Talking is Teaching

Learning begins at birth, not at school entry.

TALK READ SING Tampa Bay is a community awareness campaign focused on educating Tampa residents, especially parents, about the importance of developing a child’s brain by talking, reading and singing beginning at birth.

Champions for Children employee handing a mother a bag of supplies a book with a protective mask on

Champions for Children is leading this community-wide initiative in Hillsborough County to focus on creating public awareness of early brain and vocabulary development. It encourages all parents to talk, sing and read to their children as much and as early as possible, building attachments and laying the groundwork for healthy brain development and parent-child attachment at the most critical stage.

Our campaign is driven by three core strategies:

  • Training trusted messengers and community partners how to incorporate the TALK READ SING philosophy into their work with families and become ambassadors of the initiative
  • Building “book corners” and sharing the TALK READ SING messages in public areas where families gather like health centers and laundromats
  • Leveraging social and traditional media to educate our entire community about the importance of talk, reading and singing 

Tampa has been designated as the 27th “Talking Is Teaching: TALK READ SING Community” in the United States and the second in Florida by the national Talking is Teaching campaign office out of the Too Small To Fail Foundation.

For more information, please visit the TALK READ SING Tampa Bay website, or email talkreadsing@cfctb.org.