The Baby Language Lab at the University of Manitoba

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The Baby Language Lab at the University of Manitoba Located at the University of Manitoba, directed by Dr. Melanie Soderstrom. Most of our research involves perceptual studies of infants. We hope to see you soon!

This lab, started in Fall 2008, is dedicated to understanding how infants and toddlers two years old and under learn to speak their first language. With the older age groups, we are especially interested in what infants know about the properties of their language, such as which sounds belong together. With the younger ages, we look at what skills infants bring to the task of listening to the language, such as sensitivities to the melodic properties of language, and how these skills influence their ability to learn their first language. In these studies, we play sounds and video for infants. By measuring their interest in what they are seeing and hearing, we can learn about what they understand and perceive about the world around them. We also collect recordings of language that infants hear in different environments and analyze different characteristics of those language environments. We are always looking for volunteers (babies and their parents or guardians) to come into our lab and participate in our studies. A typical visit takes less than 30 minutes, and you will receive a small gift from us for participating, as well as parking or bus fare reimbursement, and an enjoyable experience in our lab. We are currently recruiting infants between the ages of 4 and 12 months of age to participate in our studies. In addition, we are especially interested in recruiting:
- Infants exposed to German or French regularly for a study on vowel discrimination abilities
- Preterm infants (infants born at fewer than 37 weeks) to participate in a study on the effects of gestational age on infant speech perception capabilities
- Adolescent mothers and their infants for a study on the language environments of children born to young moms

Please give us a call or send us a message!

Our lab has thoroughly enjoyed connecting with local families recently at both the Teddy Bears’ Picnic and the Belly, Ba...
10/08/2026

Our lab has thoroughly enjoyed connecting with local families recently at both the Teddy Bears’ Picnic and the Belly, Baby & Beyond Expo.

Thank you to everyone who stopped by to chat with our researchers. If you’re interested in participating in our ongoing studies or learning more about our research, please send us an email ([email protected]) or a DM.

✨ MEET THE VENDOR ✨We’re excited to introduce the Baby Language Research Lab at the University of Manitoba! 🍼💛This devel...
10/01/2026

✨ MEET THE VENDOR ✨

We’re excited to introduce the Baby Language Research Lab at the University of Manitoba! 🍼💛

This developmental psychology lab explores the amazing things infants already bring to the task of learning language. Their research looks at skills such as babies’ sensitivity to the melodic properties of language and how these early abilities may influence their journey toward learning their first language.

Most of their research involves perceptual and observational studies with infants, helping researchers better understand how babies listen, perceive and begin making sense of the language around them. 👶💬

But their work doesn’t stop in the lab! The Baby Language Research Lab strongly believes in knowledge mobilization — sharing the knowledge gathered through research with the community.

They’ll be joining us at the Expo to share information about their research and current studies, including opportunities for families to learn more about participating in their research. So if you have a little one at home and are curious about what’s happening inside that tiny, developing brain, be sure to stop by and say hello! 💛

Website: babylanguagelab.org
Facebook: BabyLanguageLab
Instagram: uofmbabylanguagelab
Email: [email protected]

🍼 Belly, Baby & Beyond Expo
📅 Saturday, October 3, 2026
📍 Archwood Community Club, Winnipeg
🎟️ FREE ADMISSION!

Come discover local businesses, services, resources and organizations supporting Winnipeg families through pregnancy, babies, kids and beyond.

🎟️ Comment below for FREE tickets, or send us a message!

The Belly, Baby & Beyond Expo is right around the corner and we cannot wait to meet all the parents and families that co...
09/28/2026

The Belly, Baby & Beyond Expo is right around the corner and we cannot wait to meet all the parents and families that come out on Saturday, October 3rd!

🎟 Free Admission
⏰ 10am - 3pm
📍 Archwood Community Centre (565 Guilbault St)

There are 40+ vendors offering a large variety of services to help make the parenting journey easier and more enjoyable!
Winnipeg Belly, Baby & Beyond Expo

The Baby Language Lab is attending the Teddy Bears' Picnic on Sunday, September 27th from 9am - 4pm. Rain or shine come ...
09/23/2026

The Baby Language Lab is attending the Teddy Bears' Picnic on Sunday, September 27th from 9am - 4pm.

Rain or shine come out to Assiniboine Park, where there will be more than 20 activity tents and fun for all!

The Baby Language Lab is recruiting research participants!If you have a baby under 12 months old, you may be eligible to...
09/21/2026

The Baby Language Lab is recruiting research participants!
If you have a baby under 12 months old, you may be eligible to participate.

We’re studying how babies learn language by playing speech sounds for them and seeing how they respond. The study involves a one-time, in-person appointment that will take about 30 minutes in total (and you will be with your baby at all times!)

Interested? You can email us at [email protected], or send us a direct message here. We’re happy to answer any questions!

For her honour’s thesis, Marlea Sabo looked at how maternal stress during the perinatal period affects communicative ges...
09/09/2026

For her honour’s thesis, Marlea Sabo looked at how maternal stress during the perinatal period affects communicative gesturing with 8–12-month-old infants. While the findings weren't statistically significant, the data showed a moderate negative trend: mothers experiencing higher levels of stress tended to use fewer communicative gestures with their infants. Interestingly, maternal and infant gesturing were weakly positively related, suggesting that when moms gesture more, babies might pick up on it and gesture a bit more too! However, a larger sample size and additional data would be needed to confirm these preliminary findings.

"Talking" doesn't always require words! Every smile, point, babble, and squeal is a milestone in language development. W...
09/01/2026

"Talking" doesn't always require words! Every smile, point, babble, and squeal is a milestone in language development. What is your baby telling you today?

The Baby Language Lab is excited to share a new publication in Developmental Review by recent PhD graduate Dr. Sara Mont...
08/25/2026

The Baby Language Lab is excited to share a new publication in Developmental Review by recent PhD graduate Dr. Sara Montazeri and lab director Dr. Melanie Soderstrom, titled "Beyond the WEIRD Lens: Infant-directed speech across Middle Eastern contexts"

Most research on infant-directed speech has historically focused on WEIRD (Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic) contexts. In this paper, Dr. Montazeri and Dr. Soderstrom review current findings on how caregiver-infant interactions vary across Middle Eastern contexts, comparing prosodic, linguistic, and cultural features while highlighting the need for culturally responsive research tools.

You can find the article through our Recent Publications page (link in bio > Research > Recent Publications)!

Ever wonder if speaking multiple languages around your children causes confusion? Research actually shows that “code-sw...
08/17/2026

Ever wonder if speaking multiple languages around your children causes confusion? Research actually shows that “code-switching” between languages does not slow down vocabulary growth! Toddlers are natural linguists and typically adapt seamlessly.
If you are interested in reading the full article, a link can be found in our bio, (first link of our “Links of Interest” page).

Master’s student Isabelle Hadley was awarded the Research Manitoba – Children’s Hospital Research Institute of Manitoba ...
07/15/2026

Master’s student Isabelle Hadley was awarded the Research Manitoba – Children’s Hospital Research Institute of Manitoba (CHRIM) Master’s Studentship Award. This scholarship will support Isabelle's research on the impact of maternal stress on infant cognitive and language development. Congratulations, Isabelle!

Address

190 Dysart Road
Winnipeg, MB
R3T2N2

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5am
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5am

Telephone

+12044748798

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