For years before I had my son, I would roll my eyes skyward whenever I heard a parent talking to a baby in singsongy baby talk. I’m not sure why it frustrated me to hear a parent speaking that way, but I do know I’m not alone in my feelings. There are articles, Reddit threads and more devoted to the way people feel about hearing parents using baby talk or parentese with infants and young children.
While this approach to communicating may be irritating or even seem cringey to some, it’s actually very beneficial for the baby. Studies show that it supports language learning, social interaction and maintaining attention. And those aren’t the only benefits of baby talk.
“Many people think of a singsong voice as simply sounding ‘cute,’ but there’s actually much more happening beneath the surface,” pediatric occupational therapist, milestone coach and co-founder of the platform BabyFIT Providers, Sydney Bennett, told HuffPost.
Singsong speech supports early learning.
Singsong speech, also referred to as parentese, is a specific type of “baby talk.” Its characteristics include speaking at a higher pitch, speaking slowly and clearly, elongating vowels, varying pitch and more.
Singsong speech typically combines rhythm, melody, repetition and language into one interaction. It’s a predictable pattern of speaking that helps babies “recognize and organize the sounds and rhythms of language, creating a strong foundation for early learning,” Bennett explained.
“Because music and language share many of the same building blocks, including rhythm, timing and patterns, pairing language with melody and repetition may help support early language learning by making these patterns more noticeable to babies,” Bennett explained.
Over time, this approach to communicating can help babies begin anticipating what comes next during everyday conversational interactions.
Moreover, because singsong speech slows down the speaking rate, it also makes it easier for babies to identify specific words. “The stretching out of words helps infants learn to separate individual words and identify specific phonetic sounds that build up to words,” said Laura Todd, a licensed therapist who specializes in infant/early childhood mental health and providing parents with psychoeducation related to child development, particularly during the newborn and infancy stages.
As a simplified and repetitive version of speaking, singsong speech helps babies pick up grammar structures and learn individual words through repetition. “Typically, the repetitive word is a noun, which is easier for babies to link to the object,” Todd added.
Singsong speech encourages verbal imitation and social connection.
When adults slow their speech, overenunciate sounds and exaggerate facial expressions, they’re providing babies with a clear visual and auditory model for communication. Babies, in turn, carefully watch how our mouths move, observe our facial expressions and then begin experimenting with sound themselves, eventually imitating speech sounds.
“When a baby hears a warm and comfortable-sounding singsong voice, it encourages him or her to join the conversation. They’ll start to coo, babble and hold eye contact with you. By interacting in this manner, it builds confidence, social skills and eventually spoken language,” explained Vinay Saranga, a child psychiatrist and founder of Saranga Comprehensive Psychiatry.
Bennett offered a similar assessment of the value of singsong speech, noting that “these playful back-and-forth interactions strengthen social engagement and help babies learn that communication is a shared experience long before they begin saying their first words.”
Similarly, Leanne Sherred, president and chief clinical officer of Expressable, a national speech therapy practice, points out that “when a parent says something in that engaging voice, pauses and the baby coos back, that’s a real exchange. Those early ‘conversations’ are the foundation for babbling, first words and social communication down the road.”
Singsong speech grabs and maintains attention.
Adult conversation is filled with natural ups and downs, pauses, emphasis on certain words, and you could say it carries a certain melody, even if we don’t consider it necessarily musical. That variation and rhythm help attract (and maintain) a baby’s attention.
“They naturally tune into the higher pitch and exaggerated melody of parentese. That singsongy voice makes them look at your face, watch your mouth and listen closely. It holds their attention, which is where all language learning and development starts,” Sherred said.
What’s more, because singsong speech slows the rate of speech, softens tone, exaggerates intonation and creates a predictable rhythm, it can make interactions feel more organized for babies.
“It’s easier for babies to process and more engaging while supporting their ability to sustain attention without becoming overwhelmed,” Bennett explained.
Singsong speech conveys safety and connection.
Babies can respond to certain stimuli long before they can speak. When a baby hears a warm and playful singsongy voice, they don’t know what you’re saying, but they do understand that they feel safe and relaxed in your presence.
This is especially helpful because children are born in a survival state (think fight or flight), explained Kristen Miller, an early childhood education expert and director of accreditation at Celebree School.
“In order to overcome this state, babies need to feel safe and protected,” explained Miller. “One way to strengthen this feeling of emotional security is to speak in a gentle and melodic voice.”
These positive and safe feelings and interactions build a secure attachment, which is the foundation for a baby’s healthy social-emotional development.
When should singsong speech start being used? And when does it stop being helpful?
It’s never too early to start employing singsong speech with an infant. Sherred suggests parents begin using it from day one. “Babies begin processing language within hours of birth, and they’ve been hearing your voice since they’ve been in the womb, so there’s truly no such thing as too early,” Sherred said.
As for when it’s time to start reeling in the singsong voice or putting it on pause altogether, there’s no hard and fast cutoff or end date, experts say. Most parents instinctively dial back the exaggerated tone and talking as a child progresses to talking themselves, usually during the course of the toddler years.
“You’ll find you don’t need it anymore once your child is engaging in real conversation,” said Sherred, who offers one more important tip for parents when it comes to so-called baby talk.
“Make sure you understand what parentese is and what it isn’t. Parentese is not the same as nonsense baby talk. With parentese, you’re changing your tone and melody, but you’re still using real words and correct grammar,” Sherred said.
For instance, you would still say “Do you want your bottle?” when using parentese with your baby, but do so in a warm, musical voice. Calling it a “baba,” by contrast, doesn’t teach your baby the actual word bottle.
“Keep the words real and the sentences simple, and let your voice do the entertaining,” Sherred said.
Published by HuffPost. Featured on Yahoo News.