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TRANSCRIPT
ImplementationGuide
Talk builds babies’ brains!
GrowGrow
LENA is a registered trademark, and LENA Grow and associated logos are trademarks of LENA Foundation.
No part or component of this LENA Grow program may be reproduced or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information or storage retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher. Address inquiries to LENA Foundation, 5525 Central Avenue, Suite 100, Boulder, CO 80301-2820 or [email protected].
Printed in the United States of America.
Video Credit: Honest Films, Inc. Denver, Colo.
CreditsLENA Grow Implementation Guide, 2nd edition
Copyright © 2019 by LENA. All rights reserved.
Dedication
This book is dedicated to the memory of Terrance D. Paul (1946–2014), inventor of the LENA System and creator of LENA Start. Terry’s dream was to give all children a better opportunity to learn and lead happy and successful lives. He contributed his time, talent, and treasure to that end by starting LENA, a 501(c)(3) public charity based in Boulder, Colorado. Terry’s vision is reflected in LENA’s mission: To accelerate language development in children birth to three, in order to improve their cognitive, social, and emotional health and to close opportunity gaps.
v. 20191210
Our mission is to accelerate language development in children birth to three, in order to improve their cognitive, social, and emotional
health and to close opportunity gaps.
Talk builds babies’ brains!
ImplementationGuide
This guide belongs to:
GrowGrow
2
Welcome to LENA Grow! Thank you for choosing to bring LENA Grow to your organization! We’re excited to partner with you to support teachers and enrich conversation and interactions in the classroom. Through targeted feedback and coaching, this program helps teachers set goals, develop professional confidence, and ultimately, support children to be emotionally, socially, and academically prepared for school.
LENA Grow focuses specifically on increasing interactive talk with children, because this has been proven to be a key factor in early brain development. Interactive talk is a practical, inexpensive tool that every family, teacher, and caregiver can learn how to harness. That’s where you come in.
With the data provided by LENA technology, you’ll be able to work with teachers to set goals and track weekly progress toward these goals. This personalized feedback helps teachers see the impact they’re having on children, and encourages them to try new ways to engage!
We’re excited that you’re on this journey with us. Together, we can make a difference in the lives of children worldwide.
Sincerely,
The LENA Team
Boulder, Colo.
P.S. We want to hear from you! Please feel free to contact us any time to share your experience or your feedback about the program. You can reach us at [email protected]
3Table of Contents
Table of ContentsChapter 1 – Introduction 5 Why Focus on Early Talk? 5 Why LENA Grow? 5 Key Benefits of LENA Grow 6 How to Use this Guide 8
Chapter 2 – The Nuts and Bolts 9 Key Elements of LENA Grow 9 LENA Grow Coaching Schedule 10 The 14 Talking Tips 12
Chapter 3 – LENA Grow for Leadership 14 Center Director Commitments 14 Using LENA Grow to Build Cultural and Linguistic Responsiveness 16
Chapter 4 – Orientation 18 Orientation Part I – What, Why and How? 19 Data Privacy 20 Getting Teacher Buy-in 20 Parental Consent 21 Orientation Part II – LENA Day Logistics 22
Chapter 5 – Coaching Session 1 23 Part I – Introduction to Core Content 24 Part II – Individual Coaching 25 Goal Setting 30
Chapter 6 – Sessions 2-10 32 Coaching Sessions Steps 33 Booster Content – Introduction to Room Detail Report 35 Booster Content – Midpoint Reflection and Progress Report 36 Booster Content – Beat your Best LENA Day 40 Booster Content – Celebration! 41
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Chapter 7 – Refresher Sessions 42 Initial Refresher Meeting Facilitation Guide 43 Initial Refresher Meeting Guided Questions 44 Refresher Data Review Facilitation Guide 45 Refresher Data Review Guided Questions 46
Chapter 8 – Family Engagement 47 Describing Individual Child Reports 49
Chapter 9 – Implementing with Fidelity 50 Fidelity Requirements 50 Fidelity Assessment Toolkit 50 LENA Day Observation Checklist 51 Coaching Session Observation Checklist 52 Fidelity Discussion Guides for Director-Coach Monthly Check-ins 53
Chapter 10: Reporting Results 57 Program Goals and Expectations 57 Keep in mind… 58 Reporting Results 59 Reaching your Program Goals 59 Progress Reports 60
Appendix: Sample Reports 61 Sample Room Summary Report 61 Sample Room Detail Report 62 Sample Progress Report 63 Deep Dives
Talking Tips 25The Room Summary Report 26Coaching with the Room Summary Report 28Sources of Variability in LENA Reports 29LENA Day Goals 31Progress Reports 38Celebrating Accomplishments 41
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Why Focus on Early Talk? The science is clear: the first three years of life present a key window of opportunity for all children. School readiness and the path to opportunity begin at birth. Both of these outcomes are heavily influenced by the amount of interactive talk children experience in their earliest years. Confirming results from decades of research, a longitudinal study published in 2018 has linked the amount of conversation children experience in their first two years with their IQ and cognitive abilities in adolescence (Gilkerson et al., 2018). Moreover, brain science has recently caught up to social and behavioral science: brain scans collected using MRI tech-nology have confirmed the link between interactive talk and early brain function and structure in very young children (Romeo, Leonard, et al., 2018; Romeo, Segaran, et al., 2018). This mounting evidence tells us that we must invest in the caregivers that are in the best position to support our children’s language nourishment.
The challenge is that to simply say “talk more” or “interact more” isn’t enough. Research tells us that most of us tend to overestimate how much we talk. In fact, those of us who talk the least tend to overestimate the most (Richards, Gilkerson, Xu, & Topping, 2017). Objective feedback on interactive talk is needed. This is where LENA comes in.
See “The Evidence Behind LENA Grow” in LENA Online Resources for more information on related research.
Why LENA Grow?LENA Grow is a professional development program designed to measure and improve the quality of early childhood programs. It boosts early brain development by increasing teacher-child interaction in the classroom. It lifts up the workforce and builds teachers’ skills so they can increase their positive interactions with children every day.
LENA Grow is designed to be flexible in order to best fit the style and personalities of the center, coaches, and teachers participating in it. It’s about giving teachers objective feedback that will foster conversations about what’s happening in the classroom, and providing support to increase quality interactions, ultimately benefiting child outcomes.
At LENA, we believe that combining measurement and feedback with support and encouragement can change the world.
Chapter 1: Introduction
Introduction
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Key Benefits of LENA GrowLENA Grow is about finding ways to create conversations. Ultimately, this open dialogue benefits participants at every level —
For Center Directors, LENA Grow Offers:
For Coaches, LENA Grow Offers: • A clear understanding of what is happening
in each classroom throughout the day – from the LENA reports and from conversations with teachers.
• A framework for collaborative discussions around teachers’ perceptions of their experiences during the day.
• Practice in delivering constructive feedback using a strengths-based approach.
• Experience interpreting data reports and using data in goal setting.
For Teachers, LENA Grow Offers: • Increased knowledge about the importance of
language interaction for early brain development. • Techniques for increasing quality interactions with
children. • Data on which times of day include the most and
This program was way more hands-on than other professional development
programs we’ve done. Usually PD is just someone talking to us and telling us things that
they know. But with LENA Grow, the teachers got to be
more a part of it; we got to be really involved.
— Ashley Ramos, Teacher at Sequatchie Valley Head Start,
Tennessee
• Insight into which rooms, and which children, are experiencing higher and lower amounts of interaction.
• Techniques to support activities that increase quality talk in the classroom.
• Strategies to adjust physical room dynamics to reduce noise when necessary.
• Opportunities to increase parent and family engagement. LENA Grow is compatible with culturally and linguistically responsive practices because it works with all children and operates in all languages (see Chapter 3 for more details).
• A potential means of reducing teacher turnover as teachers feel more valued and inspired by their role.
Chapter 1
7
least amount of talk and which children are experiencing the most and least amount of interaction. • Coaching on how to interpret data, relate it to daily behaviors, and use it to set goals for positive
behavior change. • A sense of value and recognition (through the investment being made in them) and the
recognition of their vital role in early brain development. • Greater confidence as they work to make improvements and then see these improvements
reflected in their data. • Pride in positive changes in the language development and behavior of the children in their care.
For Parents, LENA Grow Offers: • More opportunities to engage with center staff and leadership. • Information about how to increase quality interaction with their children and how to practice the
Talking Tips at home.• Insight into how often their child interacts with teachers throughout the day.
For Children, LENA Grow Offers: • The potential to develop advanced language
skills through practice communicating and increased conversational turns.
• Greater confidence in their interactions and verbal abilities.
• Increased attention from caregivers, leading to more attuned relationships and greater opportunities for learning and development.
• Exposure to more vocabulary words. • Language to express frustrations, potentially
resulting in fewer instances of challenging behavior.
Longer-Term, LENA Grow Offers Children: • Neural connections built through practice with language, increasing cognitive abilities. • Larger vocabularies entering kindergarten, bolstering kindergarten readiness. • An improved reading skills trajectory, which connects to increased high school graduation rates
and future opportunities.
Introduction
8
How to Use this GuideThe LENA Grow Implementation Guide is a reference manual for center directors and coaches. It explains the program’s key elements and provides step-by-step guidance on how to implement it.
The Guide also references plenty of supporting materials that can be accessed in the Coach Binder, Teacher Workbook, and LENA Online. The Coach Binder provides everything coaches need during sessions.
What Each Chapter Means to YouChapter 1 is a brief overview of LENA Grow and its benefits. This chapter will be a valuable reference when introducing the program and working toward crucial buy-in from teachers and parents.
Chapter 2 gives more specifics on the nuts and bolts of how the program works and what’s included.
Because we know that LENA Grow cannot be successful without full center director commitment, Chapter 3 is devoted to the essentials for those in leadership.
Chapter 4 is all about Orientation, which helps teachers understand the basics of the program and the adventure they’re about to begin.
Chapter 5 covers the first coaching session (Session 1). This session is packed with information, and introduces the LENA reports and the 14 Talking Tips. It is important that coaches read Chapter 5 thoroughly before their first session.
Chapter 6 focuses on the general flow of all the remaining coaching sessions. After Session 1, coaching sessions will be shorter, fitting into a basic template focusing on a specific care routine, like playing outside or shared book reading.
Chapter 7 has information on how to implement a refresher course with teachers after they have completed the full LENA Grow sequence.
Chapter 8 is focused on parent and family engagement and how to share LENA data with families.
Chapter 9 provides guidance on how to implement with fidelity. It is important that coaches and directors be very familiar with this chapter before the program begins.
Finally, Chapter 10 outlines expected outcomes that can be achieved when the program is implemented with fidelity, and walks through ways to report program data.
Our team is always ready to help with questions or additional information. Please reach out to us any time at [email protected].
Contact us!
Chapter 1
9
Ready to dive in? This chapter provides an overview of the tools and resources in LENA Grow, along with details on the program schedule and flow.
Key Elements of LENA GrowLENA DaysDuring each LENA Day, all the participating children in a classroom wear a LENA device which captures the language and interactions children experience throughout the day. At the end of the day, a computer counts the number of words and conversational turns – back-and-forth interactions between children and adults – and generates a report. This report is then discussed with teachers during coaching sessions.
LENA Sessions• Orientation kicks off the program for teachers and is typically presented to everyone who will be
participating. In this meeting, teachers will learn how the program works and how to complete their first LENA Day.
• Coaching Session 1 is packed with information and is the longest of the sessions. It takes about one hour to complete. At this session, teachers will receive their first LENA reports, learn about the brain science behind LENA Grow, and be introduced to the 14 Talking Tips.
• Coaching Sessions 2-10 are designed to last about 20 minutes and can be held one-on-one or in small groups. These sessions follow a standard pattern:
Step 1: Discuss Previous LENA Day Step 2: Review LENA reports Step 3: Review Talking Tips Activities Step 4: Set Goals
The timeline on the next page provides a visualization of the program’s schedule and shows the sequence of LENA Days and Coaching Sessions.
A few key things to know: • LENA devices cannot play back audio and no one can
ever listen to what was said. • LENA technology does not recognize words or the
meanings of words; it only estimates them.• LENA devices are completely safe for babies to wear. They
meet U.S. and international safety standards for electronics and toys. Unlike cell phones, they don’t transmit. The devices use the same type of low-power processors as hearing aids.
Chapter 2: The Nuts and Bolts
The Nuts and Bolts
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LENA Grow Coaching Schedule
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
PracticeLENA Day
“Beat your Best” day!
Coaching Session
Orientation 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10Reports and Talking Tips
Clothing Changes
Outdoor Play
Shared Reading
Mealtim
es
Transitions
Songs & Rhymes
Indoor Play
Hand-W
ashing
Celebration
Progress Reports & Midpoint Reflection
This timeline outlines 10 LENA Grow sessions (blue),including when each corresponding LENA Day occurs (red).
Chapter 2
11
Practice LENA DaysTeachers complete two LENA Days before they receive feedback on how much they are talking and before they begin learning more about the relationship between talk and brain development. This is because any coaching or instruction could result in unusually high early numbers rather than data that represents typical day-to-day talk habits. If the numbers are high at the start, then teachers may be less motivated to learn new strategies for increasing talk over the course of the program. Thus, it is important to complete LENA Days before the program begins — before teacher behavior is influenced by program content — to have an accurate representation of where talk started.
LENA tools are unique because they serve a dual purpose —the data provide valuable information and feedback to teachers, and they also support direct evaluation of the program. The baseline measures collected for each room are crucial to both aspects. The first report teachers will see is the springboard for behavior change, and the initial days provide comparison reference points to gauge change over time (see Chapter 10 on reporting program results).
Why do we need TWO practice days?Data from a single day might be influenced by visitors, illness, a child’s mood, a teacher’s responsibilities, or any number of other factors (see the section on Sources of Variability in Chapter 5). Multiple practice days are more representative than a single day and can be averaged for a more accurate pre-post program comparison. When teachers see their first reports, they will see data for both days, and they can discuss any major variations as part of co-discovery with their coach.
Why do we need to do both practice days in ONE WEEK?Teachers and coaches are usually eager to begin the program after Orientation, but both practice days need to happen before teachers receive any coaching on how to increase interaction. If it’s not possible to complete both practice days the week after Orientation, the practice days can be completed on consecutive weeks as long as Session 1 is not presented until after the second practice day.
How do we explain practice days?Explain that the first two LENA Days measure the typical sound environment in the room and are intended as “practice” days to help the teachers get comfortable with program logistics. Encourage teachers to go about their normal daily routines — there is no need to talk more or do anything differently during the practice days. Choose two days that represent typical classroom activities. If possible, it is best to avoid Mondays and Fridays since there are often fewer children present on those days.
Baseline LENA Days are referred to as practice days in LENA Grow. They help teachers get comfortable with the logistics of the program and reduce the potential for unrepresentative values before the program begins.
Baseline LENA Days
The Nuts and Bolts
12
1. Talk about what you’re doing and thinking.
2. Comment on what they’re doing or looking at.
3. Name things that they’re interested in.
4. Get down to their level: face to face.
5. Touch, hug, hold.
6. Tune in and respond to what they look at, do, and say.
7. Wait for their response.
8. Imitate them, and add words.
9. Make faces, use gestures.
10. Take turns – don’t do all the talking.
11. Repeat and add to what they say and do.
12. Follow their lead, do what interests them.
13. Encourage them, be positive.
14. Be silly! Relax and have fun!
The 14 Talking TipsTalking Tips are specific, easily learned techniques to encourage interactive talk. They do not require learning a new routine or adding another “thing to do” to an already busy day.
The tips are demonstrated in short videos of teachers interacting with children during daily care routines — clothing changes, mealtimes, morning arrival, etc. — and point out regular activities where talk can naturally be increased. After watching each video, teachers and coaches can discuss which Talking Tips they saw being used. These segments are also a good opportunity for the coach to model behaviors or add an extra activity.
Chapter 2
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Implementation Tools• The Coach Binder provides all the tools needed
to run successful sessions. It includes key points for the Orientation Sessions and Notes and Goals pages for documentation.
• Guided Questions are the core of the coaching session. These lead coaches and teachers through the session in four simple steps. The Guided Questions are intended to foster conversations about a teacher’s experience in the classroom.
• The Teacher Workbook contains all the resources teachers will need throughout the program.
• The Room Binder is a place for teachers to store their LENA reports and LENA Logs.
• LENA Logs help teachers remember what they did during their LENA Day. These logs help remind teachers why talk may have been high or low at certain times of the day.
• Conversation StartersTM are illustrated colorful posters that provide reminders on how to use the Talking Tips in situations like hand-washing, morning arrival, or diaper changes. They can be posted near where the activity usually takes place, like next to a changing table or near a classroom door.
1
©2018 LENA Grow
Remember to award stars.
Take a moment and look at your Room Summary Report. What are your
thoughts? What do you notice?
a. (if available) Take a look back at your previous Room Summary Report(s).
What do you notice?
Let’s look at the stars on your Room Summary Report. What do you
think? Are you surprised?
a. If a teacher received a star, ask: What did you do to earn one (or two) star(s)?
b. (if applicable) Celebrate stars!
Look at “This LENA Day - Hourly Breakout.” What do you notice?
Look at the room’s Trophy Hour this week. Note the number of turns.
What was happening during this time?
Let’s look at each child’s interactive talk clock.
a. Do these line up the way you would expect? What jumps out at you?
b. (if applicable) Each child’s interactive talk clock will be given to his/her
parents. What might you say to parents when explaining these?
Step 1: Discuss Previous LENA Day
How was your LENA Day?
What was your experience with your goal this week? (Restate
the goal, if needed.)
a. What have you been practicing since our last session?
b. What have you noticed with the children?
Coaching Session Guided Questions
Step 2: Review LENA Reports
Putting the“Shared”
-in-Shared Reading
���������������������������������� ������������������������������������������
Young children often want to read the same book many times. Let them!
With preschoolers, change part
of a familiar story and wait for
them to catch your mistake.
When the child points,
name the picture.
Challenge: describe it, too!
You don’t have to read every word, or read the
book cover-to-cover.
#14: Be silly! Relax and have fun!If the child doesn’t
want to share a book right now, try again later in the day.
#12: Follow their lead,
Point out objects, animals, and
actions that are meaningful to the
child. “That boy is �shing. When we
go outside, let’s play a game and pretend we’re �shing.”
#3: Name things that
they’re interested in.
Copyright © 2018 by LENA. All rights reserved. www.LENA.org
Use silly voices for some characters.
Add sound e�ects.
Try LENA’s Conversation Starters™for Shared Reading
do what interests them.
Ask questions about the pictures such as, “Where does this take place?” or “Who is in the picture?” Answer for the baby if he/she cannot do it alone.Build to open-ended
questions such as: “What do
you think will happen next?”
#2: Comment on what they’re doing or looking at.
The Nuts and Bolts
14
Center Director CommitmentsWe’ve heard it loud and clear from LENA Grow sites across the country: enthusiasm and commitment from center directors are the most important elements for LENA Grow’s success! But what exactly is a center director committing to by implementing this program? We’ve identified 10 key director contributions that all LENA Grow programs need to succeed.
1. Attend a pre-launch training session or webinar. We recommend that center directors attend all trainings, but at a minimum, attending Program Implementation Training (or requesting a copy of the recorded version from your LENA contact) will provide a good grounding in how the program works. We also strongly recommend participating in the Coaching Training and Teacher Orientation. (See Chapter 4 for more information on Orientation.)
2. Prepare to answer questions by reading Chapters 1-4 of this guide. These first chapters will equip directors to answer questions from teachers, coaches, and parents. They cover everything from reasons for participation, to program logistics, to what to expect. When asking parents to opt their child in to LENA Grow, it is important to be ready to answer their questions about the purpose of the program and its benefits.
3. Arrange a quiet space for coaching meetings. Coaching sessions are all about comfortable coach-teacher conversations. Arranging a quiet space for coaching sessions is one of the most important contributors to program success. If sessions take place in the classroom, distractions may limit the teacher’s ability to reflect, set goals, and improve. We know some situations are more challenging than others, so think creatively to find workable solutions that will set coaches and teachers up for success.
4. Provide classroom coverage so teachers can attend coaching meetings. Center directors can help teachers be more successful by arranging classroom coverage during coaching meetings so that they may more fully focus on learning and professional development.
LENA Grow for Leadership
My role as center director starts with making sure my
teachers have the correct tools they need in order to
teach. I believe it starts with developing your teachers with the knowledge that they need to know and need to be able
to pass on to the kids.
— Latoya White-Greyer, Preschool Director at Coalition for the Homeless
Chapter 3:
Chapter 3
15
5. Provide basic program information for substitutes. If possible, program teachers will complete all LENA Days. If substitutes are present, it is important that the director make sure they review the Guidance for Substitutes document in the Room Binder so they are familiar with the program basics.
6. Meet with coach monthly (three times total) during sequence. Meet with each coach at least three times during the program to discuss reports and address any unexpected issues. The Discussion Guides and Observation Checklists in Chapter 9 can facilitate conversations about the most important program elements.
7. Review midpoint and final Progress Reports. It is important for center directors to be aware of room progress during the LENA Grow sequence. The second coach-director monthly meeting reviews the Progress Report, providing an opportunity for directors and coaches to discuss trends and possible concerns.
8. Observe at least one coaching session for each coach. Observe at least one coaching session and provide coaches with feedback using the Coaching Session Observation Checklist on page 52.
9. Recognize and celebrate teacher accomplishments!After all their hard work, it’s time to recognize teachers for their accomplishments. Director acknowledgment means a lot, and it can be a lot of fun for the individual teacher or for the whole center! See “Deep Dive: Celebrating Accomplishments” on page 41 for ideas.
10. Put LENA Grow into action for all children, families, and teachers. LENA Grow can support learners from all backgrounds because it works in all languages and with all children, but it’s important for this mindset to be part of the organizational culture, from the top down. Read more in the next section for insights and suggestions on using LENA Grow to support all learners.
LENA Grow for Leadership
16
Using LENA Grow to Build Cultural and Linguistic ResponsivenessLENA Grow is designed to support the culture, values, beliefs, and languages of each child and teacher to promote meaningful, active participation of all families and teachers. LENA Grow supports this in two key ways:
• Compatible with all language. There is great power in conversations with infants and toddlers, which is why the focus of LENA Grow is to foster more conversational turn taking. The nature of those turns (e.g., how they are achieved, what language they’re in, what subject they’re about, etc.) can vary widely. LENA doesn’t tell people what to say or how to say it.
• Generates insight supporting all children. Most or all children in the room take part in each LENA Day. This builds a natural and important equity lens for teachers, enabling them to understand and value each child’s language experience.
Strategies to Support Learners from all Backgrounds• Make the most of LENA data.
The Child-Level Talk Clocks and the Individual Child Reports provide insights into each child’s language experience during a LENA Day. If some children are experiencing many more turns than others, that’s an area to explore with teachers when talking about reports and goal setting.
Use the LENA Grow Parent Reports to build two-way communication. They can be a springboard for sharing each week’s room goals and content with parents (through the Conversation Starter posters), discussions at drop-off and pick-up, or even through facilitating a group session for families.
• Keep it simple with LENA’s 14 Talking Tips. Tune in, wait for their response, follow their lead: these are all about connecting with the child, bringing them into your world and going into theirs, which helps remove cultural and linguistic barriers. Provide parents with a copy of the 14 Talking Tips, so they can be a part of the experience as well.
• Involve parents and families to form a teacher-parent partnership.
Incorporate books and songs from home: Ask families to suggest culturally appreciative books and other materials to use in the classroom. Support teachers in using a variety of resources. Hold a “songs and rhymes” month and have families suggest their favorite song or rhyme to teach the children.
1. Talk about what you’re doing and thinking.2. Comment on what they’re doing or looking at.3. Name things that they’re interested in.4. Get down to their level: face to face.5. Touch, hug, hold.6. Tune in and respond to what they look at, do, and say.7. Wait for their response.
8. Imitate them, and add words.9. Make faces, use gestures.10. Take turns – don’t do all the talking.11. Repeat and add to what they say and do.12. Follow their lead, do what interests them.13. Encourage them, be positive.14. Be silly! Relax and have fun!
TALK BUILDSBABIES’ BRAINS!14 TALKING TIPSUse these tips to increase words & turns when talking, reading, or singing with your child.
Copyright © 2015 LENA. All rights reserved. www.LENA.org
Building brains through early talk
Chapter 3
17
Create accessibility for all literacy levels: Parents have varying levels of literacy. After sending handouts or letters home, follow up with a conversation. Offer parents the opportunity to view the “All About LENA Grow” video (available in English and Spanish) in a small group setting.
Encourage emergent bilingual learners: Make sure parents know that speaking more than one language with their child is actually an advantage for the child. More turns are better in all languages!
Use a strengths-based mindset in communicating with families: Emphasize the important role parents serve as their child’s first teacher. Avoid deficit-based thinking and messaging. Assume that all children— and all teachers — can succeed no matter where they start.
• Factor diversity throughout the coach-teacher relationship.
Approach teachers with curiosity: Ask teachers about their personal backgrounds and how those are a source of strength and insight in the classroom. How do their experiences and identities (ethnic, linguistic, cultural, etc.) compare and relate to the children and families they’re supporting?
Consider a “teacher leader” model for coaching: Here, the center director selects one of the center’s teachers to serve as the coach for LENA Grow.
Encourage a strengths-based approach in coaching: Meet teachers where they are when discussing the reports and putting the 14 Talking Tips into practice. Factor in their cultural, ethnic, and linguistic diversity.
Create space for discussion: Devote one or more peer learning community (PLC) or community of practice (COP) sessions to discussing specific opportunities to strengthen cultural and linguistic responsiveness. If possible, include families in those discussions.
Supportive environments for bilingual learning
encourage parents and caregivers to use the
language in which they are most fluent and
comfortable, value both languages equally, and view
bilingualism as an asset that brings about important
cognitive, social, and economic benefits.
— Ramírez, Kuhl, 2016
LENA Grow for Leadership
18
LENA Grow OrientationThe LENA Grow Orientation will introduce teachers to the basics of the program, help them understand the benefits, and prepare them for their first LENA Day. Coaches will follow the slide presentation to deliver Orientation. This chapter expands on key topics and will be useful for preparation. Orientation is two-part, so it can be delivered in one group meeting or split into two. The main reason for this two-part format is to allow enough time for parents to complete and return consent forms before the first LENA Day, while keeping the logistics training fresh in teachers’ minds when recordings begin. Here are the key elements of each part:
Orientation Part I: What, Why and How?• The Importance of Early Talk• Overview of LENA Grow• How Does it Work?• Data Privacy• Getting Teacher Buy-In
Benefits for Teachers Certification Teacher Testimonials
• Parental Consent• Sharing with Parents
There are two major purposes for Part I: getting teacher buy-in and providing them with enough program information to answer parent questions. In order to be excited about LENA Grow, teachers need to understand why they are doing it and how it will help both them and the children in their care. Consents should be distributed to parents immediately after Part I so that teachers can easily answer parent questions.
Orientation Part II: LENA Day Logistics• How to Get a Good Recording• Practice Days
The purpose of Part II is to prepare teachers for their first LENA Day; it should be delivered right before those days are scheduled.
OrientationChapter 4:
Chapter 4
19
Orientation Part I: What, Why and How?The Importance of Early TalkThe Orientation slide deck begins with an overview of the importance of early talk. Before any new initiative begins it is critical to start with the “why” – both to get teacher buy-in and to help them explain the program to parents. There will be a lot more information about brain development and interactive talk later in the program, but early on we recommend providing just the basics to minimize the potential for elevated talk in the teachers’ first recordings.
LENA Grow focuses on early talk because research has shown that the frequency with which children get practice with language is directly related to brain development. It is important to act now because birth to 36 months is the window of time that is most important for language development. This is why LENA is laser-focused on talk, and why teachers participating in this professional development opportunity will be provided with all the tools they need to increase quality interaction in the classroom.
LENA Grow OverviewLENA Grow is a 10-week professional development program for early childhood teachers using advanced technology to help them learn about patterns of talk in their classrooms. During each “LENA Day,” all participating children wear a LENA device to capture their individual language or talk experience over the course of the day. Then, LENA software crunches the numbers and generates feedback reports about the day.
How Does it Work?
The three components of LENA Grow are:1. LENA Days: All participating children will wear a vest with a LENA device in its pocket that captures
their individual language or talk experience throughout the day.2. LENA Reports: The LENA software processes the data into reports for teachers, showing talk
patterns hour-by-hour and times of the day where the most interaction is happening in the classroom.
Orientation
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3. Coaching Sessions: Teachers meet with a coach to review the LENA reports and learn simple tips to increase interactive talk in the classroom. They also review Talking Tips and “Conversation Starters” to post around the classroom and share with families.
Data PrivacySome teachers may be worried about recording or that they may “get in trouble” for something they say in the classroom. To lessen these concerns, Orientation explicitly points out that the audio is automatically and permanently deleted after processing, so no one can ever listen to it. The software does not identify words and no one knows what is being said. After processing, all that comes back is data based on syllable counts and sound distributions.
Getting Teacher Buy-InLENA Grow cannot be successfully implemented unless the teachers fully understand the reasons behind it and believe that their time and effort will be worthwhile for themselves and for their children. In addition to clearly identifying the benefits for teachers and giving them the opportunity to hear from other teachers who have been through the program, it is important to discuss the opportunity to obtain formal certification.
Benefits for TeachersLENA Grow is about acknowledging teachers as professionals and demonstrating investment in their development. The experiences teachers gain and the techniques they learn will be valuable assets throughout their careers.
Teachers will expand their knowledge base by learning about child language development and the science behind brain development. This will help them more effectively communicate with parents in any related profession. They will have the unique opportunity to receive objective, scientific data about the children in their classroom, allowing them to assess how their energies are focused and who is experiencing the most and least amount of talk. Most importantly, teachers will receive encouraging feedback and tips to unlock the world of interactive talk in their classroom. This will help them focus on their strengths and help children come alive with language and struggle less with challenging behavior.
CertificationTeachers (and coaches) will have the opportunity to become LENA-certified after finishing the program. The process involves completing an online application along with a simple quiz and a program feedback questionnaire.
I was really excited to have the LENA Grow coach come
in. I wanted to see that report and how many stars we got, and to see how we grew and
in what part of the day.
— Brittany, Floater Teacher at Aspen Center for Child
Development in Longmont, Colorado
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If they meet program requirements and complete the application process, they will receive an official certificate that endorses their expertise in promoting quality interaction in early childhood settings. The certificate does not expire and can be permanently added to their professional resume.
TestimonialsOrientation includes an inspiring video of teachers sharing their experience with LENA Grow. It can be incredibly motivating for teachers to hear from others who have been through the program, especially if they are apprehensive. Another great way to encourage teachers is to invite others who have completed the program to attend Orientation so they can answer questions and discuss the program.
Parental ConsentParents will need to consent to their child’s participation in LENA Grow. A template for parental consent may be downloaded from the LENA Online Resources, or the center may decide to craft a customized consent form. It is important that parents are fully informed about the basic elements of the program and use of LENA data, and especially the motivation behind the program. The center director and coach will need to determine whether they will use an opt-in form or an opt-out from.
Sharing with ParentsOnce parents receive consent forms, the teachers will be fielding questions on the “front lines.” If teachers come across as feeling apprehensive about the program, or if they don’t fully understand the benefits for children and their families, then parents may be less likely to provide consent. This is why Orientation includes a role play session where teachers can practice answering parent questions. Please see the five most common parent questions and how we recommend they be answered in the Teacher Workbook.
In addition to these questions, parents may also ask what type of information they will receive about their child from the program. LENA provides Parent Reports that may encourage participation, but it’s up to each site to determine what information to share and how to communicate with families.
Since conversations (turn-taking) are key to nourishing early brain growth, we’re measuring them in the classroom to learn how talk can enhance the quality of the language and literacy environment.
We want to capture all the turn-taking experienced by your child, so the LENA clothing goes everywhere your child goes all day. To accurately measure a child’s speech, the LENA device has to be worn in a fixed position near the child’s mouth. The clothing is carefully designed for this purpose.
Yes – completely. LENA devices are safe for young children, have been in use around the world for more than a decade, and have even been used in Neonatal Intensive Care Units for several years. Unlike cellphones, the LENA devices do not transmit (e.g., no Bluetooth). They use the same kind of very-low-power processors as hearing aids.
No, the recordings are deleted immediately after processing. There is no way for anyone to ever listen to the recording.
LENA meets very strict confidentiality and data security requirements. Learn more at LENA.org/privacy-policy.
Why is the school or center doing this?
Why do we need the clothing?
Is it safe for the child?
Can I listen to what is happening in the classroom?
What about privacy and security?
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Answering Parent Questions
LENA Grow
Orientation
22
Orientation Part II: LENA Day LogisticsHow to Get a Good RecordingOrientation includes an overview video demonstrating how easy it is to use the LENA device, and a short video review touching on the key points. Teachers will also complete a hands-on activity that will help them feel fully prepared for the technology side of their first LENA Day.
It is important to decide exactly when the first practice LENA Days will be before starting this part of the Orientation. LENA Days should be typical representations of the child’s daily experiences, so we recommend they be rescheduled when unusual events are expected (e.g., not during scheduled field trips), when there are a large number of child absences, or when substitute teachers are present. Coaches should understand that they have the authority to adjust scheduling for LENA Days that do not meet recommended criteria.
Practice DaysBefore the program begins, teachers will complete two practice LENA Days in the same week. The purpose of the first two LENA Days is to obtain representative data about their children’s talk experiences before the teachers start to implement the Talking Tips and other program content. For this reason, it is important that both practice days be completed before the first coaching session. These first LENA Days allow for the sound environment to be measured and provide teachers an opportunity to get comfortable with the logistics of LENA Grow. For the practice days, choose typical classroom days and advise teachers to go about their normal routines.
Teachers should be advised to forget the LENA device is there, to act natural, and to try not to “over talk.” If the first few LENA Day reports are unusually high, then it will be less motivating for teachers to focus on techniques for increasing quality interaction. Finally, teachers should also be encouraged to complete the LENA Log in their Room Binders, to help them remember what was happening during different times of the day. This will be valuable when they are viewing the reports and determining what is leading to elevated levels of interaction.
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Coaching Session 1 is packed with information and can be split into two parts or completed in one group meeting. Part I focuses on the major content of LENA Grow, and Part II introduces the new reports. We recommend doing Part II one-on-one to allow for more individual discussion about new LENA data.
Part I: Introduction to Core Content
• The Brain Science Behind LENA Grow• Conversational Turns• The 14 Talking Tips
Part II: Individual Coaching
• Sharing Experiences• Introducing the Room Summary Report• Coaching with the Room Summary
Report• Goal Setting
Coaches will follow the Session 1 outline in the Coach Binder for delivering the session. On the following pages, we describe the main components and expand on key topics for preparation purposes.
Chapter 5: Coaching Session 1
Coaching Session 1
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Part I: Introduction to Core ContentThe Brain Science Behind LENA GrowSession 1 begins with the “All About LENA Grow” video, which outlines the brain science motivating LENA Grow. This video is the first introduction to the professional development component of the program. It serves as a motivator for increasing conversational turns. Some teachers may already be familiar with the research, and it will be new to others. Discussion following the video is a great opportunity to promote interest in the topic and reinforce how important the teachers’ efforts will be over the next 10 weeks.
During this discussion it is critical to focus on validating the importance of early childhood teachers. Beyond keeping the children fed and diapered, your teachers play a major role in setting lifelong learning trajectories. By participating in LENA Grow, teachers are helping to assure that the children in their care are receiving the language experiences they need to be ready for kindergarten.
Conversational TurnsThe video also emphasizes the importance of conversational turns, which will be the focus of every coaching session. It is important to spend some time discussing this concept and making sure teachers understand what conversational turns are. In a nutshell, LENA counts back-and-forth interactions between adults and children as turns. If the adult says something and the child responds within five seconds, that is one turn. The child does not need to be talking – their response can be a word or a babble. Turns count in the other direction as well, when the child says something and the teacher responds within five seconds. Peer-to-peer conversations are not counted; conversational turns include only interactions between the child wearing the LENA device and an adult in his/her environment.
The 14 Talking TipsWhile talking with infants and toddlers comes naturally for some teachers, it may feel less comfortable for others. This is why LENA created the 14 Talking Tips – simple, research-based strategies that fit easily into daily routines. They are focused on increasing adult-child connections, and are derived from a small set of evidence-based “active ingredients” for promoting interactive talk.
The basis of the 14 Talking Tips is described in the video “Using the Talking Tips to Build Your Children’s Brains.” The idea is not to add more “to dos” to the day, rather it is to use the tips as ideas for conversational topics as the teacher goes about the activities he/she is already doing. The tips are designed to increase quality conversational turns and strengthen the emotional bond between teacher and child. Conversational turns can be considered a quality measure of interaction. It is not about talking at the child, it’s talking with the child that matters most.
Each room will receive a Talking Tips poster that lists all tips and includes a place for displaying the room stars that teachers will earn over time. The poster may spark conversation about techniques for increasing interaction at home when it’s placed where parents can see it.
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Part II: Individual CoachingSharing ExperiencesCoaches begin the session by asking teachers how things went on their LENA Days. This is a great opportunity to find out about what concerns may be top of mind for teachers and what is generally happening in the room. In the beginning, it is common for teachers to say the day did not go as well as they’d hoped, especially if they are anxious about the reports. It is important to be empathetic and to focus on establishing the coaching sessions as a safe place to share insights and experiences.
Introducing the Room Summary ReportThe objective feedback teachers receive through the LENA reports is at the heart of everything they will learn in LENA Grow. By effectively measuring where they started and fully understanding what those measurements mean, teachers will be able to set their own goals and take action on their professional growth. Data literacy is an important skill set, and for LENA Grow teachers this will start with the Room Summary Report.
Be Prepared to Answer Any QuestionsWhat are the Talking Tips?LENA examined a number of different research-based curricula and guidance and compiled a list of 14 tips for promoting caregiver-child interaction. The tips included are intended to be numerous enough to provide options without being overwhelming. The Talking Tips are grounded in research, but simple and flexible enough to be used in different settings and during everyday routines. Some of the tips overlap others, and some are a little unexpected (like “touch, hug, hold,” which helps spawn more talk through attachment and socioemotional health).
What ages do they target? They are designed to work well with both infants and toddlers.
What is their research basis?The two evidence-based “active ingredients” are creating joint attention and recasting. Read more about these here: http://bit.ly/WarrenPaper
Do people like them?Over the years, the feedback from parents, teachers, and other caregivers has been overwhelmingly positive – they say the Talking Tips are practical and helpful.
Are they culturally sensitive?The Talking Tips can be integrated into any routine, regardless of culture or primary language. Rather than telling people what to say, they help adults and children connect through conversation.
Deep Dive: Talking Tips
Coaching Session 1
26
Total Stars• This is a running total of the number of stars earned to date. • No stars are expected after the first two LENA Days, though it is technically possible
to earn as many as four stars (two Interactive Days and two days above 25 turns) by Session 1.
The Conversational Turns per Hour Graph• This section shows how the most recent data compares to the previous. Usually the bar
on the left is an average of the most recent three LENA Days, but for Session 1 (after two practice days) it will just be the average room-level turns for the first practice day.
• Note the height of the right bar compared to the left. If the right bar is higher, then the room earned a star. The goal is always to be at least one turn higher than the previous day(s). Teachers will also always earn a star if the right bar is above 25 turns.
• Stars can be difficult to earn. While 25 turns per hour is a great goal, it’s not easy to get there in a classroom setting with many children and a limited number of teachers. If teachers can increase just a little, no matter where they start, that is to be applauded and celebrated.
• When the left bar is higher than the right, it may give the impression that interaction is going down. In this case it is important to look at the actual number of turns per hour (printed above the bars). Quite often, rooms start well above average (15) and stay high but also vary day to day. For example, starting at 25 turns per hour and “going down” to 20 still represents an above average talk environment – it’s like going from great to great!
This LENA Day - Hourly Turns Breakout Graph• The highest hour will be the same as the Trophy Hour on the Room-Level Interactive
Talk Clock. • This graph lets teachers see the flow for the whole day, so they can see which of the filled-
in hours on the clock are highest and talk about what they were doing at those times.
The Room-Level Interactive Talk Clock• When the average for an hour is above five turns, that’s an Interactive Hour
and the wedge is filled in orange. The goal is to have at least five wedges filled in during the day. If this happens, all the wedges turn green to show an Interactive Day and a star appears in the center of the clock!
Deep Dive: The Room Summary Report (page 61)
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Understanding LENA Grow ReportsBefore delivering the first report, it is important to introduce the major components by watching the “Understanding Your LENA Grow Room Summary Report” video and then walking through the five elements in the “Sample Room Summary Report” (see page 61). This sample report will be kept in the Room Binder and can be referenced by teachers anytime. The sample reports can also be found at the front of the Coach Binder. To make sure teachers understand the report, coaches can walk through the “Understanding Your LENA Report — Video Review.” This five-item review covers the key elements, and is a replica of the first five questions on the certification quiz teachers can choose to complete online.
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Coaching with the Room Summary ReportTeachers will be eager to see their new data, so we recommend delivering reports soon after discussion of their LENA Day experiences. As coaches and teachers go through the sequence, they will see many patterns in the data and discover different ways to interpret reports depending on what might be happening in the room. The first rule of interpretation is this: talk with the teacher. The purpose of the LENA reports is to facilitate conversation about the teacher’s classroom experiences. Instead of making assumptions or inferences, advise coaches to ask questions. It is better if the teacher is drawing the conclusion, rather than the coach.
• The five turns per hour level is a minimum level of interaction. Thus, the intent for the Interactive Talk Clock is to make teachers aware of times of day when there was at least some interaction going on as averaged across all the children.
• Celebrate the hours that are filled in no matter how many there are. Talk about what was happening during those times and how this can be spread to other parts of the day. The “Trophy Hour,” or highest talk hour, is a great one to ask about because it shows what’s possible.
• Nap times usually don’t have wedges filled in – that’s expected. • For rooms experiencing low levels of interactive talk, filling in more wedges (more
Interactive Hours) is a great choice for initial goal setting. As teachers build awareness and skills for increasing interactive talk, achieving a star for Interactive Days will become the norm.
Child-Level Interactive Talk Clocks• These are a replica of the Room-Level Talk Clock, but for each child. • Clocks are ordered left to right from fewest to most turns per hour (which is the middle
number for each dial). • You can compare the room average (right bar of Conversational Turns per Hour Graph) to
individual child averages, to see which children are above average for the room. • Children with green clocks all experienced Interactive Days. Turns tend to go up with age,
so it’s not surprising if the youngest children are on the left side of the lineup.
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Coaching Session 1
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To maintain a strengths-based approach to coaching with LENA reports, remember:
Focus on the positive! The purpose of the LENA Grow reports is to facilitate conversation between coach and teacher. Be encouraging and respectful, and focus consistently on opportunities and goals for next time. As you will see, the best part about LENA Grow is seeing a teacher’s face light up when they’ve made an effort to change behaviors or routines and then see these efforts validated by the reports.
To keep things positive, build from a strengths-based approach, and find cause for celebration:
º Interactive Day stars: Rooms will typically receive this star more than 90 percent of the time, so there is often an Interactive Day star to celebrate.
º The Trophy Hour: This is a great and positive area to discuss: “Wow, what was going on in the room during that hour?”
º This LENA Day – Hourly Breakout Graph: The hours with high turns provide an opportunity for joint discovery and celebration.
However, be careful not to be patronizing. These reports mean a lot to teachers. If they are not happy with the numbers it is important to meet them where they are and, through open-ended questions, support them as they identify ways to improve.
Lead with questions. Keep in mind that while the LENA reports are objective, they are not diagnostic by themselves. Avoid guessing what was happening on a particular day or during a particular hour. Instead, foster discussion with open-ended questions and let the teachers provide the insights to connect what was going on during the day with what shows up in the reports.
Deep Dive: Coaching with the Room Summary Report
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Sources of Variability in LENA ReportsIt is important to keep in mind that there are several practical factors that can lead to excess variability, making it more difficult to discern the effect of behavior change in the LENA data. Try to reduce variability where you can, and remind teachers to note anything unusual in the LENA Log.
Events – Out of the ordinary events on a LENA Day can cause excess variability. For example, children on a field trip may have fewer opportunities to interact with teachers but they might hear more adult words than usual. Thus, if a LENA Day takes place on a day with one of these unusual events, the data may not represent a child’s typical language experience.
People – The number of people in the room on a LENA Day, both children and adults, can be a major source of variability. Teacher/child ratios are known to affect a child’s experience and can also influence a teacher’s stress level and capacity for individual communication.
Substitutes – When a substitute is standing in for a teacher participating in LENA Grow, the numbers may be lower than usual since the substitute is not participating in the program and has not received training on implementing Talking Tips. Recommendation: If substitutes are present on a LENA Day, help them understand what is happening and guide them on the importance of early interaction (refer to the Guidance for Substitutes document in the Room Binder).
Noise – When background noise is too loud, LENA has a harder time identifying human speakers and children may also have a hard time discerning speech. This is why the Room Detail Report (see Session 2 Booster Content on page 35 for more information) includes an audio environment graph.
Health/Mood – A child’s mood can significantly impact the frequency with which they interact. Likewise, if a teacher is managing a personal challenge, he/she may interact less frequently on that day due to stress or distraction. Illness can also bring the numbers down.
Day of the week – In many cases, one day of the week may not be comparable to another due to different routines and activities or the state of mind of the child/teacher. Recommendation: select LENA Days to consistently occur on the same weekday, or on days that are similar with respect to attendance and activities.
Hawthorne effect – The “Hawthorne effect,” is a term used to describe how the act of being “observed” unintentionally changes behaviors. This can show up as an inflation in LENA numbers on the first LENA Day. This is why the sequence begins with two “practice” LENA Days. If coaches observe large drops after the first LENA Day, it may be due to the Hawthorne effect.
Developmental delays – Children with language or developmental delays may not respond to teachers’ attempts at engagement, no matter how hard the teachers try. Recommendation: Manage expectations; celebrate smaller increases or focus on specific hours of the day that show change.
Deep Dive: Sources of Variability
Coaching Session 1
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Goal SettingAt the end of each session, coaches and teachers will work together to set goals for the next LENA Day. Having discussed the LENA reports as well as the 14 Talking Tips, the conversation may have already touched on specific areas of teacher interest or opportunities to try something new. When introducing goal setting with teachers, note that goals do not have to be related to the LENA numbers or reports. It’s okay if the teacher simply wants to try a new idea, move schedules around, or set things up differently in the classroom to see how things go.
Guidance for Setting LENA Day GoalsWhen identifying goals, some teachers will be proactive, while others will be less sure and will look to the coach for guidance. Lead teachers towards goals that are realistic and attainable – it is best to set things up so you can celebrate small wins rather than having unrealistic expectations.
Whatever is decided, it is especially important to ask teachers exactly how they plan to achieve the goal. Help teachers create a mini game plan. In doing this, you’ll invite opportunities for brainstorming and problem-solving.
We recommend that the teacher write the goal on the LENA Day Goals page in his/her Teacher Workbook, and the coach can write the goal on a Notes and Goals sheet in the Coach Binder.
Sample Goal Setting ConversationCoach: What kind of goal would you like to set for your next LENA Day?
Teacher: I think I’d like to see if I can increase turns with Xander.
Coach: What will that look like? (i.e., what’s the game plan?)
Teacher: I’ll just try to talk more.
Coach: OK, let’s try to think of something specific we can write down. What does he like to do?
Teacher: Well, he’s pretty quiet, but he really likes cars and dinosaurs, I’ve noticed.
Coach: OK, what about focusing on these things during your LENA Day? Let’s look at the Talking Tips and see which one you might want to try with him. Do you have any books in the room that talk about cars or dinosaurs? Another idea to try is waiting a little longer for him to respond – children that young have slower processing times and sometimes it takes them a bit longer to react compared to older children.
In this example, the goal is targeted and attainable – the teacher will focus on one child and one or two tips. The results of these interactions may or may not show up in the reports, and if not that is okay. Regardless, the experience will put more intentional focus on interactions. It will provide valuable insight for the teacher and the experience will be great to revisit during next week’s session. Encourage teachers to share their goals with other teachers working in the room so they can support each other.
Why Document Goals?Writing out goals has important benefits. First, it helps commit the goals to memory. More importantly, writing goals down represents more of a commitment than simply saying them out loud. The written goals will also serve as a reminder and can be used to facilitate discussions with other teachers in the room.
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Deep Dive: LENA Day Goals
Ideas for LENA Day GoalsTo help with initial discussions, here are some examples of potential LENA Day goals:
Stars: It’s common for teachers to say they simply want to earn a star next time – which is a great goal! However, it is helpful to ask about their ideas for getting there – what will they do differently? This may be a good time to reference the highest hour on This LENA Day – Hourly Breakout Graph. Ask the teacher what they were doing then and see if they can try to do this more often, or with different children.
Talking Tips: When getting started, a teacher may want to focus on the Talking Tips list. When he/she reviewed the tips earlier in the session, did he/she comment on any that she doesn’t do often, or that may feel less natural? This could be one to try for next time. Again, talk about specifics – how might he/she use this tip with individual children, or during which routine?
Room-Level Talk Clock: When the Room-Level Talk Clock has gold wedges, it means that while some of the hours had more than five turns, there were not five of those hours. (When there are five hours, the Talk Clock turns green and an Interactive Day star is earned). Here you might suggest setting a goal to add one more wedge to the clock – this is a great first step toward reaching an Interactive Day.
Individual Children: When reviewing the Child-Level Interactive Talk Clocks there may have been some discussion about the child who was farthest to the left (interacting the least). The next LENA Day Goal could be to focus on this child to see how he/she reacts to increased interaction, noting exactly what the teacher might try.
Routines: As you go through the LENA Grow sequence, you’ll use the Conversation Starters to talk about how the Talking Tips fit into daily care routines like diaper changes and mealtimes. Teachers may want to focus on implementing Talking Tips during these specific routines.
Noise: When the percent of Clear Speech in the LENA Day Audio Environment/Clear Speech Graph is consistently below 20 percent and conversational turns are lower than expected, then the teacher may want to try to reduce room noise. Brainstorm with the teacher about how this could be done. It might involve restructuring the room, putting children in small groups to promote discussion, or turning off ambient music. See LENA Online Resources for other ideas on reducing room noise.
Bars on Room Detail Report Conversational Turns Graph: When conversational turns are lower than expected, the teacher may want to set a specific number of turns as a goal. If he/she is unsure what number to pick, point out the lighter and darker bands on the graph. These bands represent typical turns ranges in a child care environment with children of similar ages, and also in the home. A great goal is to aim to be within the typical range for child care. If the bars are already in that range, then trying to be closer to or above the line for the home environment is an extra challenge. (Note the Room Detail Report is introduced in Session 2.)
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As with the previous session, LENA Grow Coaching Sessions 2-10 can be delivered either in a group or one-on-one and can usually be completed in about 20 minutes. Each session has four main parts:
• Step 1: Discuss Previous LENA Day. Coaching sessions begin with a conversation about the most recent LENA Day. This is a nice opening to the session and allows teachers to get comfortable talking about their day and life as an early childhood teacher.
• Step 2: Review LENA Reports. There will always be data from the most recent new LENA Day to review at each coaching session. Reports will help begin strengths-based conversations about what teachers’ real-life classroom days are like, along with the experiences and behaviors of individual children.
• Step 3: Review Talking Tips Activities. After viewing reports, teachers view Talking Tips videos and/or Conversation Starters and discuss techniques for increasing quality interaction in the room.
• Step 4: Set Goals. Each coaching session will end with a discussion of goals for the next LENA Day. Teachers set their own goal based on their personal interests and desired areas of focus.
Coaches can use the Coaching Session Guided Questions in the Coach Binder as a guideline for each session.
Sessions 2, 5, 8, and 10 have additional features added to increase teacher reflection and motivation at key points in the program. Short notes for delivering this “Booster Content” are provided in the Coach Binder.
Coaching Session Number Booster Content Session 2 Room Detail Report (see page 35)Session 5 Midpoint Reflection (see page 36)Session 8 “Beat your Best” goal (see page 40)Session 10 Celebration! (see page 41)
Sessions 2-10Chapter 6:
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Session Number Topic(s)
2 Clothing ChangesBooster content: Introduction to the Room Detail Report (see page 35)
3 Outdoor Play
4 Shared Reading
5 MealtimesBooster content: Midpoint Reflection (see page 36)
6 Transitions
7 Songs & Rhymes
8 Indoor PlayBooster content: “Beat your Best” LENA Day (see page 40)
9 Hand-Washing
10 Celebration! (see page 41)
A sample schedule for Coaching Sessions 2-10 is below. If coaches prefer to present sessions in a different order or allow the teacher to choose the topic, just remember that it’s best to do so ahead of time so that the correct “Conversation Starter” poster can be brought to each session.
Coaching Sessions 2-10The “Coaching Session Guided Questions” (found in the Coach Binder) are the core of each session. They incorporate the four steps below and include question prompts to facilitate discussion. Coaches should walk through the Guided Questions at each session.
Step 1 – Discuss Previous LENA DayCoaching sessions will always begin with a discussion of the teacher’s experience on their previous LENA Day. This opens the door for teachers to share concerns and talk about what is generally happening in the classroom. As mentioned previously, teachers may initially be a bit apprehensive about their reports. When this happens, meet teachers where they are, showing empathy about any challenges that come up and providing encouragement. This can be a great time to review the goals from the previous session and talk about how the teachers may have applied their goal to specific situations that day..Step 2 – Review LENA ReportCoaches will use the Guided Questions as an outline to discuss the Room Summary Report.Some teachers may initially focus on whether they earned stars, without fully diving into the reasons why.
Sessions 2-10
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To make sure that the teachers understand the reports and can tie their data to stars earned, simply ask them to articulate why the star was earned. For example:
Coach: I see your room earned two stars this time, one for turns and another for an Interactive Day. Looking at the data, can you explain why each star was earned? If you were explaining the report to a parent who had never seen one, how would you explain the stars?
Teacher: We got a star here because we increased turns from our last LENA Day, and here because the clock is green – we had 5 wedges filled in.”
The point here is to make sure the teachers know that earning stars is under their control. If coaches discover that teachers are not clear on how stars are earned, they may refer the teachers back to the sample report in the Room Binder, and/or suggest they watch the “Understanding Your LENA Grow Report” video accessible through LENA Online.
Step 3 – Review Talking Tips ActivitiesEach coaching session will focus on a Conversation Starter related to a specific care routine. This activity brings the teacher into the content of the session, encouraging them to talk about their own experiences and validating the importance of their work. Encourage teachers to keep using the techniques they’re already familiar with while promoting conversation about other ways they might bolster talk. The Conversation Starters are meant to prompt teachers to reflect on a care routine and then take talk to the next level by expanding on the great things they are already doing.
After reviewing the Conversation Starters, teachers will view the relevant Talking Tips video, showing early childhood teachers engaging in the daily care routine. These videos are:
• Not meant as perfect representations of each routine.
• Designed to promote discussion and reflection on potential improvements or alternate approaches. Teachers and coaches will reference the 14 Talking Tips together after viewing each video, then identify which tips they saw and discuss any missed opportunities for engaging in quality interaction.
After the session, the Conversation Starters will be posted in the classroom, both as a reminder for the teachers and to promote parent-teacher discussion on each topic.
Step 4 – Set GoalsTeachers will choose their goals, which can be related to the Talking Tips/routines discussed or focused on a specific child or time of day. Please see the “Deep Dive: LENA Day Goals” section in Chapter 5 for more ideas. As mentioned previously, teachers will write their goals in their Teacher Workbook and coaches will write the teachers’ goals on the Notes and Goals sheet in the Coach Binder.
Putting the“Shared”
-in-
Shared Reading
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Young children often want
to read the same book
many times. Let them!
With preschoolers, change part
of a familiar story and wait for
them to catch your mistake.
When the child points,
name the picture.
Challenge: describe it, too!
You don’t have to read every word, or read the
book cover-to-cover.
#14: Be silly! Relax and have fun!If the child doesn’t want to share a book right now, try again later in the day.
#12: Follow their lead,
Point out objects, animals, and actions that are meaningful to the
child. “That boy is �shing. When we go outside, let’s play a game and
pretend we’re �shing.”
#3: Name things that
they’re interested in.
Copyright © 2018 by LENA. All rights reserved. www.LENA.org
Use silly voices for some characters.
Add sound e�ects.
Try LENA’s Conversation Starters™
for Shared Reading
do what interests them.
Ask questions about the pictures such as, “Where does this take place?” or “Who is in the picture?” Answer for the baby if he/she cannot do it alone.Build to open-ended
questions such as: “What do
you think will happen next?”
#2: Comment on what they’re
doing or looking at.
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Booster ContentIntroduction to the Room Detail Report (Session 2 Only)The Room Detail Report is a supplement to the Room Summary Report and is optional to include during Session 2. However, we encourage coaches to bring these reports to each session if the extra information (e.g., adult words, audio environment) resonates with the teachers.
After teachers watch the “Understanding the LENA Grow Room Detail Report” video, the coach will walk through the five key elements on the Sample Room Detail Report (page 62). To ensure the teacher understands the basic components, complete the “Room Detail Report – Video Review” together, noting that these questions are also on the online teacher certification quiz.
Interpreting the Room Detail ReportIt is important to note that stars aren’t earned on this report – they are earned only on the Room Summary Report. Following are additional tips for interpreting each component of this report. For easy reference, these tips are also in the Coach Binder.
LENA Day Adult Words and Conversational Turns• The level for a typical home environment (represented by the darker lines) is difficult to
exceed since caregiving in the home is often closer to one-on-one. • If the LENA Day Conversational Turns bars are lower than expected, look at the Adult
Words bars. Are they above 750? If so, the teachers are talking but may not be as skilled at turn-taking just yet. The focus of the program is turn-taking, so the Conversational Turns bars should get taller as the program continues.
• The stars on the LENA Day Conversational Turns Graph are the same as the stars on the Room Summary Report’s Conversational Turns per Hour Graph. They are not new/additional stars.
Hourly Breakouts of Adult Words and Conversational Turns (turns graph also shown on Room Summary Report)
• These graphs offer a wonderful opportunity to talk about what was happening during the highest hours. Any hour above 15 conversational turns is good.
LENA Day Audio Environment/Clear Speech• If turns are low, look at the LENA Day Audio Environment/Clear Speech Graph to see if there
may be opportunities to reduce noise/increase clear speech and boost turns.• Clear speech levels around 20 percent are typical for a child care setting. Numbers below
10-15 percent may indicate a noisier environment where it’s more challenging for children to absorb language.
If teachers are pursuing LENA Certification, coaches will need to explain and review the Room Detail Report with them so they can meet certification requirements.
Certification
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Midpoint Reflection and the Progress Report (Session 5 Onward)The Midpoint Reflection session introduces the Progress Report (see a sample on page 63), a new breakdown of the data to facilitate discussion with teachers on how things are going compared to where they started. At this point in the program there is still plenty of time for teachers to achieve increases in turns, reflecting new skills they’ve learned. Some coaches may choose to hold this session as a group, using a staff meeting or PLC time to reflect on the progress made in the program so far.
The Progress Reports:• Can be viewed at any time once four LENA Days
have been processed for at least one child. • Will be most effective if presented after most
children have completed four recordings.
In addition to sharing the Progress Report during the Midpoint Reflection Session, coaches can show teachers an updated version of this report during any session when the coaches and/or directors think it may be encouraging, especially during the final coaching or group session.
Introduction to the LENA Progress ReportThe Progress Report includes all children with at least four LENA Days, showing how many experienced Above Minimum, Accomplished, and Advanced levels of turn-taking based on the average of each child’s first and last two LENA Days. The averaging of two days accounts for daily variability. In the Progress Report:
• The top bar shows the number of children in the room at each level for their first two LENA Days.• The one below it shows the number of children at each level for their last two LENA Days.• The lower bar will ideally be longer than the upper to show improvement.
After walking through the six key elements on the Sample Progress Reports, coaches should explain that since the program has reached its midpoint, there is enough data to see how things are going compared to where the room started. The Progress Report is what the final report for the program will look like – the first and last two LENA Days will be compared.
The teachers are surprised by their own data and how
it motivates them. We’ve found that even teachers
who aren’t participating in the program yet are paying attention to what the LENA
teachers are saying and doing, and now they are
talking more as well.
— Bruce Watson, Executive Director of the Early Learning Coalition of Escambia County
The purpose of progress reports is to take a peek at the data to see what improvements have been made and to set goals for the last half of the program.
Progress Reports
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LENA has defined three levels of hourly turns based on analysis of thousands of recordings in child care settings:• Level 1: Above Minimum – Children experiencing at least 5 turns per hour are above the
minimum level of engagement.• Level 2: Accomplished – The typical or average level of hourly turns in the LENA child care
database is 15 turns per hour. Children at or above this level are at the Accomplished level.• Level 3: Advanced – Children at the highest level of interaction have 25 or more turns per hour.
Determining Individual Program Success GoalsThe Progress Reports are meant to inspire teachers to increase turns and push beyond where they started or what they have already accomplished. Each room is unique and will begin in a different place with respect to levels of turns. When deciding which level to focus on moving forward:
• Look at each level on their Progress Report (starting at the Above Minimum level) and assess whether most of the children have achieved that level.
• If so, the next level up is the one teachers will work on, until they get to Advanced.
LENA analyzed our child care database to provide some comparison points for each level. This analysis showed that the end-of-program goals in the box on the right are achievable, but depend on where the room started. By the end of the program, it is reasonable to expect that at least 90 percent of children will be above the minimum level of turns. If the program already started out at this point, then having at least 60 percent of children at the accomplished level is a very good goal. If both of the first two goals are met by the midpoint, then encourage teachers to try to get at least 30 percent of children to the Advanced level by the end of the program.
When deciding which level to focus on for individual rooms, look at each level on their Progress Report (starting at the Above Minimum level) and assess whether most of the children have achieved that level. If so, the next level up is the one teachers will work on, until they get to Advanced.
Setting Final Goals
Recommended Program Goals
Advanced – at least 30 percent of children reach the Advanced level of turnsAccomplished – at least 60 percent of children reach the Accomplished level of turnsAbove Minimum – at least 90 percent of children reach the Above Minimum level of turns
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Deep Dive: Progress Reports (page 63)
ID Child First 2 LENA Days Conversational Turns
Minimum Level (5 turns/hour)
Accomplished Level(15 turns/hour)
Advanced Level(25 turns/hour)
1 Marta 14 √2 Ian 43 Ollie 22 √ √4 Xander 18 √ √5 Miranda 10 √6 Jayla 25 √ √ √7 Jasmin 30 √ √ √8 Jaxon 12 √9 Landry 9 √10 Devon 8 √
90% 40% 20%
0 25 50 75 100
90%
40%
20%
Top Bar – first 2 LENA DaysThe top bar shows the number of children who satisfied each level’s criteria at their initial recordings (average of their first two LENA Days). Consider the following example. Here is a room with 10 children, with the average of each child’s first two LENA Days:
In the above table, we see that all but one child experienced Above Minimum levels of interaction initially, so 90 percent of the children in the room started out meeting criteria for this level. There were four children (40 percent) who met criteria for the Accomplished level and two (20 percent) who started out at the Advanced level. Top bars for this room would look like this for each level:
First 2 LENA DaysAdvanced: 25+ Turns
Accomplished: 15+ Turns
Above Minimum: 5+ Turns
Refer to page 63 for more information on the Progress Report.
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Lower Bar – last 2 LENA DaysThe lower bar on the reports shows the average of each child’s most recent two LENA Days. Thus, we can compare general starting levels for children in the room with current performance. Here is each child’s turn-taking average for their last two LENA Days.
We see that as interaction increases for each child, the overall percentage of children at each level also increases. Here is the corresponding Progress Report bar graph.
Last 2 LENA DaysAdvanced: 25+ Turns
Accomplished: 15+ Turns
Above Minimum: 5+ Turns
Report InterpretationIdeally, the darker bars will always be longer than the lighter bars, demonstrating positive pre-post changes. However, interpretation of the Progress Reports needs to factor the overall program goals. For programs that are just starting out and aim to get all children above minimum, then the report can be used to show teachers how close they are to that goal. It is meant to inspire change, offering an alternate way of summarizing data that will allow teachers and coaches an opportunity to discuss overall progress and how they’d like things to look at the end of the program.
ID Child Last 2 LENA Days Conversational Turns
Minimum Level (5 turns/hour)
Accomplished Level(15 turns/hour)
Advanced Level(25 turns/hour)
1 Marta 20 √ √2 Ian 7 √3 Ollie 26 √ √ √4 Xander 10 √5 Miranda 25 √ √ √6 Jayla 20 √ √7 Jasmin 32 √ √ √8 Jaxon 16 √ √9 Landry 15 √ √10 Devon 16 √ √
100% 80% 30%
25 50 75 100
100%
80%
30%
0
Sessions 2-10
40
Beat your Best LENA Day (Session 8)The “Beat your Best” goal is designed to keep gains going and to provide teachers with new encouragement for increasing quality turns. The goal will be specific to each room and will focus on how the teachers in the room can work together to reach it.
The “Beat your Best” concept is simple, meeting teachers where they are and encouraging them to take their achievements a little further during the final sessions:
• Coaches will identify which LENA Day had the highest number of turns (see Room Summary Reports).
• Set the goal with the teachers to beat that number on one of their final two days. Focusing on only one of the final two days will allow teachers two chances to meet the goal. Elevations on either day will be factored into final evaluations through the Progress Reports, reflecting gains on pre-post program effectiveness measures.
Coaches should encourage teachers to meet together to formulate a plan for reaching their goal. They may choose to focus on certain children or certain hours of the day. By looking at the Talking Tips poster, they may pick one child to try a tip with each hour. They might also arrange small groups or activities including less talkative children, incorporating tips to encourage engagement in a more intimate setting. Coaches can offer ideas but also let teachers come up with their own strategies based on what they have learned.
It will be important to decide ahead of time how the center will celebrate teachers who meet goals. See “Deep Dive: Celebrating Accomplishments” on the following page for more ideas.
If the highest turns day for a specific room was unusual in some way, it may be unreasonable to set this as the “Beat Your Best” goal. For example, if that day happened to have fewer children or more teachers present, then it may be relatively difficult to achieve that level in a more typical situation. In these cases, we recommend moving to the next highest turns day for “Beat Your Best” goal setting.
Setting a “Beat Your Best” Goal
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Celebration! (Session 10)We recommend bringing teachers together to celebrate accomplishments in the final coaching session. This is a great way to acknowledge teachers who met the “Beat your Best” goal, as well as any other personal achievements during the course of their LENA Grow journey. Coaches may want to review and present the final Progress Report for the center, especially if the turns-level target for the center was met.
Quality turn-taking achieved over the course of the program does not need to stop here! Ask teachers to share long-term goals in a group setting to help reinforce ideas and allow peers to support each other long term.
The final session is a great time to review the certification requirements and encourage teachers to apply. Refer teachers to the LENA certification section in the beginning of the Teacher Workbook and please contact [email protected]. Finally, the center will determine whether or not they will participate in LENA Refreshers before the final coaching session, as teachers often ask whether they will have the opportunity to do more LENA Days in the future. Refreshers are described in more detail in the next chapter.
Deep Dive: Celebrating Accomplishments
When it comes to recognition, think creatively to find what will be meaningful and motivational to your teachers to keep up the great work. Celebrate accomplishments related to earning LENA stars or to the teacher’s individual goals for the week. It may also be helpful to think in terms of offering smaller acknowledgments weekly during the coaching session, and having a bigger celebration based on larger accomplishments monthly or at the end of the program.
Here are a few examples we’ve seen:• Award star stickers on the Talking Tips chart in each classroom. Display the chart in the
classroom or on the classroom door to highlight weekly progress for parents and other staff to see.
• Display weekly stars earned using pre-cut stars on a bulletin board or on the door. • Recognize individuals or classrooms who receive the most stars for the month:
Include their photo(s) on a hallway bulletin board Display copies of their room report(s) Recognize them in a newsletter or on social media Take the teacher(s) to lunch or coffee Bring lunch, coffee, or a treat to the classroom Host a classroom party or special activity Award a gift card or another monetary incentive
• Share a note of appreciation.• Include a sticky note of praise on their weekly LENA report.• Share their accomplishments at a staff meeting or parent meeting.
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42
The LENA Grow Refresher Sessions are a flexible, abbreviated version of the original program. They are designed to renew the focus on interactive talk and measure the extent to which increased talk has been maintained. We recommend holding these sessions six to 12 months after Session 10 (ideally, with the same coach). These sessions are designed only for teachers who have gone through the original coaching sequence.
For the Refresher, teachers will complete three LENA Days and then work with their coach to assess what to do moving forward. Ideally, these LENA Days will be spread over three weeks, but all can be done in a single week if necessary. After those results are ready, the teacher and coach will meet for a co-discovery session. They will compare new results with the last three LENA Days from the original sequence and decide together whether additional LENA Days are warranted. If so, then the same cycle repeats.
LENA Refresher Sample Schedule• Week 1: Initial Refresher Meeting to review previous data and set goals by room
LENA Day• Week 2: LENA Day• Week 3: LENA Day• Week 4: Refresher Data Review to assess whether the following criteria are met:
All three LENA Days are Interactive Days or
The conversational turns average for all three LENA Days is at or above where it was at the original program end
Set new goals and schedule three additional LENA Days.• Week 5: LENA Day• Week 6: LENA Day• Week 7: LENA Day• Week 8: Meet with coach
Coaching Session ContentUse the Talking Tips page in the Teacher Workbook to discuss which three Talking Tips the teacher would like to focus on. You can also review the care routines on the Conversation Starters pages to decide whether to focus on one specific routine each week. The coach and teacher will work together to establish strategies for incorporating that week’s suggestions into daily routines.
Refresher Sessions LogisticsPlease refer to LENA Online Help for instructions for creating new refresher rooms in LENA Online.
We recommend coaches print the following Facilitation Guides and Guided Questions, hole punch them, and put them in their Coach Binder.
Refresher SessionsChapter 7:
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Initial Refresher Meeting Facilitation GuidePrep:
• Print the final three Room Summary Reports from the previous sequence• Calculate the average turns for the final three recordings in the previous sequence• Print LENA Logs• Remind the teacher to bring his/her Teacher Workbook• Bring Coach Binder
Discuss the purpose of the Refresher and the basic schedule.
Three LENA Days Data review Repeat if necessary/desired
Walk through the Initial Refresher Meeting Guided Questions. • Talk with the teacher about his/her experiences since the previous LENA Grow sequence.• Review the final Room Summary Reports. • Review the 14 Talking Tips in the Teacher Workbook and explain that teachers should pick three
Talking Tips to focus on during the upcoming LENA Days. Reference the Conversation Starters to help teachers pick which care routines they’d like to focus on for implementing these strategies.
• Remind the teacher about the various LENA metrics and discuss refresher goals for upcoming LENA Days:
1. 100 percent Interactive Days (five or more hours with an average of at least five turns)
2. Average conversational turns at or above the previous average (final three LENA Days)
3. Personal goal(s) (using a specific Talking Tip, talking more at specific hour, talking more with specific child(ren), etc.)
Ask the teachers to write their goal(s) in their Teacher Workbook.
If there are new teachers in the room who did not participate in the original sequence, then it is not reasonable to expect refresher numbers to be comparable to previous metrics, especially for goal #2. In this case, mention the refresher goals but also acknowledge that flexibility in interpretation is needed. There also may be different children in the room, which could affect comparability.
Comparing metrics
Refresher Sessions
44
Initial Refresher Meeting Guided Questions
Looking back at the Room Summary Reports, what do you notice?
Can you remember how stars are earned?
Can you remember what an Interactive Day is?
Look at the Child-Level Interactive Talk Clocks. Do you expect any changes in the order? Are there new children in the room?
Discuss Experiences Since Original Program
How has your room changed since you wrapped up the program?
Have you noticed any changes in the individual children?
What have been your experiences with continuing to integrate the Talking Tips into your routines?
Previous Room Summary Reports
Talking Tips
We will be focused on one Talking Tip each week for the next three LENA Days. Which of these do you implement most often? Are there any that you find more challenging than others?
Looking at the Conversation Starters, is there a particular routine that you’d like to focus on for each of your upcoming LENA Days?
The first goal is for 100 percent of your LENA Days to be designated as interactive. Make note of how easy or difficult it was to achieve an Interactive Day for this room last time (e.g., “Remember, you usually received stars for Interactive Days last time”).
The second goal is to be at or above where you were for your final three LENA Days. (Review final three days on Room Detail Report. If there is a new teacher in the room and/or several different children, explain that this goal is flexible since the room dynamics have changed.)
What is one other goal that you would personally like to work on?
Goal Setting
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Refresher Data Review Facilitation GuidePrep:
• Print Room Summary Reports for all three new LENA Days• Calculate average conversational turns for the new LENA Days
Walk through the Refresher Data Review Guided Questions. • Discuss the recent LENA Days and the teacher’s experiences with his/her personal goal. • Review the Room Summary Reports for all three LENA Days. • Remind the teacher about the various LENA metrics and discuss whether the goals set last time were met.
1. 100 percent Interactive Days (five or more hours with an average of at least five turns)2. Average conversational turns at or above the previous average (final three LENA Days)3. Personal goal(s) (using a specific Talking Tip, talking more at specific hour, talking more
with specific child(ren), etc.)
If new children or teachers were in the room on the refresher LENA Days, it may be more difficult to meet goal #2 and expectations should be managed. In this case, if all three days were interactive and the teacher feels he/she met his/her personal goal, this may be sufficient for program purposes.
Decide whether goals have been sufficiently met. Based on discussions about how close the room came to meeting the goals, determine whether the teacher feels he/she met the goal and/or whether he/she would like to try again with new Talking Tips and/or focus on individual children. If there is agreement that goals were not sufficiently met, we recommended completing an additional three LENA Days.
This refresher cycle can be repeated until the coach and teacher are satisfied with the results.
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46
Looking at the Room Summary Reports, what do you notice?
Looking at the hourly data, what do you notice? What were you doing during the highest hours?
Looking at Trophy Hours, what was happening there to result in increased turns?
Looking at the Child-Level Interactive Talk Clocks, is this line up what you expected?
Discuss Experiences
How did your LENA Days go?
Let’s look back at your personal goal. Do you feel you were able to meet it?
Room Summary Report
Goals
Did you earn three stars for Interactive Days?
Discuss the average for the most recent three LENA Days and whether the goal was met.
Decisions
Following are some discussion points for making decisions about whether to complete additional LENA Days.
If one or more of the days did not earn an Interactive Day star, discuss how close each day was to being interactive.
Discuss whether new teachers or children were present and how that might have influenced things.
Discuss whether the teacher feels he/she met his/her personal goal.
Discuss whether the teacher would like to create a new personal goal and complete additional LENA Days.
Refresher Data Review Guided Questions
If additional LENA Days are scheduled, ask the teacher to write his/her new personal goal in the Teacher Workbook.
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LENA Grow is designed to support your parent and family engagement efforts by fostering conversations between parents and teachers about the importance of language and interaction. The data provided helps teachers and families work together to maximize developmental outcomes for each child. Parents are kept aware of interactive talk in the classroom and introduced to strategies for increasing interaction at home through the following elements:
1. Stars Display – Parents’ first introduction to LENA Day feedback will be the stars displayed in the classroom. These displays are an important opportunity for teachers to explain their early achievements and to describe what an Interactive Day is, as well as its relation to early brain development. Teachers can also reference the Talking Tips poster in the room. They can share how parents might try out these strategies for boosting interaction at home.
Refer to the page on Describing Room Stars in the Teacher Workbook for a sample Q&A on explaining the stars to parents. It may be helpful to walk teachers through these questions before displaying room stars.
2. Parent Reports – After the first month of the program, coaches may choose to print Parent Reports to distribute after the coaching session. These reports allow parents to see how often their children are interacting with teachers throughout the day. The reports also invite more conversation about the importance of early talk.
It is helpful for teachers to have a grasp of the key benchmark numbers, so they can provide insights and assurances when parents have questions:
5 turns – number necessary for an Interactive Hour15 turns – approximate national average in child care/preschool environments
The Answering Questions About Parent Reports pages in the Teacher Workbook cover this topic in greater detail and are a handy reference for teachers.
Chapter 8: Family Engagement
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48
3. Talking Tips – Along with the Parent Reports, we recommend that teachers talk with parents aboutwhich Talking Tip(s) and care routine (Conversation Starter) they are focusing on that week, so parents can try out the same strategies at home.
Depending on the center’s goals and resources, there are two additional options to consider for bringing parents into the LENA Grow experience:
4. LENA Snapshot (Available in LENA Online) – The LENA Snapshot is a 52-item parent questionnairefocused on child language development. It takes about five to 10 minutes to complete and can be administered via paper or smartphone. The Snapshot is a monthly progress monitoring tool, providing information about child language skills in terms of language development age, in a simple report for parents and teachers. It’s also a formative assessment, educating parents on the various language milestones their children have achieved.
Bear in mind that the Snapshot introduces an additional level of logistical effort. It requires explaining the questionnaire to parents, distributing it on schedule, tracking responses, and following up with those who haven’t completed it. Therefore, we recommend waiting until after completing at least one LENA Grow sequence before introducing it.
5. Individual Child Reports (Available in LENA Online) – The Individual Child Report provides a
summary of the number of adult words, conversational turns, and child vocalizations a child experienced on each LENA Day, as well as hourly detail for the most recent day. We recommend teachers share Individual Child Reports with parents during parent-teacher conferences and allow plenty of time for discussion.
Refer to the next page for more information on how to share these reports with parents.
I really like seeing the data from my own classroom. It makes it real and tells me
where to focus to get better.
— LeeAnn O’Connell, Early Childhood Teacher
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Describing Individual Child ReportsThe Individual Child Report gives detailed information about patterns of talk and interaction for each child. Although these reports are not a standard part of coaching sessions, they can be a helpful reference for the teacher and coach, especially when there are any concerns about specific children. They also can be shared with parents during parent-teacher conferences, though this will require some training for the teacher (see below).
The Individual Child Reports look a lot like the Room Detail Report, with LENA Day totals on the left and hourly breakouts on the right. In addition to the LENA Day Adult Words and Conversational Turns Graph, this report includes information on individual child vocalizations.
Child VocalizationsThe Child Vocalizations Graph shows how often children are vocalizing. A “vocalization” is any speech-like sound (words or babbles) and does not include cries or vegetative sounds (e.g., burps, breaths). Babbles and sentences of any length are counted as a “vocalization.”
The report provides a view of how often the child is making speech-like sounds and can be helpful to compare with the turns and words data. For example, if turns are low but child vocalizations are high, the child may be trying to communicate but the adult is not engaging. This may be a great opportunity to talk with teachers about responsiveness and waiting for the child to respond. Remember, a child’s brain processes information five times slower than an adult’s brain!
Sharing Individual Child Reports with ParentsParents can start receiving Individual Child Talk Clocks (“Parent Reports”) about a month into the program. While they may easily interpret the simpler Parent Reports on their own, the more complex Individual Child Reports are better delivered in person when there is plenty of time to walk through them and answer questions (e.g. during parent-teacher conferences).
If the teacher is delivering these reports to parents, he/she should be given copies of the Introduction to the LENA Grow Room Detail Report section from the Coach Binder for guidance on describing the reports for the first time. When presenting the data, teachers should make clear that individual variation is expected on a day-to-day basis, depending on factors like differing events and routines (see Deep Dive: Sources of Variability in Chapter 5).
Parents may notice the lighter and darker bands on the graphs on the left side of the report. These are reference levels for children of similar ages in typical home and child care environments. Achieving anything close to the home environment goal line is challenging with several children in the room. The hourly breakouts are a good thing to focus on because it shows parents when their child is most interactive, and this in turn promotes conversation around engagement and what interests them individually.
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Implementing with fidelity is key to consistently achieving a program’s desired outcomes. The fidelity checklists and discussion guides provided in this chapter will help your site to self-assess whether you are implementing LENA Grow as intended, especially with respect to the most critical elements for program success.
We understand that sometimes programs need to deviate from standard implementation practices for a variety of reasons, but any reporting of results in those instances must include a notice that the program was not implemented as designed. (See Chapter 10 for more information on reporting results.)
Fidelity Requirements Requirements to report that the center implemented LENA Grow with fidelity include meeting criteria for:
1. The LENA Day Observation Checklist: One observation per classroom 2. The Coaching Session Observation Checklist: One observation of each coach3. Monthly meetings (three during the course of the program) between each coach and center director.
Fidelity Assessment Toolkit The LENA Grow fidelity assessment comprises two observational checklists and three discussion guides. The discussion guides are intended to support monthly meetings between center directors and coaches. Checklists can be found on pages 51-52 and discussion guides on pages 54-56 .
Fidelity Checklists The LENA Day Observation Checklist will help assess whether rooms are following the correct procedures on LENA Days with respect to participating children, classroom events, and access to information. This checklist requires a 10-minute observation of a classroom LENA Day with the goal of having a total of 5 out of 6 “yes” responses on the LENA Day Observation Checklist. If a room scores below 5, meet with the teachers to discuss the “no” responses and observe again in a few weeks. To meet fidelity criteria, all rooms need to pass by the second observation.
The Coaching Session Observation Checklist checks whether the major coaching components are covered and whether the setting fosters comfortable conversation. Center directors should complete this for each coach in the center. Coaches should receive a total of 7out of 8 “yes’” responses on the Coaching Session Observation Checklist. Discuss “no” responses with coaches who score below 7 and observe again in a few weeks. All coaches must pass by the second observation to meet fidelity criteria.
Discovering what works does not solve the problem of
program effectiveness. Once models and best practices are identified, practitioners
are faced with the challenge of implementing programs
properly. A poorly implemented program can lead to failure as
easily as a poorly designed one.
Mihalic, Irwin, Fagan, Ballard, & Elliott, 2004
Implementing with FidelityChapter 9:
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LENA Day Observation ChecklistComplete the following checklist while observing one LENA Day (preferably day 5 or 6).
How to do it: On LENA Day 5 or 6, the coach (or director) will observe each room. Let the teachers know ahead of time that they will have a quick, 10-minute check-in. The room(s) must receive a total of five “yes” responses to meet minimum fidelity criteria, either on the first observation or a follow-up observation.
Room ________________________________________________ Date ________________________
Teacher(s) present _____________________________________________________________________
Question Yes No
1. Were all children wearing the LENA device younger than 48 months?
2. Were at least half of the participating children in the room completing the LENA Day?
3. Were activities typical of that day’s usual routine?
4. Was at least one teacher in the room participating in LENA Grow coaching?
5. Was the Talking Tips poster and/or Conversation Starter poster displayed?
6. Was the LENA Grow Room Binder easily accessible to teachers?
Total
ScoringTotal of 5 out of 6 “yes” responses required to meet minimum fidelity criteria.
Comments/Observations:
Chapter 9:
Implementing with Fidelity
52
Coaching Session Observation ChecklistComplete the following checklist while observing one coaching session during Sessions 4-7.
How to do it: Any time after Coaching Session 3, the center director or the coach’s supervisor will observe each coach. All coaches in a center should be observed at least once, and each checklist must total a minimum of seven “yes” responses to meet minimum fidelity criteria. If criteria are not met, then the observation session can be repeated one time.
Teacher(s) _______________________________________________ Date _______________________
Coach __________________________________________________
Question Yes No
1. Was the session taking place in a reasonably quiet room?
2. Were Talking Tips videos accessible to teachers (videos play and can be heard) or were Conversation Starters discussed?
3. Was the session a minimum of 15 minutes?
4. Did the coach refer to the “Guided Questions” during the session?
Were the following points covered?
5. Previous goals/LENA Day discussed
6. Reports reviewed
7. Stars awarded
8. New goal(s) set and written by teacher in the Teacher Workbook
Total
ScoringTotal 7 out of 8 “yes” responses required to meet minimum fidelity criteria.
Comments/Observations:
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Fidelity Discussion Guides for Director-Coach Monthly Check-insLENA Grow encourages more conversations between teachers and children, but it doesn’t stop there. Coaches and center directors will do their fair share of turn-taking, too! Monthly check-ins between the center director and coach provide three opportunities for important conversations during the LENA Grow sequence. (See below for a complete program schedule.)
The discussion guides are filled out by the center director, but the intention is for all items to be discussed aloud at each meeting. The purpose of the guides is to create an open dialogue that goes beyond the general questions.
For any item with a “no” response, create a corrective action plan to get back on track. Any “no” responses from the first two meetings can be changed to “yes” if the issue is corrected before the next meeting. Each coach must have a total score of at least 20 for all three lists in order to meet fidelity criteria.
Meeting 1 happens approximately two weeks into the program, after the third LENA Day. By this time teachers will have learned about the core components, received LENA feedback reports, and started working on integrating the Talking Tips into their daily routines. This meeting gives the coach an opportunity to discuss his/her experiences with the trainings and with the teachers, particularly around delivering reports and feedback.
Meeting 2 happens after the seventh LENA Day and opens a conversation about how each room is doing midway through the program. Discussion is centered on ensuring teachers are completing LENA Days on the recommended schedule, receiving timely feedback, and being celebrated for their accomplishments.
Meeting 3 happens at the end of the program. Discussion focuses on verifying that general program requirements were met and that “Beat your Best” goal setting was implemented.
I feel like this is a way I can touch the future. I know that
sounds strange, but every person that I touch, it’s like that ripple effect — it goes
out. If we can make any little bit better, it’s going to be
better for all of us.
— Mata Dennis, LENA Grow Coach, Special Projects Coordinator, Early
Learning Coalition of Orange County
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
LENA Day
Coaching Session
Orientation 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
LENA Day Observation
Coaching Session Observation
Meeting 1 Meeting 2 Meeting 3
Implementing with Fidelity
54
Director-Coach Discussion Guide: Meeting 1To be completed by the center director after LENA Day 3. How to do it:
• Look together at the Room Summary and Room Detail Reports. Have the coach explain each. • Ask questions about the data reports, and if there is any indication that the coach is unclear about the
metrics, encourage him/her to contact LENA at [email protected].• Find out what it has been like for the coach to deliver report information to teachers. How are teachers
reacting to the data and generally how do they feel about the program so far?
Date ________________________ Coach ________________________________________________
Question Yes No
1. Did you (the director) participate in any of the pre-launch trainings?
2. Did you read the LENA Grow for Leadership chapter of the Implementation Guide, and make the commitments outlined?
3. Did the coach complete the Coaching Training?
4. Did the coach pass the Coaching Quiz?
5. Did all participating teachers attend Orientation or participate in a make-up session?
6. Were two practice LENA Days completed before Coaching Session 1?
7. Did the coach walk through the sample Room Summary Report with all teachers?
8. Did all teachers complete the Room Summary Report review?
9. Did all teachers complete the Room Detail Report review?
10. Have you provided substitute teachers (if present) with appropriate information on LENA Days?
Total
Chapter 9
55Implementing with Fidelity
Question Yes No
1. Are LENA Days happening at least once per week?
2. Are LENA Days usually on the same day each week, or days with similar routines?
3. Is the coach providing LENA feedback to teacher(s) within one week of LENA Days?
4. Following each LENA Day, are coaching sessions happening before the next LENA Day?
5. Did the coach complete the Midpoint Reflection and view related Progress Reports with all teachers?
6. Did the director and the coach review Progress Reports together?
7. Have you or the coach recognized teachers for earning stars/meeting goals?
8. Are coaching sessions being made up when teachers are not available?
Total
Director-Coach Discussion Guide: Meeting 2To be completed by the center director after LENA Day 7.
How to do it:
• Verify that coaching sessions are happening after each LENA Day and that teachers are receiving timely feedback.
• Review each room’s Progress Report together. Discuss the data and teachers’ reactions to the reports. • If progress bars are not where you’d like them to be, work together to craft an action plan for more
effectively motivating teachers through stars, celebrations, and other means.• Talk about acknowledging teacher accomplishments and the stars they’ve earned. (See page 41 for
more information on celebrating accomplishments.)
Date ________________________ Coach ________________________________________________
56
Question Yes No
1. Were at least 10 LENA Days completed in all rooms?
2. Did all teachers complete a minimum of nine coaching sessions?
3. Did the coach meet with teacher(s) to set “Beat your Best” goals for the last two LENA Days?
4. Did you and the coach complete a minimum of three check-in meetings?
Total
Director-Coach Discussion Guide: Meeting 3To be completed by the center director after final LENA Day.
How to do it:
• Verify that coaches have completed the program close-out procedures. • Review final Progress Reports and discuss how the “Beat your Best” goals since the last two
LENA Days heavily impact program evaluation. As part of this, discuss how leadership will report program results. (See Chapter 10 for recommendations.)
Date ________________________ Coach ________________________________________________
Chapter 9
57
Program Goals and ExpectationsBased on feedback from LENA Grow sites and analysis of more than 13,000 classroom LENA Days, we have identified a number of outcomes you can reasonably expect to see when the program is implemented with fidelity. (For more information on implementing with fidelity, see the guidelines in the previous chapter.)
Reporting Results
Metric Expected Outcome
Increased conversational turns: After teachers have viewed LENA reports and worked with coaches to implement strategies for increasing interaction in the classroom, children will be experiencing between 5 and 25 (or more) turns per hour.
• At least 90 percent of children at five or more turns per hour (Above Minimum)
• At least 60 percent of children at 15 or more turns per hour (Accomplished)
• At least 30 percent of children at 25 or more turns per hour (Advanced)
Increases for children who start with lower talk: Children who begin at interaction levels below 15 turns per hour will increase in both words and turns by the end of the program.
• 40 percent increase in conversational turns
• 25 percent increase in adult words
Interactive Days: Teachers participating in LENA Grow and implementing the Talking Tips can expect to get to the point where almost all of their LENA Days are interactive.
• 95 percent InteractiveDays over final month (last four LENA Days)
Teacher retention: LENA Grow sites have reported increased retention rates for teachers participating in the program.
• This will vary by center. Set a specific improvement goal depending on your needs. Our team at LENA is happy to consult and share previous experiences.
When the class averages at least five turns per hour that’s an Interactive Hour. When there are five or more Interactive Hours, that’s an Interactive Day.
Interactive Days
Chapter 10:
Reporting Results
58
Keep in Mind...The potential benefits of increased interactive talk through LENA Grow are profound and wide-ranging. However, it is important to keep expectations realistic and to clearly understand what the program can and cannot do.
There are factors unrelated to the teacher that can influence LENA Day numbers. These factors may include a child’s mood, changes in routine, and classroom noise, among other things. It is important to talk through these factors and support teachers in increasing interaction without judgment. LENA feedback is intended to serve as an ally of the teacher, providing objective insight into the level of verbal interaction at both the room and the individual child levels.
Keep in mind that while interactive talk is a key factor for a child’s development and the focus of LENA Grow, it comes more naturally to some teachers than others. Teachers need to be met where they are and given the opportunity to improve. As one of our partners is fond of saying, “You don’t have to be bad to get better.”
LENA cannot identify what type of interaction is occurring. LENA conversational turns are a simple count of back-and-forth interactions between children and caregivers. LENA cannot gauge the content or emotional tone of the adult speech. Increases in conversational turns tend to be associated with positive interactions, since children are far more likely to stay engaged in positive conversations than negative ones.
LENA Grow may not fit every situation. Some teachers may not respond to the reports and feedback, or they may try earnestly to increase interactions and not see results of their efforts in the reports. It is important to be patient with all teachers and understand that there is not a one-size-fits-all approach to professional development. Alternative programs that involve more one-on-one time, personal instruction, and modeling may be a better fit for some teachers.
LENA is not designed to take the place of speech-language therapy or other therapy. However, we believe all children can benefit from a strong language environment. It’s important to remember that children with diagnosed language or learning disabilities may not respond to increased interaction in the same way that typically developing children do. Small increases are still to be celebrated.
Some children won’t wear the vest, and that’s okay. Children with behavior or sensory processing challenges may not be willing to participate. It is not a good idea to try to force a child to wear a vest in the morning if it causes a meltdown. Teachers can still implement the Talking Tips with children who are not wearing the vest.
Chapter 10
59
Reporting ResultsAfter everyone has worked hard to achieve positive results, it’s time to share them! Luckily, the data-rich nature of LENA Grow offers a variety of ways to report results depending on your audience and their specific interests. While some stakeholders may want to know whether teachers increased interactive talk, others will be more interested in how a room or center did overall. Several ideas for reporting data are described in this chapter. Feel free to reach out to [email protected] for more detailed information on accessing these data and ways of reporting results.
Reaching your Program GoalsSites may choose to report results at the center level, the room level, or the individual child level. Which aspects you report will depend on your goals for the center. Centers can choose which level they want to target. In the example below, the goal was for 90 percent of the children in all classrooms to be at the Above Minimum level for conversational turns (see page 37 on guidance for setting final goals). This center achieved their goal by getting 96 percent of children to the Above Minimum level. Moreover, reporting results in this way allows stakeholders to see which rooms went above and beyond to meet “stretch” goals. Although this example center was focused on meeting the target for Above Minimum interactions, they also exceeded expectations by surpassing the target for the Accomplished level.
Reporting Results
% Above Minimum % Accomplished % Advanced
98 55 15
95 67 32
96 61 27
Room
Infant 1
Toddler 2
All Center
Center Wide Goal: 90% Above Minimum
The center met their goal!
Example Center
Recommended Program GoalsAdvanced – 30 percentAccomplished – 60 percentAbove Minimum – 90 percent
60
Progress ReportsIn LENA Online, there are Progress Reports that illustrate room- and site-level pre-post comparisons. These reports provide detail on the child-level experience in response to the program. The At-a-Glance Report at right displays pre-post comparisons on a single graph, showing where children in each room started and the relative degree of change.
From Apr 24, 2018 - Jun 5, 2018 (6 Weeks)Progress | Toddler Room 1 - Spring
Children in each room who had at least five LENA Days and met attendance criteria for the time period indicated.
First 2 LENA Days
Last 2 LENA Days
First 2 LENA Days
Last 2 LENA Days
First 2 LENA Days
Last 2 LENA Days
0 25 50 75 100
20%
60%
60%
80%
100%
100%
1
3
3
4
5
5
Advanced: 25+ Turns
Acco��lished: �5+ Turns
A�ove Mini�u�: 5+ Turns
Percent of Your Children Meeting Goal
Total Children: 5
Goals: 90%, 60%, 30%
Progress Report - Center View
Room (# children) <5
Room 1 (15)
Room 2 (13)
Room 3 (10)
Room 4 (11)
Room 5 (6)
Room 6 (7)
Above Minimum Accomplished Advanced
Conversational Turns Per Hour
Previous Day
Key
Most Recent Day
0 5 10 15 20 25
At-a-Glance Report - By Room
These Progress Reports are available for children who have completed four LENA Days, so they can be useful for interim reporting or for final program analysis.
The graph below shows the number of children who are experiencing the three levels of interaction compared to where they started. This can be displayed for the entire site or for single rooms.
30 35
four
Chapter 10
From Apr 24, 2018 - Jun 5, 2018 (6 Weeks)Progress | Toddler Room 1 - Spring
Children in each room who had at least five LENA Days and met attendance criteria for the time period indicated.
First 2 LENA Days
Last 2 LENA Days
First 2 LENA Days
Last 2 LENA Days
First 2 LENA Days
Last 2 LENA Days
0 25 50 75 100
20%
60%
60%
80%
100%
100%
1
3
3
4
5
5
Advanced: 25+ Turns
Acco��lished: �5+ Turns
A�ove Mini�u�: 5+ Turns
Percent of Your Children Meeting Goal
Total Children: 5
Goals: 90%, 60%, 30%
61
AppendixLENA Reports
Sample Room Summary ReportThe Room Summary Report is a bird’s-eye view of the patterns of talk in the room on the most recent LENA Day. It is from this report that teachers have the opportunity to earn stars!
3. This LENA Day - Hourly Breakout graph shows an hourly breakout of conversational turns per hour on the most recent LENA Day.
4. The Room-Level Interactive Talk Clock is a snapshot of all talk in the classroom from 8 am to 5 pm. A wedge is filled in for every Interactive Hour (any hour where children are experiencing an average of five or more turns per hour). The wedges turn green when at least five hours are interactive. This is an Interactive Day!
• A trophy appears on the hour with the highest number of turns.• A star will appear in the middle of the clock for an Interactive Day.
5. The Child-Level Interactive Talk Clocks show each child’s experience on the current LENA Day. They are arranged left to right according to level of interaction (turns per hour, lowest to highest).
• The number in the middle of each clock is the average for each child. • If a child’s name is listed but the center of their clock says “NA,” this means the child did not
participate in the current LENA Day. • Underneath the clocks, there is a summary of the child’s Interactive Days.
1. Total stars: Teachers can earn up to two stars per report. This number reflects the total stars earned up through the most recent LENA Day.
2. The Conversational Turns per Hour graph compares the average of the previous three LENA Days (left bar) to the most recent LENA Day (right bar). A star will appear on this graph if:
• This LENA Day is at or above 25 turns per hour.
or• This LENA Day is higher
than the “Previous Average” bar.
3 earned from Turns - 7 earned from Interactive LENA Days
10 total stars earned since LENA Day 1
Conversational Turns per Hour This LENA Day - Hourly Breakout
510
25
35
Previous Average This LENA Day
21
31
You earned a starbecause this LENA Dayis 25 or more!
0
20
40
60
80
8A 9A 10A 11A 12P 1P 2P 3P 4P
Room-Level Interactive Clock
9
12
3
8am was your best hour for this day with 71 turns.
Yvette32 months
18per hour
5 days of 7
Bob23 months
32per hour
5 days of 7
Fulton29 months
33per hour
5 days of 6
Erin23 months
38per hour
7 days of 7
Abner25 months
NA
2 days of 5
Day #7 - 6/5/2018Room Summary Toddler Room 1 - Spring - 5 Children
Appendix
62
Sample Room Detail ReportThe Room Detail Report will help shift the discussion to a more detailed review of hourly counts and other LENA measures. Daily summaries are on the left with the most recent day shaded darker. The hourly breakouts for that day are shown on the right.
1. LENA Day Adult Words shows adult word count estimates. LENA technology does not recognize specific words. It estimates word counts based on syllable counts and sound distributions.
3. LENA Day Conversational Turns shows the average number of conversational turns per hour on each LENA Day. Stars on this graph represent the stars earned on the Conversational Turns per Hour chart on the Room Summary Report for that day.*
4. LENA Day Audio Environment/Clear Speech graph estimates the amount of clear speech children in the room were exposed to. Clear speech is any adult or child vocal output not dominated by noise, overlapping speech, or electronic media. This amount is usually lower than 20 percent in child care settings. When this amount is lower than 10 or 15 percent, there could be excessive noise levels that can make it more difficult for children to hear, attend to, and absorb language.
5. The Hourly Breakout graphs in the right-hand column show words, turns, and audio environment details from the most recent LENA Day, hour by hour.
*Child cries are not included in conversational turns or clear speech.
2. The lines and bands on the graphs provide a comparison to LENA’s database of Grow classrooms.• The dark lines
represent the average adult words or conversational turns in the home.
• The lighter bands show the averages from children in LENA Grow classrooms.
The lines and bands on the conversational turns graph are adjusted based on the average age of the children in the classroom.
0
1000
2000
4/26 5/8 5/15 5/22 5/29 6/5
LENA Day Adult Words
0
1000
2000
3000
4000
8A 9A 10A 11A 12P 1P 2P 3P 4P
Adult Words - Hourly Breakout 6/5/18
0
10
20
30
40
50
4/26 5/8 5/15 5/22 5/29 6/5
LENA Day Conversational Turns
01020304050607080
8A 9A 10A 11A 12P 1P 2P 3P 4P
Conversational Turns - Hourly Breakout 6/5/18
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
6/5
Average CT in home language environmentTypical CT range in preschool/child care environments
LENA Day Audio Environment/Clear Speech
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
8A 9A 10A 11A 12P 1P 2P 3P 4P
Hourly Audio Environment on 6/5/18
Average AWC in home language environmentTypical AWC range in preschool/child care environments
4/26 5/8 5/15 5/22 5/29Typical range in preschool/child care environments
6/5/18Room Detail Toddler Room 1 - Spring - 5 Children
4/24
4/24
4/24
63
Sample Progress ReportThe Progress Report looks at change over time. It compares average turns for each child’s first two and most recent two LENA Days. The data includes all children who have at least four LENA Days.
There are three turns levels shown on the Room Progress Report:
1. AdvAnced – Children who experienced 25 or more turns per hour, on average.
2. Accomplished – Children who experienced 15 or more turns per hour, on average.
3. Above minimum – Children who experienced five or more turns per hour, on average
Each level shows two bars:
4. Beginning: The top bar shows the number of children who satisfied each level’s criteria at their initial recordings (average of their first two LENA Days).
5. Last 2 LENA Days: The lower bar shows the average of each child’s most recent two LENA Days. The goal is for the lower bar to be longer than the upper, which shows improvement.
6. Goals: The triangle shows the goal for each level. The goal is to get at least 30 percent to AdvAnced, at least 60 percent to Accomplished, and at least 90 percent of children to Above minimum.
From Apr 24, 2018 - Jun 5, 2018 (6 Weeks)Progress | Toddler Room 1 - Spring
Children in each room who had at least five LENA Days and met attendance criteria for the time period indicated.
First 2 LENA Days
Last 2 LENA Days
First 2 LENA Days
Last 2 LENA Days
First 2 LENA Days
Last 2 LENA Days
0 25 50 75 100
20%
60%
60%
80%
100%
100%
1
3
3
4
5
5
Advanced: 25+ Turns
Acco��lished: �5+ Turns
A�ove Mini�u�: 5+ Turns
Percent of Your Children Meeting Goal
Total Children: 5
Goals: 90%, 60%, 30%
four
Appendix