1. Higher Pitch: Caregivers tend to speak in a higher pitch than their normal speaking voice when talking to babies and young children. This helps attract the child's attention and makes the speech more engaging.
2. Simplified Grammar and Vocabulary: Caregivers often use shorter sentences, simpler vocabulary, and a more basic grammatical structure when speaking to children. This helps them to understand and learn language more easily.
3. Exaggerated Pronunciation and Intonation: Caregivers often exaggerate their pronunciation and use a more melodic and expressive intonation. This helps to make the speech more interesting and engaging for children.
4. Repetition and Expansion: Caregivers frequently repeat words and phrases, and they often expand on what the child says. This helps children to learn new vocabulary and to understand the meaning of words and phrases.
It's important to note that these features vary depending on the age of the child, the caregiver's individual speech style, and the cultural context. However, these features are generally considered to be common characteristics of caregiver speech that contribute to language development in children.