'As long as we're reading stories, chidren will be chanting "again", "again!"'
Jessica Horst from Sussex University's Word Lab
Friday, March 8, 2013
Many parents and carers realise that children love to hear the same stories read again and again. What new research in this area uncovering, however, is why this is repetition is beneficial for learning.
In the Word Lab we’ve now conducted a few studies on children’s word learning each demonstrating that repeating the learning context promotes learning better than providing a variety of contexts. In our storybook research we’ve shown this by comparing how well children learn when the same storybooks are read repeatedly or when they are read the same number of stories, but hear each story only once (here the learning context is the storyline and the illustrations).
Children learn words better from hearing the same stories repeated both when the stories are repeated immediately and when the stories are repeated over the course of one week. We've also found the same effect when children play a videogame where they help a character tidy up his room. In this case the learning context is the other toys that are next to the new ones the child is learning the names for. When children see the new toys in the same contexts (for example always with a car and a block) they learn the names better than when the see the new toys just as often, but always in different contexts.
In each of these studies children learned better when the information they weren’t even trying to learn (the car, the block) were repeated. But we could have easily predicted finding just the opposite. It also makes sense that seeing the same thing in a variety of situations should aid learning and help form a deeper understanding of what something is. For example, if a child only ever saw a rake in the context of leaves, she may never learn that rakes can also make pretty designs in a sandbox. It may be that later, as children’s understanding improves, variation becomes more helpful for learning.
Children thrive on predictability and routine. What our research is showing is that one reason repetition and predictability might help children learn is because it helps them focus their attention so they can process the new aspects of the learning context. When a child hears several different stories, his or her attention will be divided between the new characters, the distinct plots, the individual illustrations and any new vocabulary words. But, when a child hears a story again some of that information is known, the child knows a little about the characters and might remember some of the plot. Now the child can focus his attention on the finer details, like a new word.
There are many reasons to read to children, it’s not all about word learning. Reading to children can also teach them about people, events and even healthy foods. And then there is the recreation and relaxation, the social bonding and quality time. As long as we're reading stories, children will be chanting ‘again! again!’ Hopefully knowing that these requests are highly beneficial to children’s learning will make everyone involved excited to hear the same stories repeated over and over again.
Children learn words better from hearing the same stories repeated both when the stories are repeated immediately and when the stories are repeated over the course of one week. We've also found the same effect when children play a videogame where they help a character tidy up his room. In this case the learning context is the other toys that are next to the new ones the child is learning the names for. When children see the new toys in the same contexts (for example always with a car and a block) they learn the names better than when the see the new toys just as often, but always in different contexts.
In each of these studies children learned better when the information they weren’t even trying to learn (the car, the block) were repeated. But we could have easily predicted finding just the opposite. It also makes sense that seeing the same thing in a variety of situations should aid learning and help form a deeper understanding of what something is. For example, if a child only ever saw a rake in the context of leaves, she may never learn that rakes can also make pretty designs in a sandbox. It may be that later, as children’s understanding improves, variation becomes more helpful for learning.
Children thrive on predictability and routine. What our research is showing is that one reason repetition and predictability might help children learn is because it helps them focus their attention so they can process the new aspects of the learning context. When a child hears several different stories, his or her attention will be divided between the new characters, the distinct plots, the individual illustrations and any new vocabulary words. But, when a child hears a story again some of that information is known, the child knows a little about the characters and might remember some of the plot. Now the child can focus his attention on the finer details, like a new word.
There are many reasons to read to children, it’s not all about word learning. Reading to children can also teach them about people, events and even healthy foods. And then there is the recreation and relaxation, the social bonding and quality time. As long as we're reading stories, children will be chanting ‘again! again!’ Hopefully knowing that these requests are highly beneficial to children’s learning will make everyone involved excited to hear the same stories repeated over and over again.
