Two experiments, involving 90 first-grade children, were conducted to test a retrieval-inefficiency explanation for the failure of visual imagery to facilitate young children's prose recall. (Author/MP)

This study tested a theory of null subject pronoun variation, based on a model of discourse connectedness, on the oral and written Spanish narratives of northern California Mexican-descent pre-adolescents. Results indicate the children with greatest depth of ties to the United States are less likely to use overt pronouns than children born in…

Examines, within the framework of contrastive rhetoric, nominal clauses and predicates, arguing that there are essential differences in nominalization between English and Japanese, such as focusing on the event in Japanese and on the individual in English. The article emphasizes the diverse ways in which languages are endowed to express different…

Reports on two studies of the similarities and differences in communicative style between Japanese- and English-speaking parents. Findings reveal that Japanese mothers pay considerable attention to their children's narratives and facilitate frequent turn exchanges, whereas English-speaking mothers allow their children to take long monologic turns…

Asserts that the same positive outcomes associated with reading aloud to children also apply to oral storytelling, and encourages parents to share their culture, values, and beliefs through storytelling to their children. Presents specific ideas for storytelling, including "me" stories, story starters, nursery rhymes, books, cooking,…

Suggests two shifts in perspective that will help turn writing across the curriculum courses toward aim and away from mode as a central organizing principle. Suggests a theoretical shift from "mode" to "topic" and a practical shift from single to plural textuality, combining several textual paradigms as demonstrated in the…

Dialogue writing samples from 54 sixth grade students in three classrooms were compared with standard narratives written by the same subjects. Results show that children wrote longer stories and enjoyed the sessions more when writing dialogue. Children's reading levels and academic motivation had no affect on this result. (TJH)

Reports a longitudinal study in which first drafts on one assigned topic and one self-selected topic were collected once a year in grades one-three, and were analyzed for story structure, syntax, and cohesion. Finds no significant differences between the writing for the two tasks except in the area of cohesion. (SR)

Experiments revealed that children seemed able to integrate multiple sources of information but were more dependent on clue support and generally less likely to infer reason than adults. Children were more likely than adults to reject premise as an explanation of outcome. Only fourth-graders and adults modified inferences in response to resolution…

A story format and discourse analysis procedure was used to evaluate the spoken language skills of 20 elementary students with learning disabilities over a 1-year period. Stories from memory were longer and characterized by more as well as different types of errors than were stories from pictures or stories based on games. (Author/DB)

The role of narrative and dramatic processes in mediating and shaping both moral judgment and moral action, two processes central to moral development, is examined. The notion of the "moral audience," in which individuals seem to rehearse, review, and redefine their moral actions, is proposed and illustrated. (LB)

This article suggests ways that teachers can use videotape recordings to improve listening skills and enhance text structure instruction in the intermediate grades. Students develop story maps for narrative videos and texts and create organizational pattern guides for expository videos and texts. Lists of suggested videos and children's books are…

Describes how one English teacher uses Leslie Marmon Silko's novel "Ceremony" as in introduction to Native American culture and as a complex example of narrative and storytelling. Shows how the book's difficulties are enhanced by the large differences between mainstream American and Native American cultures. (HB)

Traces the clarity of noun/pronoun referents and the use of cohesive ties in personal experience narratives told by children aged two, four, six, and nine years as well as by adults. Shows that children interrelated their sentences in similar ways as adults. Discusses implications of the study for educators. (HB)

Presents a study that uses a quasi-ethnographic methodology employing impressionistic tales of the field to explore constraints and successes encountered by teachers while implementing innovative teaching approaches in middle school classrooms. A new middle school structure blended elementary and secondary school cultures. Presents three tales…