Storytime with a twist: could Emotion-Focused reading help toddlers thrive?
NCT ID NCT07189104
First seen Jun 24, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This study explores whether a shared reading program called SAGA for Toddlers can help children aged 11 to 36 months develop better language and social-emotional skills. The program involves short, small-group reading sessions led by early childhood educators, with a focus on emotions and mental states. Researchers will measure changes in children's social behavior, vocabulary, and emotional understanding through questionnaires filled out by caregivers and teachers.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- SAGA for Toddlers (shared reading intervention with emotion and mind-related dialogues)
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could provide a simple, low-cost way for early childhood educators to support children's language and social-emotional development.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, early-stage study with 120 children, so results may not apply broadly. The intervention relies on staff training and consistency, which may vary across settings.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
-
Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
-
About 120 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
-
Sep 2025
- Expected to finish
-
Apr 2027
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
-
Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
-
11 to 36 months
- Sex
-
Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
-
Accepted
You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * 11 to 36 -months old at the start of the study * Living in Finland * Attending Swedish speaking early childhood education and care Exclusion Criteria: * None
Get updates
Get notified about this study
Sign up to get updates when this study changes or when new studies for Language development are added.
By submitting, you agree to our Terms of use
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
-
The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
-
The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
-
A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
-
University of Helsinki
RECRUITINGHelsinki, Uusimaa, 00014, Finland
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
- Can personalized recall timing boost word learning in kids with DLD?
- Can a gentle electric current help you learn a new language faster?
- Toddler screen time and language skills: a closer look
- Can quizzing help kids with language delays learn new words?
- Inside the toddler brain: how speech therapy rewires late talkers
- Can training daycare staff boost kids' emotional skills? study says maybe.