For Parents

Thank you so much for your interest in our research. We rely on parents like you to help us answer questions about how children learn language and how they view the world. You can contribute to research that informs educational practice!

The Project on Language and Spatial Development sees families like yours everyday. Parents and children give their personal time to contribute to research that informs policy and practice in everyday situations. The research we do here directly informs educational practice—we provide the scientific foundation for evidence-based education.

We appreciate your willingness to join us in conducting this research so we can better understand how children develop and learn.

If you would like to participate in our studies, or are simply interested in getting more information about us, please:

If you have a child between the ages of 4 years and 6 years, we have some active studies.

Attention and Learning in Early Childhood Study (ALEC): We are looking for children who are 4 years of age (between 46 months and 50 months of age) and 5 years of age (between 58 months and 62 months of age) for an Attention and Learning in Early Childhood (ALEC) study. This study is conducted over zoom across two sessions. Each session will last approximately 1 hour and will be scheduled one week apart. Children will watch short videos, complete a naming game and some shape and memory games, and play with their caregiver in a 10-minute play session. Families will receive a $20 target gift card after the first session and a $30 target gift card after the second session. If interested please fill out the English screening form at https:/go.fiu.edualec or call: 305-348-9055 or email alec@fiu.edu.

Project Seahorse: We are conducting a study on the brain and spatial abilities in young children (ages 4-6 year) who have never been diagnosed with a mental or behavioral disorder. Participants will spend about 30 minutes to an hour completing an MRI brain scan and an hour completing learning and spatial memory tasks. This study takes place on our FIU campus. Families will receive a $75, a photo of their child's brain and we will test the child for potential gifted status. If interested please fill out the English screening form at https:/go.fiu.eduSeahorseEn or Spanish screening form at https:/go.fiu.eduSeahorseSp or call: 305-348-9055 or email plsd@fiu.edu.

For answers to some of those frequently asked questions, please click on the link on the left called "Frequently Asked Questions."