Researchers in northern Ontario to study how books can help kids learn French words

Jonathan Migneault · CBC News

· Posted: Nov 07, 2025 10:40 AM EST | Last Updated: 6 hours ago

Researchers astatine Laurentian University are speechmaking French books to preschoolers successful Sudbury this period to find the champion ways to thatch them caller words.

Roxanne Bélanger, a code connection pathologist astatine Laurentian, said the extremity is to thatch young children “tier 2” words. Those are bigger words — specified arsenic “outrageous” — that a kid mightiness not usage connected a regular basis.

"Research has shown that not lone is speechmaking a bully mode to thatch those words, but that we besides person to thatch them explicitly,” Bélanger said.

“So we request to explain, springiness definitions for these words. Because children who person a amended knowing of these words person amended occurrence astatine school."

Chantal Mayer-Crittenden is besides a code connection pathologist astatine Laurentian, and portion of the probe group.

She said akin studies person been done successful the United States, but children southbound of the borderline are often older erstwhile they commencement preschool.

For Laurentian’s study, the people property is betwixt 2 and a fractional and 4 years old.

The different cardinal difference, said Mayer-Crittenden, is that the Laurentian survey is focused connected French-speaking children successful a assemblage wherever English is the ascendant language.

Bélanger said children mostly don’t person immoderate issues learning 2 languages, arsenic agelong arsenic they person capable vulnerability to those languages.

But she said much probe is needed to find the champion ways to assistance French-speaking children with connection delays successful communities similar Sudbury.

Mayer-Crittenden said the end-goal with the probe is to assistance parents and aboriginal puerility educators.

"We don't privation to support each of this accusation to ourselves,” she said.

“We privation to springiness it backmost and hopefully assistance different children who are learning French successful a number discourse larn immoderate of these tier 2 words done publication reading."