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The Language Environment Analysis (LENA) is a nonprofit organization that developed a technology system comprising a LENA device, patented processing software, and secure cloud-based data access.[1] LENA technology is utilized by community organizations globally to support interactive talk between children and caregivers. According to LENA, as of 2025, its technology has been adopted by over 500 organizations across 40 countries.[1]

Peer-reviewed studies using the LENA System have been conducted by researchers at institutions including Harvard, MIT,[2] Brown University, and Stanford University, as well as hospitals and other research organizations. Research applications include investigations into language development in children,[3] autism,[4] child language acquisition,[5] and communication in deaf and hard-of-hearing families.[6]

History

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The LENA Research Foundation was established in 2009 through a donation of assets from Infoture Inc. by Terrance and Judith Paul, who were also majority owners of Renaissance Learning Inc. (RLI).

In 1998, Terry Paul, founder of Renaissance Learning Inc., read Meaningful Differences in the Everyday Lives of Young American Children by Betty Hart and Todd Risley. This longitudinal study highlighted the correlation between the number of words spoken to children from birth to age three and their language ability and IQ at age three. Inspired by these findings, Paul founded Infoture, Inc. in 2004 to research and develop the LENA System, hiring a team for this purpose.[7][8] Infoture launched a pilot version in February 2006. In February 2009, the Pauls donated Infoture's assets and gifted $2 million to establish the LENA Research Foundation, a nonprofit.[9] In January 2018, the organization changed its name to LENA and adopted the tagline "Building brains through early talk."[10]

LENA's programs are based on research suggesting that increased conversational engagement in a child's first four years of life may contribute to improved academic and social outcomes. Research from Harvard University suggests that interactive talk between children and caregivers is a significant factor that affects early brain development.[11][12] Research from MIT published in February 2018 indicated that conversational turns are associated with activation in Broca's area in children.[13] LENA offers several programs designed to support interactive talk between children and caregivers.[14]

Scientific background

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Research indicates that early childhood includes critical periods for tasks such as language acquisition.[15] Interactive talk, specifically conversational turns, has been identified as a factor in stimulating brain growth during these years, according to the Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University.[16][17][12] Additionally, longitudinal research by LENA suggests that the amount of conversation children experience between the ages of 18 and 24 months is related to their IQ, verbal comprehension, and language skills during adolescence.[18] Research suggests potential outcomes such as reductions in criminal activity, annual returns on investment, and other positive effects.[19][20][21]

LENA System

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LENA is an acronym for "Language Environment Analysis". LENA technology provides over 25 metrics on a child's natural language environment, including estimates and percentile scores for adult words spoken to the child, conversational turns, and child vocalizations. The system also generates an expressive language developmental age and percentile score based on a child's voiceprint.[9] Some important language metrics include Adult Word Count (AWC), Conversational Turns (CTs), and Child Vocalizations (CVs). AWCs are the number of words a child hears from an adult within a specific period, and CTs occur when a child speaks or responds to an adult and receives a response.[22]

LENA Device (Digital Language Processor)

A parent or teacher places a LENA device in a child's vest and records a full day of the child's sound environment.[23] The device is then connected to a computer with software that processes the recording. It finds the child's exposure to verbal stimulation, the number of child utterances, and other information. The system also generates percentile scores, which compare the child's vocalizations with other children of the same age.[24]

The LENA device is worn inside of specially-made, gender-neutral vests.

Product lines

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LENA Start

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LENA Start is a program for parents that utilizes regular feedback from the LENA System and 13 weekly group sessions to address the home language environment.[25] Since its introduction in 2015, LENA Start has been implemented by school districts, library systems, and other organizations in states including Alabama, California, Iowa, Colorado, and Minnesota.[26][27][28] Texas Children's Hospital was the first regional healthcare center to adopt the model.[29] In October 2020, during the restrictions of the COVID-19 pandemic, Read Aloud Delaware began a virtual LENA Start program with families statewide where parents received feedback and participated in one-hour Zoom workshops each week during the 10-week program.[30]

LENA Grow

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LENA Grow is a professional development program for teachers in early childhood classrooms.[31] According to LENA's website, "LENA's talk reports for teachers focus primarily on conversational turns, a strong measure of interactive talk." The program trains teachers to increase conversational turns, noting that children can spend up to 60 percent of their time in childcare settings. Before launching at sites around the country, the program was first piloted in Escambia County, Florida.[32][33]

LENA Home

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LENA Home is a supplement to existing parent coaching curricula.[34] Typically, home visitors facilitate the use of the LENA System to help parents track their progress towards increasing interactive talk in their homes.[35]

Developmental Snapshot

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The LENA Developmental Snapshot, based on a 52-question parent survey, assesses both expressive and receptive language skills and provides an estimate of a child's developmental age from 2 months to 36 months.[36]

LENA Research Foundation findings

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  • Parental Perception vs. Reality: Parents often estimate they talk more with their children than they do.
  • Maternal Contribution: Mothers are often the primary source of language input, contributing about 75 percent of the total talk in a child's environment.
  • Gender Differences: Mothers tend to talk approximately 9 percent more to their daughters than to their sons.
  • Firstborn Advantage: Parents tend to engage more in conversation with their firstborn child compared to their subsequent children.
  • Timing of Conversations: Most adult talk in a child's environment occurs during the late afternoon or early evening.
  • Influence of Talkative Parents: Children of talkative parents are often more likely to be talkative themselves.
  • Impact of Television: Increased television viewing correlates with lower language ability scores in children in some studies.
  • Autism and Communication: Some studies suggest parents of children with autism tend to speak less as the severity of their child's symptoms increases, while parents may talk more when their child demonstrates stronger language abilities.[37]

References

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  1. ^ a b "LENA Start™ -". www.lenafoundation.org. Retrieved 2016-06-17.
  2. ^ Trafton, Anne (2018-02-14). "Back-and-forth exchanges boost children's brain response to language". MIT News. Retrieved 2025-04-21.
  3. ^ "Back-and-forth exchanges boost children's brain response to language". MIT News. Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  4. ^ Dykstra, Jessica R; Sabatos-DeVito, Maura G; Irvin, Dwight W; Boyd, Brian A; Hume, Kara A; Odom, Sam L (2013-09-01). "Using the Language Environment Analysis (LENA) system in preschool classrooms with children with autism spectrum disorders". Autism. 17 (5): 582–594. doi:10.1177/1362361312446206. ISSN 1362-3613. PMID 22751753. S2CID 39731754.
  5. ^ Kuhl, Patricia (15 February 2011), The linguistic genius of babies, retrieved 2017-10-06
  6. ^ "The Relationship between Quality and Quantity in Parental Language Input to Deaf or Hard-of-Hearing Children | LENA Research Foundation". www.lena.org. Retrieved 2017-10-06.
  7. ^ "(Hart & Risley, 1995) Meaningful Differences in the Everyday Experience of Young American Children". LEADERSproject. 2013-03-18. Retrieved 2017-10-06.
  8. ^ Sparks, Sarah D. (2015-04-22). "Key to Vocabulary Gap Is Quality of Conversation, Not Dearth of Words - Education Week". Education Week. Retrieved 2017-10-09.
  9. ^ a b [1] Archived February 17, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  10. ^ "Just call us LENA | LENA". www.lena.org. 2018-02-19. Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  11. ^ "Brain Architecture". Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. Retrieved 2017-10-06.
  12. ^ a b Anderson, Sarah. "Conversing helps language development more than reading alone". UCLA Newsroom. Retrieved 2017-10-09.
  13. ^ Wallis, Claudia. "Talking with--Not Just to--Kids Powers How They Learn Language". Scientific American. Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  14. ^ "Solutions | LENA Research Foundation". www.lena.org. Retrieved 2017-10-06.
  15. ^ Purves, Dale (January 15, 2001). The Development of Language: A Critical Period in Humans. Sutherland (MA): Sinauer Associates. ISBN 0878937420.
  16. ^ "Serve and Return". Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. Retrieved 2017-10-06.
  17. ^ "Does experience change the actual structure of the brain?". ZERO TO THREE. Retrieved 2017-10-06.
  18. ^ "New research says how much you talk with babies is linked to their IQ in adolescence". LENA. Retrieved 2018-09-21.
  19. ^ "Research Summary: The Lifecycle Benefits of an Influential Early Childhood Program - The Heckman Equation". The Heckman Equation. 2017-01-13. Retrieved 2017-10-06.
  20. ^ "Q&A with economist Flávio Cunha | LENA Research Foundation". www.lena.org. 2017-07-17. Retrieved 2017-10-06.
  21. ^ "Does "Early Education" Come Way Too Late? A New Freakonomics Radio Podcast - Freakonomics". Freakonomics. Retrieved 2017-10-09.
  22. ^ "www.lena.org". Archived from the original on February 16, 2009. Retrieved April 15, 2009.
  23. ^ "Baby vest measures talk between parent and child". CBC Radio. Retrieved 2017-10-06.
  24. ^ Bhattacharjee, Yudhijit (24 February 2008). "Baby-Talk Show". The New York Times. Retrieved 2016-01-16.
  25. ^ "LENA Start". Retrieved June 17, 2016.
  26. ^ "West metro program helps parents build babies' and toddlers' vocabularies". Star Tribune. 7 May 2016. Retrieved 2016-06-17.
  27. ^ "St. Vrain Valley, Longmont's OUR Center partner to tackle the early childhood 'word gap'". Retrieved 2017-10-09.
  28. ^ "Tech can make your conversations with kids way more effective". Popular Science. Retrieved 2017-10-09.
  29. ^ "Texas Children's Hospital Becomes First Healthcare Organization to Launch LENA Start". PRWeb. Retrieved 2016-06-17.
  30. ^ "Read Aloud Delaware seeks families for next LENA Start session". Cape Gazette. Retrieved 2025-05-07.
  31. ^ "Solutions | LENA Research Foundation". www.lena.org. Retrieved 2017-10-05.
  32. ^ "Escambia County blazes early education trail". Pensacola News Journal. Retrieved 2017-10-06.
  33. ^ Strategies, Teaching. "Wearable Technology Helps Enrich the "Linguistic Diet" for Young Learners in Virginia". www.prnewswire.com (Press release). Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  34. ^ "Parents as Teachers Affiliates Add an Early-talk Focus | LENA". www.lena.org. 2018-02-28. Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  35. ^ "Solutions | LENA Research Foundation". www.lena.org. Retrieved 2017-10-09.
  36. ^ "What Is LENA Developmental Snapshot". archive.is. 17 December 2012. Archived from the original on 17 December 2012.
  37. ^ "Technical Reports". Archived from the original on February 23, 2009. Retrieved April 24, 2009.
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