Eventually, our ‘baby big read’ turned into a surprisingly doable four-week community read for parents, caregivers, and their children, culminating in an author visit from Stephanie Cohen.

We offered sixteen intergenerational programs—storytimes, developmental screenings, music, art, and mealtime workshops—each one focused on building communication skills through connection and play.

Children were immediately drawn to the My First Learn-to-Talk books, imitating the faces in the photos even before their caregivers began to read. Parents shared that they noticed real improvements in their children’s speech after participating in the Terrific Talkers programs.

Wondering when your baby will start talking? Speech-language pathologist Stephanie Cohen shares how infants communicate from birth, what babbling really means, and simple ways parents can support language development every day.

I believe children learn to talk best through playful connection and imitation. When you focus on gestures, facial expressions, and sounds before words, you’re helping them build the foundation for communication. Imitating your child, introducing silly faces and playful sounds, pausing to give them time to respond, and repeating these interactions over and over helps them practice and learn. Reading aloud together is another wonderful way to model language, introduce new words, and build routines. With these strategies, talking and reading become playful, joyful, and full of connection—helping your child communicate with confidence.

Kenosha Public Library created a first-of-its-kind community read for babies using Stephanie Cohen’s My First Learn-to-Talk books. Their Terrific Talkers program gave caregivers joyful, practical ways to support early communication from day one.

Early feeding moments do more than teach babies how to eat — they build the foundation for communication. In this episode, Stephanie Cohen, M.A., CCC-SLP, CLC, explains how mealtime cues, motor skills, and responsive feeding all support early language development.

Motherly: The 5 baby signs every parent should teach at mealtime, according to a speech expert toddler.

Mealtime is secretly one of the best times to help your little one learn to communicate.

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