Scroll less, talk more: $12 million to help preschoolers learn to talk

Saturday, 18 July 2026

As scrolling on a phone replaces everyday family chat, preschools are stepping in with a multimillion-dollar programme to teach kids how to have a conversation. CATE MACINTOSH reports.

Children gather around a teacher perched on a child’s chair for “mat time” and the story gets under way.

It’s very interactive, with seasoned early childhood education teacher Sian Davies using the book Five Little Monkeys sitting in a tree as a prop to elicit ideas from the children at the Just Kids Preschool in Wainoni, Christchurch.

“What’s in the basket?”

“Bananas.”

“Why do you think she spreads out a blanket?”

“So the food can’t get dirty.”

There are lots of interruptions - but that’s the point, getting these little people to talk.

Just Kids preschool teacher Sian Davies reads a book to children as part of the Enrich oral language programme.

Research has confirmed oral language skills in young children are foundational for thinking, communication, social relationships and expressing negative emotions.

But they are under increasing threat as screen time interrupts normal interactions between parents and children, leading to language delays and behavioural problems. Some teachers have reported dealing with new entrants who “can barely string two words together” as an estimated 94,000 children start school without the necessary oral language.

Just Kids Preschool is one of 525 which will join a $12.4 million nationwide oral literacy programme Enrich, developed by researchers at Otago University.

Enrich is based around the age-old conversational concept of “serve and return” and will be delivered by preschool teachers to children aged 0 to 5.

Participating ECE centres are provided with teacher training workshops, video clips demonstrating interaction techniques, instructional cards with tips for interactions during daily routines, and a set of picture books in English and te reo Māori featuring conversation starters.

Teachers at Just Kids Preschool have attended three workshops with Enrich facilitators learning and practising tips and techniques.

Books with prompts for conversation are a key resource in the Enrich oral language programme to be rolled out to more than 500 preschools.

Davies, who has a degree in teaching and has worked in ECE for 20 years, said the ideas and concepts were not new but the practical workshops had been inspiring.

She said preschool teachers had up to 1000 interactions with children every day so it was important to use the opportunities well.

“It’s just making sure that those interactions are actually quality and we’re extending on language during those and just getting as much out of those interactions as we can.”

A trial, led by researchers at Otago University over 18 months, found the programme improved oral language and self-regulation among toddlers at the 136 participating childcare centres.

Scrolling on a phone

Just Kids Preschool staff said they were acutely aware of the impact of technology on language development.

“The level of interactions with children these days, the level of communication and actual just conversations is way less than it used to be because [scrolling on a phone] is taking the place of conversations,” professional leader Lynley Evans said.

Just Kids preschool professional leader Lynley Evans says conversations in homes are happening less due to a rise in phone and screen use.

She was not “blaming parents”, who were “a lot busier than we ever used to be”, but the issue underscored the critical role of early childhood education, she said.

“How do those that don’t go to preschool learn to communicate with each other, learn to strengthen their communication skills, learn to have to wait, learn to take turns, learn to show empathy.”

Enrich encourages teachers to engage in one-to-one interactions where possible. Lower adult to child ratios than the legal minimum were vital to the success of the programme, Evans said.

Just Kids has a ratio of one adult to seven children for the over-2s, while the minimum allowable for this age group is 1 to 10.

For children under 2, the minimum ratio allowed is one adult to five children.

Davies said the biggest challenge was finding time to have one to one conversations, “but even that 20 or 30-second interaction with that child, as long as it’s responsive and it’s nurturing and all those things, that’s meaningful interaction”.

Al Noor Preschool is also delivering the programme and teacher Jane Taylor said staff are already seeing results.

“We’re hearing [the children] use more vocabulary, creating longer phrases or sentences, and they're more confident.”

The children’s improved ability to express themselves meant there was less frustration and staff had noticed more conversations between the children, she said.

“Today we’ve had a bike day, which is usually all about action and tearing around on the bikes, but we’ve had little clusters of boys just talking about their bikes and talking about superheroes so that's lovely.”