Use of elaboration strategies by students in grades two, four, and six

We examined elaboration strategy use as a function of prior knowledge with students in grades 2, 4, and 6. In this study, 134 Canadian students in 4 s chools were assigned randomly to either a verbal elaboration (answer why ea ch fact was true), imagery (create a mental picture), or keyword condition (create a mental picture using provided keywords) and presented with 4 fami liar and 4 unfamiliar animal story sets. They were then tested for memory o f the information. Second graders were not able to benefit from the imagery strategy unless given support. In contrast, verbal elaboration's benefits were not dependent on grade level. Imagery appeared to be a potent strategy for grade 6 students, as it is for adults, even when they had access to li mited background knowledge. Introducing strategies as early as possible in the educational curriculum is vital if teachers are to encourage children t o become self-regulated learners.