Baby Talk
Michael Rosen asks if baby talk benefits or hinders language development and discovers why Jonathan Swift used it in his letters.
Michael Rosen looks at language and communication. This week we're talking baby talk, or 'Infant Directed Speech'. He asks if the cooing parentese is a natural phenomenon or is it simply a culturally learnt trait. Does it benefit or hinder language development, and do animals use it? Michael also discovers some interesting examples of baby talk in letters that Jonathan Swift wrote to two lady friends.
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Broadcasts
- Tue 31 Dec 201316:00BBC Radio 4
- Mon 6 Jan 201423:00BBC Radio 4
Listen to Michael Rosen in conversation with The Open University
Hear Michael reveal his own language journey.
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Download this programme
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