One article that really stood out to me is Oral Language Acquisition in Preschool Children Who are Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing by Werfel, Reynolds, and Fitton (2022). As a UConn student studying psychology and working in a lab focused on language development in deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) children, this topic immediately felt relevant to both my academic interests and real-world impact. The study focuses on how DHH children develop language during the preschool years, which is such an important window for both communication and overall cognitive growth.

What makes this article especially interesting is that it follows the same children over time, rather than just taking a single snapshot. The researchers looked at vocabulary and grammar development in DHH children between the ages of four and six and compared them to their hearing peers. One of the most encouraging findings is that DHH children do make steady and meaningful progress in their language skills over time. This is huge! It reinforces the idea that these children are very capable of strong language development when given the right opportunities and support.

At the same time, the study found that the gap between DHH children and hearing children does not fully close by the time they reach school age. Differences in vocabulary and grammar are still present, which highlights how early these gaps can emerge. What really stood out to me is that these differences are already noticeable during the preschool years. For parents, this underscores how important early language exposure and intervention can be in shaping long-term outcomes. Additionally, this highlights the need for a bridge, from early intervention to the implementation of individualized education plans, so that DHH children continue to close that gap when they get to school, rather than the gap becoming larger!

From my perspective, this article sends an important and hopeful message. It shows that development is not fixed, but it also emphasizes how critical early access to language is. Whether that access comes through spoken language, sign language, or a combination of both, what matters most is that children are given consistent and meaningful opportunities to communicate from an early age. Overall, this study offers valuable insight into how children learn language and why early support can make such a lasting difference.

To read more, click here

Cooper Armogida

UConn KIDS Research Assistant

Babies learn an incredible amount between their first breath and their first birthday, but have you ever wondered what drives learning in children? This episode of HELLO Lab Presents takes a look at some of the most important aspects of learning, and how parents and others can best support their developing child!

As research shows, active sensorimotor engagement and physical play are two key ways to drive learning in an infant or toddler! Instead of describing babies as sponges (absorbing everything around them), they refer to them as little scientists (doing little experiments and learning from their data).

Stay tuned for more HELLO Labs content coming soon!

Click Here to watch the video!

 

Cooper Armogida

UConn KIDS Research Assistant

Smiles and sales alike increase when the weather is warm! In both statistics and in our lived experiences, it is well known that human behavior is affected by the weather. On UConn Campus, the weather isn’t just a good indicator of how many people will be on Horsebarn Hill or tanning around Mirror Lake. The sunshine, temperature, and humidity outside are often associated with class attendance, morale, and even academic performance! While many of these phenomena are well studied in adults, this study dives right into the effects of weather on children in preschool!

In this study, researchers explored how temperature, sunshine, and humidity relate to young children’s (age 3-5) emotions and classroom behavior. Over one month, mothers rated their children’s positive and negative moods, while teachers reported on behaviors like anxiety, aggression, and helpfulness. The researchers then compared these ratings with daily weather conditions.

The findings were fascinating. Warm, comfortable temperatures and increased sunshine were linked to more positive social behavior, especially for children who tend to experience higher levels of negative emotions. In other words, sunny days seemed to help emotionally sensitive children engage more positively with peers. On the other hand, high humidity was associated with decreases in helpful, prosocial behavior and increases in acting-out behaviors. Interestingly, this effect was strongest in children who are typically well-adjusted, suggesting that even easygoing kids may struggle a bit more on sticky, humid days.

To read more, click here!

Cooper Armogida

UConn KIDS Research Assistant

Welcome back to Trivia Tuesday with UConn KIDS!

 

Last week’s question was “What sense is most developed at birth?

The answer is: B) Hearing

 

This week’s trivia question is:

By age 8, about what percentage of U.S. children have regular access to a smartphone or tablet?

A)  50%

B) 75%

C) 90%

D 97.5%

STAY TUNED NEXT WEEK!

Agency and Opportunity in Early Adolescence: Investigating Gender-Specific Patterns in Developmental Trajectories Using Longitudinal Data

This study explores how individual agency develops during early adolescence (ages 10–14) and how external opportunity structures—like parenting behavior and neighborhood context—differentially shape agency development for boys and girls. The study zooms in specifically on gender-specific patterns in development over time, various types of influence (household, parental, peer, neighborhood), as well as two key domains of agency: Freedom of Movement and Voice. The illustration of “The Unequal Opportunity Race” is a demonstration of this fundamental idea: no matter how fast you run, some of us have a head start.

This study meets at the intersection of developmental cognitive psychology and sociology,  studying both the effects of the environment and identities, as well as individual agency, to create a more comprehensive understanding of how the things we can control and the things we cannot both play a role in shaping who we become. The goal of this study is to explore differences in how agency devlopmes thought adolescence, particularly across genders, to help better understand and promote adolescent empowerment.

To read more on the topic, Click Here!

Thanks for tuning in!

 

Cooper Armogida

UConn KIDS Research Assistant

Before babies even start to make sounds that resemble words, there are countless things they must learn first. This includes not just what words mean, but also why we make noises in the first place! In HELLO Lab’s latest episode, they tackle the question “How Does My Baby Learn Words?” which is meant to follow up on the previous featured episode “When Will My Baby Say Their First Word?” These two videos are a part of an educational video series meant to inform parents and individuals curious about language, development, and the many questions relating to the many things invested by the HELLO Lab here at UConn!

Here is the link to the video: Click Here

Here is the link to the entire video series! Click Here

Cooper Armogida

UConn KIDS Research Assistant

In the last 10-20 years, the idea of a “critical period” to learn language has become more widely recognized. Parents and schools alike have started to teach children a second language at younger and younger ages, but many still don’t understand what this really means or the possibilities of this idea.

As more and more research is done on the matter, it turns out that humans are born with an innate ability to pick up language. Since communication is such an important feature of our species, we have a significant part of our brain dedicated to both the comprehension and expression of language. The most surprising part is that a child who starts learning a second language at the age of 3 may understand that language better at age 13 than an adult who has been learning it for the same amount of time. This is because when we are very young, even starting as soon as the auditory pathways begin developing in the womb, we start trying to make sense of language. Up until the age of 4 months old, babies can even differentiate between dialects of different languages. After 4 months, we start to lose this ability if not exercised. The same concept goes for learning to understand and express language as a whole. We are born with the most ability to receive new language learning we will ever have, and as we age, if not exposed to new languages, we slowly lose the ability to pick up these languages as easily, “Use it or Lose it.” One of the most groundbreaking discoveries about the critical period is that it does not just apply to spoken language.

This specific article examines how the age at which deaf individuals are first exposed to American Sign Language (ASL) affects their language abilities later in life, providing strong support for the idea of a critical period for language learning. The researchers compared deaf adults who learned ASL from birth, during early childhood, or later in adolescence, and found that earlier exposure led to stronger language comprehension and more accurate use of grammar, even many years later. Those who learned sign language later had more difficulty understanding full sentence meaning, suggesting that the brain is especially prepared to develop language during early childhood. These findings support the broader theory that language learning is most effective during a critical period and becomes more difficult after that window closes. This research also has important implications for bilingualism, as it suggests that early exposure to more than one language, whether spoken or signed, can support stronger overall language development, while delayed exposure may limit fluency. Overall, the study highlights the importance of providing children with early access to rich language environments to support lifelong communication and learning.

If you want to read more, Click Here

Thank you!

~Cooper Armogida

UConn KIDS Research Assistant

Children’s learning and cognitive development aren’t just affected by what occurs in their development; a crucial factor that is often overlooked is when it happens. The article Promoting Temporal Investigations of Development in Context dives deep into this idea, exploring how the timing, duration, and consistency of social and economic circumstances shape kids’ learning outcomes. Across 75 longitudinal studies conducted between 2000 and 2021, researchers tracked children and families from pregnancy through early adolescence, uncovering how factors like poverty, family stress, and educational opportunity influence cognitive growth over time. The takeaway? Persistent disadvantage during key developmental windows can have lasting effects on learning, while more stable or temporary contexts may decrease these risks. The overarching idea of the article is: timing is everything. This aligns with the findings of other famous studies, such as the Genie Wiley case study. Genie Wiley was lacking verbal attention for the first 12 years of her childhood, so  unfortunately, she never developed the neural pathways to effectively speak. This is an extreme example, however it effectively demonstrates that obstruction or influence on fundamental phases of development can have lasting effects. What makes Promoting Temporal Investigations of Development in Context so compelling is the perspective it takes. To truly understand a child’s development, we can’t just look at where they are now; we have to trace how they got there, and not just what occurred, but when, and how that might influence development. It’s a call for psychologists, educators, and ordinary people alike to think less like photographers and more like filmmakers, to capture not just the moment, but the story unfolding across time.

 

To read this article, click here

Cooper Armogida

UConn KIDS Research Assistant

Sandplay Therapy as an Emerging Intervention for Generalized Anxiety Disorder in Children

Sandplay therapy is a nonverbal, multisensory, psychodynamic treatment approach used with both children and adults. It involves sculpting a landscape in a sandbox using miniature figures and symbolic representations to model personal experiences or emotional struggles. Recent psychological research has identified sandplay therapy as a promising intervention for Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD).

GAD affects approximately 2–6% of children worldwide. For those living with this condition, daily life is often filled with excessive worry, which can lead to physical symptoms such as headaches, fatigue, and muscle tension, as well as mental symptoms like restlessness, difficulty concentrating, and irritability. For young children still learning to navigate the world, these symptoms can create chronic stress and limit developmental growth.

Psychological research consistently supports the idea that expressing complex emotions through abstract and creative mediums—such as art, play, and writing—can help individuals externalize internal conflicts and access subconscious material. While not as widely known as journaling or traditional art therapy, sandplay therapy has deep historical roots. Originally influenced by Jungian psychology in the 1920s, this method is gaining renewed attention for its potential to induce neurobiological changes.

For example, in a 2020 case study by M. Foo et al., sandplay therapy produced measurable neurological and psychological changes. Following each session, researchers observed increased activity in the thalamus—a brain region linked to emotional regulation—along with a significant reduction in anxiety symptoms. According to the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale, the participant’s anxiety levels improved from “extreme” to “normal.”

This raises an important question: To what extent could sandplay therapy transform the lives of children with GAD?

Research by C. Benjamin et al. (2014) suggests that early, successful interventions—particularly Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)—offer lasting benefits for anxiety. If sandplay therapy produces similar long-term effects, it may present a valuable alternative for children who do not respond well to traditional CBT.

To explore more about this emerging field, click here.

Cooper Armogida
UConn KIDS, Research Assistant

The answer to last week’s question, “How developed is a child’s brain by age 5?”

Is 90% !!!

This week’s trivia question is:

At what age is the brain fully developed?

A. 8 years old

B. 10 years old

C. 16 years old

D. 20-30 years old

Tune in next week to find out the answer to this week’s question!