The 3-year-old Pre-K class at C.A. Weis Elementary School.

Babies aren’t born smart — they’re made smart.

And what makes them smart is simpler than you think.

Research proves that language has unmatched power to build a baby’s brain. The number of words a young child hears, and the tone and meaning of those words, is crucial to the way the brain develops.

That’s why the Studer Community Institute staff has created a series of radio spots using tips from Dr. Dana Suskind’s book, “Thirty Million Words: Building a Child’s Brain.”

The tips, featuring Institute founder Quint Studer, offer practical advice for parents and caregivers to exposure young children to more words.

So how do you start? The advice all boils down to this: Talk to your child. All the time. Every day.

Need some help getting started? Start here.

Share the advice with everyone you know who may spend time with a young child.

Research that Suskind and her team at the University of Chicago have done supports research that indicates that the more words a young child hears, the stronger the connections in that child’s brain will be. Children who hear fewer words before age 3 face challenges in developing language and reading skills they will need to succeed in school.

For more advice, check out TMW Tips: Building Your Baby's Brain, linked here.