Numerous studies have examined the positive and negative effects of various types of interactions that occur while children view electronic book (e-book) stories. However, the effects of the different types of interactions have not been compared, and more importantly, the optimal amount and reoccurrence of these interactions on children has not…

Vocabulary knowledge plays a critical role in supporting text comprehension and broader learning across the school day. While school offers opportunities to build vocabulary knowledge, studies have shown that very little time is devoted to vocabulary instruction at the elementary level. This may be, in part, because educators commonly report being…

Background: Reading comprehension is an interactive process. Yet, instructional needs are usually identified with isolated componential tests. This study examined whether a dynamic approach, in which componential abilities are measured within the same text and global text comprehension is facilitated via feedback, can help in understanding…

Programs that engage young children in movement and song to help them learn are popular but experimental evidence on their impact is sparse. We use an RCT to evaluate the effectiveness of Big Word Club (BWC), a classroom program that uses music and dance videos for 3-5 minutes per day to increase vocabulary. We conducted a field experiment with…

Purpose: This study examined science achievement; science vocabulary knowledge; and the relationship between science vocabulary, language skills, and science achievement in school-age children with language/literacy disorders (LLDs) and typical language development (TD). Method: Thirty-nine sixth graders (11 with LLDs) completed standardized…

Examining changes in the longitudinal relationship between vocabulary knowledge and three types of morphological awareness (MA), a cross-lagged design was conducted with a sample of 146 Chinese children. Homophone awareness, homograph awareness, compounding awareness, and vocabulary knowledge were measured in grades 1 (T1), 2 (T2), and 3 (T3),…

Background: Problem-solving in early and middle childhood is of high relevance for cognitive developmental research and educational support. Previous research on science problem-solving has focussed on the process and strategies of children handling challenging tasks, but less on providing insights into the cognitive network that enables science…

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a rich vocabulary intervention on the comprehension and vocabulary learning of third-grade students with language learning disorders (LLD). The study used a repeated acquisition design (RAD), a single case design involving the repeated delivery of a vocabulary intervention on different sets…

While the extant literature emphasizes the role of Phonological Awareness (PA) and Rapid Automatized Naming (RAN) in children's developing reading comprehension and vocabulary acquisition skills, there has been a paucity of information on the contributions made by other factors such as Morphological Awareness (MA). Although evidence of a…

Interactive book reading (IBR) as a context for vocabulary learning is studied widely in preschool children and kindergarteners. In the present study, we elaborate on this prior research by investigating the effects of a five-week IBR intervention on first graders' expressive target vocabulary growth. A repeated measures design with two…

Background: Prominent theories of reading make the prediction that individual differences in children's word learning capacity determine the pace of their acquisition of reading skill. Despite the developmental nature of some of these theories, most empirical research to date has explored the relation between word learning capacity and reading at…

Purpose: This study investigated the effects of early shared reading and access to books on reading vocabulary in middle childhood and the pathways associated with later reading success. Method: Path analysis of data from four waves of a national longitudinal study of children (N = 7,751) was used to investigate direct and indirect effects of…

Typically, vocabulary instruction is associated as part of reading instruction. However, vocabulary instruction is also a necessary component of mathematics instruction. In fact, state and national standards (e.g., Common Core State Standards) require elementary students to communicate about mathematics to provide clear explanations, construct…

Strategy interventions have been found to support students' text comprehension, but little is known about the sustainability of these effects. This study examined short- and long-term effects of a strategy intervention on students' vocabulary and text comprehension at the literal, inferential and evaluative levels. A pretest, posttest, and…

This study aimed to investigate the following questions: Does the use of thinking maps and semantic mapping during explicit vocabulary instruction affect content specific science vocabulary knowledge and comprehension in fourth grade students? and What are student perceptions of using thinking maps and semantic maps to learn new vocabulary? To…