My wife was concerned when I let her know that our expectant (Dec. 13) newborn will be more likely to acquire my vocabulary versus hers, according to the New Scientist:
Children whose father’s vocabulary was more varied when they were 2 years old had more advanced language skills at age 3. Surprisingly, the dads spoke less and asked fewer questions than the mothers, suggesting it was not how much they spoke but what they said and how they said it that resonated with their children.
The mother’s vocabulary did not seem to have a significant impact on language development. However, because most of the mothers in the study used a large number of words when talking to their children, there could also be a threshold at which a large vocabulary ceases to be an advantage to the child…
The proverbs are true: less is more, and quality reigns over quantity.