Meeting of the Society of Research in Child Development (SRCD). At the event, April 1–4 in Denver, Colorado, four talks and one poster will be presented based on findings obtained with LENA System technology.
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Autism: New Clue to Earlier Detection
3/29/2009
A surprise discovery is leading autism researchers at Yale University toward earlier detection and new therapies for children with autism -- possibly beginning in infancy.
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LENA Foundation Revives Popular Online Assessment Tool
3/16/2009
The LENA Developmental Snapshot is back by popular demand, once again offering parents a quick and easy way to find out their child’s developmental age online.
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Study: Want a Smart Baby? TV's Not Going to Help
3/4/2009
(CNN) -- Watching television does not make babies smarter, according to a study released this week in the journal Pediatrics, adding to existing research that challenges the usefulness of baby educational videos and DVDs.
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One Ride Forward, Two Steps Back
3/1/2009
ARE forward-facing strollers having a negative effect on babies’ language development? British teachers have for some time been observing a decline in the linguistic abilities of many children, and some have wondered whether this might be one contributing factor.
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LENA Foundation Announces New Technology to Measure Effectiveness of Autism Therapy
2/23/2009
The non-proft LENA™ Foundation, which develops technology for the improved treatment of autism and other language disorders, has released two case studies showing how the breakthrough LENA system is being used to improve autism treatment.
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SpeechPathology.com Interview with LENA Foundation Director of Communications Mia Moe
2/23/2009
Linda Schreiber: Today I am happy to interview Mia Moe, the Director of Communications for the LENA Foundation. Mia has been with Infoture, Inc. since 2005, as a member of the product development team and also as Director of Communications.
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The Ultimate Growth Industry
2/12/2009
Willing to invest for the long term? Looking for a socially responsible growth industry offering consistently high returns? Want to “buy American” and create domestic jobs without discouraging international trade?
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LENA Foundation Established with Multimillion Dollar Gift
2/10/2009
Terry and Judi Paul have established the not-for-profit LENA Foundation through a gift of $2 million and a donation of the assets of Infoture, Inc. Owned by the Pauls, Infoture developed the breakthrough LENA System in a $30 million research and development effort completed over the past five years.
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Autism Screening Tops Obama's Medical To-Do List
1/21/2009
Autism tops Barack Obama's medical to-do list, according to the new president's
website. Whitehouse.gov launched at 12:01 pm yesterday, even before the new
president had taken his oath of office on the Capitol's West Front.
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Kids with Autism Love This Software
1/16/2009
Science is rich with happy flukes. Remember the story of penicillin? Alexander Fleming discovered the bacteria-destroying mold by accident when he left a culture dish uncovered in his lab in 1928.
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Infoture division LENA LABS announces new LENA Language Assessment
1/6/2009
A division of Infoture, Inc., LENA LABS has launched a new service: the LENATM Language Assessment. Designed with the unique needs of speech language professionals in mind, the new option is an inexpensive entry point to LENA Pro technology, which retails for $6,699. For an introductory offer of only $150 (good through January 31, 2009), the pay-per-use service provides six reports, two assessments, and an audio sample – highly advanced diagnostic tools that professionals can use to boost treatment quality.
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Talk to Me, Baby! Supporting Language Development in the First 3 Years
September 2008
By Betty Bardige and M. Kori Bardige
In their first few years, almost all children learn at least one language, though not equally well. Differences in the quantity, quality, sources, and variety of language inputs and conversation opportunities have a long-lasting effect. This article provides an overview of early language development and explains how talking with babies promotes rich language acquisition. The authors offer strategies for supporting language at each stage of development and for recognizing and responding to signs of potential disruption or delay.
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Automatic Measurement of the Language Learning Environment of Young Children with ASD
7/11/2008
Researchers and clinicians know very little about the natural language environment of young children with ASD and how this compares to typically developing children. Professionals working with children at risk for language and developmental disabilities have traditionally been restricted by limitations in measurement technologies.
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ABC's Good Morning America
4/23/2008
Parents worry about everything when it comes to babies: Is the infant sleeping enough, eating enough, growing enough? Here’s another thing to fret about: Do you talk enough to your baby?
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New device that gauges a baby’s language skill
4/11/2008
Last year, Crystal Adams was browsing a Web site on child health when she came across an advertisement inviting parents to participate in a research study testing a new device to measure language development in children.
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Baby-talk show: Do you know how many words your child spoke today?
2/24/2008
The early days of parenthood are filled with anxiety. Parents fret over whether their babies are eating enough, growing enough and sleeping enough. As the children get a little older, parents also worry if they are talking enough.
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Are girls with autism going undiagnosed? ABC "Nightline" reports
1/25/2008
According to Autism Speaks, the "report explored the belief of several researchers and psychologists ... that there are many girls with autism who are either going undiagnosed or being misdiagnosed with other disorders.” The report "took an in-depth look at how girls and boys are brought up culturally, and how these differences could contribute to a misdiagnosis in girls, resulting in the harsh reality that we just don’t know how many cases of girls with autism really exist."
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Revolutionary Product Is Breakthrough in Early Detection and Treatment of Language Delay
1/10/2008
SpeechPathology.com reports: The world’s largest database of child and adult speech ever collected from within home environments is the foundation of a groundbreaking study and breakthrough intervention product for clinicians and researchers.
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What's a word's worth?
12/27/2007
In an influential study published in 1995, social scientists Betty Hart and Todd Risley recorded everything that went on in 42 households to see why some children fared worse in school than others. One factor especially stood out: the number of words the child heard.
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Can words translate into a bright future for infants?
11/26/2007
You don’t realize how daunting it is to say a certain number of words per day to your child. For Page and her husband Aaron, it’s worth every word.
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Every parent wants to give their child a leg up in life, now it's easier than ever before
11/15/2007
What has been attracting the attention of parents and some experts in child development? Experts say that word acquisition in the early years is crucial. Now, there’s a device that records how verbal your child’s daily experience is. The LENA device has only been available a short time, but it’s attracting the attention of parents and some experts in child development.
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University leaders offer condolences after death of Todd Risley
11/6/2007
Risley, a world-renowned pioneer in applied behavioral science and former professor in the Department of Applied Behavioral Science and senior scientist at the Schiefelbusch Institute for Life Span Studies for 23 years, died in Palmer, Alaska, on Friday, Nov. 2. He was 70 years old. He was professor emeritus of psychology at the University of Alaska at the time of his death.
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Baby Talk
10/29/2007
30,000 The spoken words a child needs to hear each day until age 3 for the best language development, a study shows.
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News Release: Young children thrive on 30,000 words a day
10/24/2007
The most powerful number is 30,000.
BOULDER, Colo.— For children between birth and age 3, the most powerful number is 30,000. That’s the number of words children need to hear every day from their parents and caregivers to ensure optimal language development and academic success, according to the research of Drs. Betty Hart and Todd Risley and confirmed by Colorado-based Infoture, Inc., and their analysis of over 46,000 hours of speech data – the largest database of parent-child audio information in the world.
The second phase of Infoture’s Natural Language...
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Talk Enough?, ABC News - Los Angeles,
10/2/2007
All kinds of videos and computer programs promise to help prepare your toddler for school. But educators say the best preparation is talk from a parent or caregiver.
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Ability to achieve improves the more words babies hear, Boulder County Business Report,
9/28/2007
Not only are the children who have been talked to achieving more, they’re testing higher. The difference between hearing 33 million words compared with 11 million results in an extra 40 IQ points, according to research.
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Bringing up brainy baby, The Denver Post,
9/12/2007
Littleton - Lisa and Brian Thompson - both professional and college-educated - pay close attention to their 20-month-old son Matthew’s development. So when Infoture Inc., a Boulder- based research company, asked families to test a product that measures how much talking goes on between parents and children from birth to age 3, with the idea that the chattiest families have the most successful kids, the couple signed up.
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If you want baby talk, talk to baby, Colorado biz Magazine,
8/20/2007
You don’t need a research study to conclude that sticking toddlers in front of the TV probably won’t do wonders for their brain development. You might just try talking to them instead. A new study by a Colorado company concludes that the more you talk to your children, the more likely they’ll develop strong language skills.
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News Release: Young children thrive on 30,000 words a day
8/14/2007
New study released to Colorado pediatricians today
BOULDER, Colo.—For children between birth and age 3, the most powerful number is 30,000 – the number of words they need to hear every day from their parents and caregivers, to ensure optimal language development and academic success, according to the Power of Talk research study, released today to healthcare professionals statewide.
Infoture, a Boulder-based company, is receiving...
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Talk to your toddlers - research claims they need to hear 30,000 words a day, North Denver News,
8/14/2007
For children between birth and age 3, the most powerful number is 30,000 -- the number of words they need to hear every day from their parents and caregivers, to ensure optimal language development and academic success, according to the Power of Talk research study, released today to healthcare professionals statewide.
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Baby DVDs may hinder, not help, your kid
8/8/2007
Educational videos designed to stimulate young minds, like “Baby Einstein” and “Brainy Baby,” may actually impede language development, according to a new study published this week in the Journal of Pediatrics. The DVDs have become one of the most popular educational tools for parents, with promises to build the vocabulary and enhance the cognitive development of babies as young as 3 months old. But the claims of these manufacturers are largely unsubstantiated. And the new study says they may do more harm than good.
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Toddler 'word spurts' are guaranteed, USA Today,
8/2/2007
It’s called the "word spurt," that magical time when a toddler’s vocabulary explodes, seemingly overnight. New research offers a decidedly un-magical explanation: Babies start really jabbering after they’ve mastered enough easy words to tackle more of the harder ones. It’s essentially a snowball effect.
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Turn Off TV To Teach Toddlers New Words, Science Daily,
6/29/2007
Study evaluated the ability of children ages 15-24 months to learn new words when the words were presented as part of a "Teletubbies" program as compared to their ability to learn new words from an adult speaker in the same room with them.
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Study on I.Q. Prompts Debate on Family Dynamics, The New York Times,
6/25/2007
The new evidence that eldest children develop higher I.Q.’s than their siblings has intensified the debate over two of the most stubborn questions in social science: What are the family dynamics that enhance intelligence? And can they — and should they — be changed?
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