Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 20, 2026

The (Spatial) Memory Game: Testing the Relationship Between Spatial Language, Object Knowledge, and Spatial Cognition
Published on: February 19, 2018
A story about a word: does narrative presentation promote learning of a spatial preposition in German two-year-olds?
Kerstin Nachtigäller1, Katharina J Rohlfing, Karla K McGregor
1Bielefeld University, Bielefeld, Germany. kerstin.nachtigaeller@uni-bielefeld.de
Abstract:
We trained forty German-speaking children aged 1;8-2;0 in their comprehension of UNTER [UNDER]. The target word was presented within semantically organized input in the form of a 'narrative' to the experimental group and within 'unconnected speech' to the control group. We tested children's learning by asking them to perform an UNDER-relation before, immediately after, and again one day after the training using familiarized and unfamiliarized materials. Compared to controls, the experimental group learned better and retained more. Children with advanced expressive lexicons in particular were aided in generalizing to unfamiliarized materials by the narrative presentation. This study extends our understanding of how narrations scaffold young children's enrichment of nascent word knowledge.
Related Concept Videos
Language Development
The critical period for language acquisition suggests that the ability to acquire language is at its peak early in life. As people age, this proficiency decreases. Language development begins very...
The Nativist Approach
Mnemonic Devices
Acronyms
Acronyms are created by using the initial letters of a series of words to form a new word or phrase. This approach condenses complex information into a single, memorable entity. For example,...
Piaget's Stage 2 of Cognitive Development
Purposive Learning
