Early exposure to rich vocabularies provides a strong basis for language development. FAU’s Erika Hoff found that mothers that were native English speakers and non-native speakers with high proficiency provided richer databases for their toddlers’ language acquisition than did mothers with limited proficiency.

“Children can’t learn what they don’t hear. So if their parents or other adults speak to them with a very simple, limited vocabulary, that is all that they can learn,” Hoff said. “Parents who are more proficient in English use a richer vocabulary and produce longer sentences, even when they are talking to a toddler.” The findings have broad implications for immigrant

• Erika Hoff