Encouraging narratives in preschoolers: an intervention study

Area of Science:

• Developmental Psychology
• Early Childhood Education
• Linguistics

Background:

• Economically disadvantaged preschoolers often face challenges in language and narrative skill development.
• Early narrative abilities are linked to later literacy acquisition.
• Parental interaction styles significantly influence child language development.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the impact of a mother-child narrative intervention on preschoolers' vocabulary and narrative skills.
• To assess the long-term effects of the intervention on decontextualized language use.
• To determine if enhanced narrative conversation improves foundational literacy skills.

Main Methods:

• Random assignment of 20 preschoolers to an intervention or control group.
• Intervention mothers received training to promote narrative conversations and open-ended questions.
• Children's narrative and vocabulary skills were assessed pre-intervention, post-intervention, and at a one-year follow-up.

Main Results:

• Intervention children demonstrated significant vocabulary gains immediately post-intervention.
• A year later, intervention children showed overall improvements in narrative skill, including more context-setting details (where/when).
• Enhanced narrative skills, particularly decontextualized language, were observed in the intervention group.

Conclusions:

• A year-long intervention focused on maternal narrative conversation significantly improves preschoolers' vocabulary and narrative abilities.
• The intervention fosters the development of decontextualized language, a key predictor of literacy acquisition.
• Targeted parental engagement in narrative interactions can effectively enhance early language and literacy foundations in at-risk children.