Maternal Elaborative Reminiscing Increases Low-Income Children's Narrative Skills Relative to Dialogic Reading

Research Findings: This study compared the unique effects of training low-income mothers in dialogic reading versus elaborative reminiscing on children's oral language and emergent literacy. Thirty-three low-income parents of 4-year-old children attending Head Start were randomly assigned to either dialogic reading, elaborative reminiscing, or a control condition. Parents in the intervention conditions were trained to implement specific and prescribed conversational techniques. Children's vocabulary, narrative, and print skills were assessed at the beginning (pretest) and at the end (posttest) of the school year. Elaborative reminiscing boosted the quality of children's narratives in comparison to dialogic reading. Elaborative reminiscing was also effective in supporting children's story comprehension. These training effects were present regardless of the children's ethnic background and whether they were bilingual. Practice: Training parents in elaborative reminiscing is a promising alternative to training in shared book reading for enhancing children's narrative development in non-mainstream populations. Parent training programs in elaborative reminiscing may also complement dialogic reading programs that take place in preschool classrooms.