The Role of Comprehension Monitoring, Mentalizing, and Vocabulary Depth in Predicting the Story Comprehension and Recall of Kindergarten Children

• In Event: Poster Session 12
  In Poster Session: Understanding the Literacy Skills of Early Readers and Writers

Abstract

Preschoolers’ story comprehension is influenced by several cognitive and linguistic processes. In this study we examine the role of comprehension monitoring, vocabulary depth, mentalizing and executive function, in explaining children’s story comprehension, over and above the effects of previously studied predictors, in a sample of 257 middle-income Chilean kindergarteners. Results suggest that, for story comprehension measured through inferential and literal questions, monitoring, vocabulary breadth, inhibitory skill and attention, but not mentalizing, explain additional variance over and above that explained by vocabulary breadth and inference-making. For story comprehension measured with literal recall, only working memory and depth of vocabulary explain significant variance. Theoretical as well as practical implications are discussed.

Authors

• Katherine A. Strasser, Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile

• Maria Francisca Del Rio, UNIVERSIDAD DIEGO PORTALES