Thirty Million Words: Building a Child's Brain
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-08-12 06:55:04
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Dana Suskind
- ISBN：0525954872
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
The founder and director of the Thirty Million Words Initiative， Professor Dana Suskind， explains why the most important—and astoundingly simple—thing you can do for your child’s future success in life is to talk to him or her， reveals the recent science behind this truth， and outlines precisely how parents can best put it into practice。
The research is in: Academic achievement begins on the first day of life with the first word said by a cooing mother just after delivery。
A study by researchers Betty Hart and Todd Risley in 1995 found that some children heard thirty million fewer words by their fourth birthdays than others。 The children who heard more words were better prepared when they entered school。 These same kids， when followed into third grade， had bigger vocabularies， were stronger readers， and got higher test scores。 This disparity in learning is referred to as the achievement gap。
Professor Dana Suskind， MD， learned of this thirty million word gap in the course of her work as a cochlear implant surgeon at University of Chicago Medical School and began a new research program along with her sister-in-law， Beth Suskind， to find the best ways to bridge that gap。 The Thirty Million Word Initiative has developed programs for parents to show the kind of parent-child communication that enables optimal neural development and has tested the programs in and around Chicago across demographic groups。 They boil down to getting parents to follow the three Ts: Tune in to what your child is doing; Talk more to your child using lots of descriptive words; and Take turns with your child as you engage in conversation。 Parents are shown how to make the words they serve up more enriching。 For example， instead of telling a child， “Put your shoes on，” one might say instead， “It is time to go out。 What do we have to do？” The lab's new five-year longitudinal research program has just received funding so they can further corroborate their results。
The neuroscience of brain plasticity is some of the most valuable and revolutionary medical science being done today。 It enables us to think and do better。 It is making a difference in the lives of both the old and young。 If you care for children， this landmark book is essential reading。
The research is in: Academic achievement begins on the first day of life with the first word said by a cooing mother just after delivery。
A study by researchers Betty Hart and Todd Risley in 1995 found that some children heard thirty million fewer words by their fourth birthdays than others。 The children who heard more words were better prepared when they entered school。 These same kids， when followed into third grade， had bigger vocabularies， were stronger readers， and got higher test scores。 This disparity in learning is referred to as the achievement gap。
Professor Dana Suskind， MD， learned of this thirty million word gap in the course of her work as a cochlear implant surgeon at University of Chicago Medical School and began a new research program along with her sister-in-law， Beth Suskind， to find the best ways to bridge that gap。 The Thirty Million Word Initiative has developed programs for parents to show the kind of parent-child communication that enables optimal neural development and has tested the programs in and around Chicago across demographic groups。 They boil down to getting parents to follow the three Ts: Tune in to what your child is doing; Talk more to your child using lots of descriptive words; and Take turns with your child as you engage in conversation。 Parents are shown how to make the words they serve up more enriching。 For example， instead of telling a child， “Put your shoes on，” one might say instead， “It is time to go out。 What do we have to do？” The lab's new five-year longitudinal research program has just received funding so they can further corroborate their results。
The neuroscience of brain plasticity is some of the most valuable and revolutionary medical science being done today。 It enables us to think and do better。 It is making a difference in the lives of both the old and young。 If you care for children， this landmark book is essential reading。
Reviews
Robin
，
Such important information for the health and well being of our children
Alana
，
This book was clearly on a mission。 Suskind does a wonderful job of laying out the context and methodology for how to talk to children in their critical period to help them have the foundational speech， language， and （as an extension，） information-processing skills a child will need to to grow up to their fullest potential。 The examples get a little repetitive as a casual reader， but it's perfect for parents， especially those who want to know exactly what they need to do to best help their child This book was clearly on a mission。 Suskind does a wonderful job of laying out the context and methodology for how to talk to children in their critical period to help them have the foundational speech， language， and （as an extension，） information-processing skills a child will need to to grow up to their fullest potential。 The examples get a little repetitive as a casual reader， but it's perfect for parents， especially those who want to know exactly what they need to do to best help their child learn。 The book dives deeper into tangential ideas in the most relevant ways， such as numerical literacy， cultural influence， effects of hearing loss， etc。 I think this is a foundational book for parents and any professionals who interact with preschool and infant children。 。。。more
Deniz Gorencan
，
Sanırım daha iyilerini okuduğum için bu kitabı vasat buldum。 Fazlaca araştırma， metod， Amerika’daki sistem gibi bir ebeveynin deneyimini， ne yapması gerektiğine dair önerileri etkilemeyecek detaylar ağır basmış。 Çok kıymetli bilgiler， pratiğe dönük tavsiyeler var ama yığının aradına sıkışmış。 Bir de yazarın sürekli kendi tescilli metodlarını övmesinden sıkıntı geldi！
KATHERINE KOUBA
，
I misunderstood， thinking the book would cover more strategies for expanding your children's vocabulary。 More concerned with public health and public schools。 That's tough sledding。 I agree with the premise， but the last chapter I think was the most helpful。 I misunderstood， thinking the book would cover more strategies for expanding your children's vocabulary。 More concerned with public health and public schools。 That's tough sledding。 I agree with the premise， but the last chapter I think was the most helpful。 。。。more
Corey
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Must read for parents or educators of young children （ages 0-3）。
Dhaval
，
3。5 stars
Zeynep
，
Hamile veya kucuk cocugu olanlara siddetle tavsiye ederim。
Filiz Yurt
，
Kitabın gereksiz uzatılması dışında verilen mesaj oldukça güzel ve etkili。 Daha iyi bir toplum ve Dünyada yaşamak için 0-3 yaş arası çocukların zihinsel gelişimlerinde kelimelerin gücüne inanmalıyız。 Okunmalı ve okutulmalı。
Yasemin
，
Good points， but the book is way longer than needed。
Elif
，
Okuduğum en ufuk açıcı ebeveynlik kitaplarından。 Anne baba olacak herkesin mümkünse doğumdan önce okuması çok iyi olur。 Aslen bir cerrah olan yazar， ABD’de Otuz Milyon Kelime girişimini kurmuş ve o kapsamda ailelerle yaptığı çalışmaları， gözlemleri paylaşıyor。 Özetle， çocuğun beyin gelişimi dört yaşından itibaren durmaz; ama ilk üç yıl bu noktada çok kritiktir。 Ve bu gelişim için gereken pahalı oyuncaklar， çeşit çeşit etkinlikler değil， temelde ebeveyn konuşmasıdır。 Çocuğunu gözlemleyen， yaptığı Okuduğum en ufuk açıcı ebeveynlik kitaplarından。 Anne baba olacak herkesin mümkünse doğumdan önce okuması çok iyi olur。 Aslen bir cerrah olan yazar， ABD’de Otuz Milyon Kelime girişimini kurmuş ve o kapsamda ailelerle yaptığı çalışmaları， gözlemleri paylaşıyor。 Özetle， çocuğun beyin gelişimi dört yaşından itibaren durmaz; ama ilk üç yıl bu noktada çok kritiktir。 Ve bu gelişim için gereken pahalı oyuncaklar， çeşit çeşit etkinlikler değil， temelde ebeveyn konuşmasıdır。 Çocuğunu gözlemleyen， yaptığını kavrayan ve nihayetinde onunla karşılıklı şekilde yapan bir ebeveyn！ 。。。more
Jamie
，
Everyone around children birth-three should read this one！！I really appreciated the chapter about the female/male performance gap in math and why that has been occurring （but closing）。 As an SLP， I also really liked how this book had action points and direct points that can be implemented。 It is a quick read and something that I would recommend to some of my parents。 This book begins with a focus on hearing loss due to Suskind’s background as a cochlear implant surgeon， but the social scientist Everyone around children birth-three should read this one！！I really appreciated the chapter about the female/male performance gap in math and why that has been occurring （but closing）。 As an SLP， I also really liked how this book had action points and direct points that can be implemented。 It is a quick read and something that I would recommend to some of my parents。 This book begins with a focus on hearing loss due to Suskind’s background as a cochlear implant surgeon， but the social scientist findings are truly applicable to all children。 。。。more
Darci
，
While I agree with the basic ideas of this book， it was very difficult for me to get through。 It was very dry， almost entirely a string of various research studies。 I wish there had been less research details， more stories， and more “so then what？”
Faruk Gümüşkesen
，
Öğrenmenin yaşı yoktur！ Bu kadar net beynimize kazınmış bu cümlenin her zaman doğru olmayabileceğini bu kitapla öğrendim。 30 milyon kelime， 3 yaşına kadar bol miktarda dile maruz bırakmanın， hem nitelik hem nicelik olarak bol iletişimin önemini bilimsel çalışmalarla açıklıyor。 3 yaşına kadar bunun eksikliğinin hayat boyu telafisi olmayacağına vurgu yapıyor。 Öğrenmenin yaşı varmış。
Brystan
，
I read this book for a couple of reasons 1。 She is doing an author talk for the library system I work for this summer and 2。 Parent coaching is a small part of my job but something I want to have a bigger role in。 First off， Dr。 Suskind was a cochlear implant surgeon and as someone who has a pinky toe level of experience with deaf/Deaf culture I know that cochlear implants are controversial - but I thought she did a good job explaining how that career led her to her current one。 This book is an I read this book for a couple of reasons 1。 She is doing an author talk for the library system I work for this summer and 2。 Parent coaching is a small part of my job but something I want to have a bigger role in。 First off， Dr。 Suskind was a cochlear implant surgeon and as someone who has a pinky toe level of experience with deaf/Deaf culture I know that cochlear implants are controversial - but I thought she did a good job explaining how that career led her to her current one。 This book is an easy nonfiction read - really accessible to parents I think。 It might lean a little shallow to people in this field of research - but I also don’t think this book is for them。 And I think the topics and strategies in this book pair really nicely with what we teach parents at the library through our storytimes and parent coaching sessions。 We use the Every Child Ready to Read method which focuses on 5 practices （read， write， sing， talk， play） and although youd think this book only covers one of them - there are tidbits of all of that in here。 Also what I was not expecting was the tie in to math readiness - the whole section on math was eye opening to me and I really think I can find ways to include that in my parent coaching。 。。。more
Yunus Yerdelen
，
Cok iyi。 Hic dusunmeden alip okuyabilirsiniz。
Kirsten T
，
Fascinating， important information for anyone whose role it is to take care of children。 I underlined a very large portion of this book。 Delves into the importance of talking with your child， and how to talk with your child。Although I should say this review comes with a disclaimer- if you already have children three or older， or close to three， you might feel like you've ruined your child forever after all the research Suskind shares。 I definitely read it with the feeling of having a light turne Fascinating， important information for anyone whose role it is to take care of children。 I underlined a very large portion of this book。 Delves into the importance of talking with your child， and how to talk with your child。Although I should say this review comes with a disclaimer- if you already have children three or older， or close to three， you might feel like you've ruined your child forever after all the research Suskind shares。 I definitely read it with the feeling of having a light turned on my inadequacies。 。。。more
Shannon
，
Fascinating！ I think every new parent and teacher should read。 I wish I read it sooner since it focuses on how important the 0-3 years are to development。 I would have liked to learn more about tapping into unlocking the neuroplasticity later but I might just have to look up Takao Hensch's work or Charles Nelson's book to see if there's more info than what was presented in this book。 Great book！ Fascinating！ I think every new parent and teacher should read。 I wish I read it sooner since it focuses on how important the 0-3 years are to development。 I would have liked to learn more about tapping into unlocking the neuroplasticity later but I might just have to look up Takao Hensch's work or Charles Nelson's book to see if there's more info than what was presented in this book。 Great book！ 。。。more
MeganS
，
Interesting book about language development and the crucial period of brain development in the first three years。
Okuyucu
，
Bu kitabı çok uzun bir zaman dilimi içinde bitirdim。 Ancak günlük hayat içindeki koşturmacada çocuklarımızla nasıl iletişim KURMAMALIYIZ ve kurmalıyızı hatırlatan kitaplar okumak， çocuğa davranışımızı zamanla düzeltiyor。 Bu açıdan bende ve eşimde faydalı oldu。 Sadece son bölümlerde tekrarlar biraz sıkıcı hale getirdi ondan 1 puan kırdım。
Julia
，
I would recommend this book to anybody late in their pregnancy， with a newborn， or young baby。 It talks about the importance of engaging with and talking to your baby。 I hope I don’t forget to Tune In， Talk More， and Take Turns。 I also hope I remember to engage with my baby and not my iPhone or other screens。 I don’t plan to count or record every word I say to my daughter but I hope I can hit 30 million by the time she is 3。 Can’t wait！
Valery chong
，
This book is a mixture of brain-science and how public policy can help shape the way parents/educators think， talk and interact to their child。 As a person working in the Early Childhood sector， this book doesn’t provide ground-breaking information but it is still a good read。 The author talks about the development of the Thirty Million Words Initiative and uses evidence-based research to substantiate her points and highlights possible limitations。 The main takeaways I have from this book are th This book is a mixture of brain-science and how public policy can help shape the way parents/educators think， talk and interact to their child。 As a person working in the Early Childhood sector， this book doesn’t provide ground-breaking information but it is still a good read。 The author talks about the development of the Thirty Million Words Initiative and uses evidence-based research to substantiate her points and highlights possible limitations。 The main takeaways I have from this book are the 4Ts:Tune In （child-led） Talk More （describing what the child is doing and using a positive， warm tone）Take Turns （conversational exchange with the child）Turn off （turning off electronic devices）Another good point is on person-based vs process-based praise and how it deters/encourages a child’s learning and resilience。 。。。more
Paulina Balsevičienė
，
Puiki knyga apie žodžio galią ir kalbos svarbą mažylio smegenų vystimuisi。
Melike Sevindik
，
Çok bilmediğim bir şey okumadım。 Fazla overated bir kitap。 Daha çok ders verir nitelikte。 Vurgu ve odak noktası aynı ilk 3 yıl ve ekonomik durumun farklılığın dil gelişimindeki önemi。。
Zeynep
，
Bir bölüm icin koca kitap yazmis。 Cogu kisim fazla duzensizdi。 Ama sadece besinci bölümünü oyluyor olsaydim beş yildiz verirdim。
Alyssa Kawamoto
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 There were some good tips for having meaningful conversations with your child， even your little baby， that can help them be more successful later in life。 I liked hearing of the studies done， and I’m always a fan of Carol Dweck and the growth mindset。 But as I got to the end， I was wishing I had more application suggestions to try at home。 I’ll start with Tune In， Talk More， Take Turns and see how it goes！
Duygu
，
Benim için farkındalık yaratan， eğitici， faydalı bir çocuk gelişimi kitabı oldu。 Okuduğum bazı kısımlarda farkında olmadan yaptığım şeylerle karşılaştım。 Buda beni çok mutlu etti。 Bebeğim şuanda 7 aylık ve ben hergün kitap okuyorum。 Evet kitabı okurken beni dinlemiyormuş， boşuna okuyormuşum gibi hissediyordum ilk başlarda ancak mutlaka daha sonrasında meyvelerini alacağımı düşünüyorum ki kitapta zaten bundan bahsediyor。 3-4 yaşına geldiğinde oynayabileceğimiz şekilleri， renkleri ve eşleştirme ka Benim için farkındalık yaratan， eğitici， faydalı bir çocuk gelişimi kitabı oldu。 Okuduğum bazı kısımlarda farkında olmadan yaptığım şeylerle karşılaştım。 Buda beni çok mutlu etti。 Bebeğim şuanda 7 aylık ve ben hergün kitap okuyorum。 Evet kitabı okurken beni dinlemiyormuş， boşuna okuyormuşum gibi hissediyordum ilk başlarda ancak mutlaka daha sonrasında meyvelerini alacağımı düşünüyorum ki kitapta zaten bundan bahsediyor。 3-4 yaşına geldiğinde oynayabileceğimiz şekilleri， renkleri ve eşleştirme kabiliyetini geliştirebileceğimiz bir oyun almıştım。 Kitabı okur okumaz oyunu ortalığa çıkardım ve şekilleri， renkleri hergün gösterir oldum。 Kitap bunun çocuk beyin gelişimi， matematik yeteneğinin gelişimi için önemli olduğundan bahsediyor。 Ebeveynlerin çocuklarının beyin gelişimi esnasında kullandıkları dilin nekadar önemli olduğunu vurguluyor。 Özelliklede 3 yaşına gelene kadar olan süreçte。 Kitap bence her yeni anne， baba yada anne， baba olacak olan ebeveynler tarafından okunmalı。 Ben iyiki çocuğum büyümeden okumuşum dedim。 。。。more
Brianna
，
Such an educational book！ I would definitely recommend this to any parent or educator。
Circle
，
Too many wordsAs a parent， I find this book too wordy， and a lot of information are not relevant to me。 The key idea is solid， and can be summarized into a blog post。 It reads like a literature review at times， and feels like the author is trying to convince the reader the program deserves funding。 As a busy parent I feel like I'm spending too much time on this one book Too many wordsAs a parent， I find this book too wordy， and a lot of information are not relevant to me。 The key idea is solid， and can be summarized into a blog post。 It reads like a literature review at times， and feels like the author is trying to convince the reader the program deserves funding。 As a busy parent I feel like I'm spending too much time on this one book 。。。more
Jeremy Reppy
，
As someone interested in language and speech generally and as an expectant father， I was interested in reading this book。 I was already familiar with the basic research that children who hear more words and a greater variety of words tended to perform better academically。 However， it was interesting to learn that hearing more "math" words could help determine math fluency and that hearing more "spatial" words improved spatial skills。 Also， that not only is quantity important， but the parent need As someone interested in language and speech generally and as an expectant father， I was interested in reading this book。 I was already familiar with the basic research that children who hear more words and a greater variety of words tended to perform better academically。 However， it was interesting to learn that hearing more "math" words could help determine math fluency and that hearing more "spatial" words improved spatial skills。 Also， that not only is quantity important， but the parent needs to use positive talk and expressions。 Even "baby talk" or "nonsense" words are valuable because they help the baby/infant learn different sounds and how various sounds can be combined。 Moreover， responding to your baby's sounds or having a "conversation" is very valuable in improving speech， language， and learning skills。 What is particularly great is that these practices are free and can help children born into less advantageous situations overcome some of the obstacles to learning that their socioeconomic status can impose。There are many more interesting observations and insights in this book。 I highly recommend reading it， but more importantly， put into practice the lessons learned。I was provided a copy of this book through netgalley in exchange for a review 。。。more
Jenny Reibenspies
，