Aspects of Narrative Production by Children Aged Three to Nine

Brazilian children grouped by age (N = 70, aged 3-9) were asked to produce oral & written stories, & their ability to use special markers (expressions & structures) delimiting the beginning & end of a narrative & cohesive means enabling topic maintenance was investigated focusing on age & code (oral/written) differentiation. Findings included (1) even three-year-olds used delimitative markers, with usage frequency increasing with age - markers for story initiation were used more often than markers for story ending; (2) the use of delimitative markers was comparable across oral & written codes (six-year-olds were the youngest group participating in the written task); (3) pronouns, null anaphora, & nominal reference (in that order) were the most often used for ordering thematic succession; (4) beginning at age five, the preference for pronouns as a cohesion means decreased whereas null anaphora & nominal reference were used more often; & (5) pronominalization & nominal reference were most often used in main & independent clauses whereas null anaphora were preferred in subordinate sentences. 8 Tables, 2 Figures, 27 References. Z. Dubiel