THE EFFECTS OF EXPLICIT STORY GRAMMAR INSTRUCTION ON THE NARRATIVE SKILLS OF PRESCHOOL CHILDREN

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of large-group, explicit, story grammar vocabulary instruction during shared storybook reading on the narrative retell skills of preschoolers. Two preschool classrooms in rural, southeastern Illinois participated in the study. The study examined narrative retell ability via the Test of Narrative Retell-Preschool. Scores were compared for the experimental group, who received instruction from the investigator, to the control group, who received instruction from their regular classroom teacher. The study also explored instructional practices during shared storybook reading through observational checklists of recorded sessions. The results of the study indicated that students who received experimental instruction showed significant gains in scores for character, setting, and emotion on the Test of Narrative Retell-Preschool, but these gains were not significantly higher than the control group students, who also showed significant gains in scores throughout the six-week study.