Making It Hang Together

Abstract

Many of the narratives told by children are mapped onto frameworks carried in long-term memory. Scripts, derived from experience with events, and story frameworks, derived from listening to or reading stories, serve to support recall and retrieval of information and to structure narratives incorporating the information. Assessment can reveal (1) whether a child has the necessary experience to form a relevant framework, (2) whether the child can use the framework to structure a nonverbal narrative (through use of pictures or actions), and (3) whether the child can use the framework to structure a verbal narrative. Explanations for children's failures to use narrative frameworks can serve to focus appropriate intervention.