Learning in Utero
Babies are attuned to their native language.
Science Daily reported in January that "newborns are much more attuned to the sounds of their native language than first thought. In fact, these linguistic whizzes can pick up on distinctive sounds of their mother tongue while in utero, a new study has concluded."
"We have known for over 30 years that we begin learning prenatally about voices by listening to the sound of our mother talking," said Christine Moon, a professor of psychology at Pacific Lutheran University.
"This is the first study that shows we learn about the particular speech sounds of our mother’s language before we are born. This study moves the measurable result of experience with individual speech sounds from 6 months of age to before birth."
