Boosting Early Language and Literacy
in partnership with LENA Grow®
Engaging with children in their earliest years is crucial- the first five years lay the foundation for all future learning. Research shows that strong language and literacy skills developed before kindergarten can significantly impact a child’s success in school and beyond. Yet, many young learners in Indiana are missing out on this vital period of growth.
The Opportunity
One research-backed way to change this is by supporting early educators in creating more interactive, “serve and return” conversation with children. These back-and-forth exchanges are not only fun, but they are also a leading factor in brain development and child growth. By raising awareness of the importance of interactive talk and equipping educators with practical strategies, we can help improve classroom practices and boost learning outcomes.
To deepen early language and literacy practices, Early Learning Indiana — with generous support from Lilly Endowment Inc. — is offering an opportunity for early education programs to bring LENA Grow® to their classrooms.
Boost Early Language and Literacy in Your Program
Early Learning Indiana is expanding Boosting Early Language and Literacy in partnership with LENA Grow to 300 additional providers across Indiana over the next few years. To participate, organizations must meet the following criteria:
Nonprofit that serves a charitable purpose
Committed to serving families that qualify for child care subsidies
Serve multiple classrooms of children
Complete training and support implementation of LENA Grow
Informational Webinar
What is LENA Grow?
LENA Grow is an innovative, research-based professional development program for early childhood educators. A key component of the LENA Grow program is a small wearable device — often referred to as a “talk pedometer” — combined with cloud-based software used to deliver detailed feedback that helps adults make proven, sustainable increases in interactive talk with children. LENA Grow supports early educators at every level, helping:
- Teachers gain the skills to measurably improve classroom quality by boosting adult/child interactions.
- Coaches adopt a novel, data-driven approach to complement their other observations of a teacher’s practice.
- Leadership make more informed planning and policy decisions.
Timeline
Frequently Asked Questions
Early language and literacy development is foundational to all future learning in all developmental domains. A strong foundation in oral language skills is associated with positive long-term social and academic outcomes.
LENA Grow is an innovative, research-based professional development program for early childhood educators. A key component of the LENA Grow program is a small wearable device — often referred to as a “talk pedometer” — combined with cloud-based software used to deliver detailed feedback that helps adults make proven, sustainable increases in interactive talk with children.
To participate, organizations must meet the following criteria:
- Nonprofit that serves a charitable purpose
- Committed to serving families that qualify for child care subsidies
- Serve multiple classrooms of children
Organizations should be prepared to complete training and support implementation of LENA Grow.
Any organization that meets all eligibility criteria, including a licensed family child care home, may participate.
Yes, current grantees of ELI are eligible to participate in this program.
Yes, organizations currently using LENA Grow in a subset of their classrooms are eligible to participate in this program.
Yes, an organization may have more than one location implementing LENA Grow as part of this program.
LENA Grow can be used with all groups in early education settings, from infants through pre-K.
A LENA Grow sequence is five weeks long. Additional time is needed operationally to prepare for implementation and will vary based on the organization and number of classrooms selected to participate.
All organizations must complete a minimum of one, five-week LENA Grow sequence in two or more classrooms. Organizations should be prepared to designate a coach to support LENA site implementation. Coaches may be current leaders or educators within the organization. All programs will participate in data collections using educator surveys both before and after implementation of the LENA Grow sequence.
Implementation should occur within multiple classrooms at once; however, all classrooms within a program do not need to participate at the same time.
Interested organizations can complete an interest form here.
In addition to basic program demographics, the interest form will gather the following:
- Number of classrooms and children served, and how the program serves at-risk populations
- Number of teachers and their experience levels and tenure
- Information about current classroom learning practices
- Information about approach to coaching classroom team members
- Current technology available and possible technology needs to support implementation
Interest forms will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Submit now to be considered for the Fall 2025 and Spring 2026 cohorts.
For general questions about Boosting Early Language and Literacy in partnership with LENA Grow, please email EducatorSolutions@earlylearningindiana.org.