Narrative writing in children and adolescents: examining the literate lexicon

This study was designed primarily to examine the use of abstract nouns and metacognitive verbs in the narrative writing of school-age children and adolescents.

Three groups of typically developing students ages 11, 14, and 17 years (n = 40 per group) were asked to write a story about something funny, sad, or scary that had happened to them and a friend. Each student's narrative essay was examined for the use of abstract nouns (e.g., accomplishment, loneliness, mystery) and metacognitive verbs (e.g., assume, discover, realize) and for the production of complex syntax as measured by mean length of T-unit (MLTU) and clausal density (CD).

Age-related growth in narrative writing was documented for both types of words. Additionally, the use of abstract nouns and metacognitive verbs was associated with the production of complex syntax, reflecting the lexicon-syntax interface.

The narrative writing task employed in this study was effective in eliciting literate words and complex syntax in school-age children and adolescents.