Repeating the same story over and over is good for children’s learning, according to a study by the British University of Sussex, whose authors consider that it is this repetition thataccelerates vocabulary acquisition.
The study was led by psychologist Jessica Horst and its results are the result of an experiment in whichexposed two groups of 3-year-olds to learning two new words. Each of them was a word invented to designate an unknown object, such as “sprock” to refer to a manual item used to mix food. Over a period of one week, one of the groups heard three different stories with these words, while the other group heard a single story with the same new words. After that period, it was found thatchildren who had been told only one story remembered the new words better than children who had been told three different stories.
“We know that the greater the number of books you have at home, the better theacademic resultsof children, but what we had not understood is how that learning happens, “said Horst.” What this research suggests – explained the psychologist – is thato important is not the number of books, but the repetition of each of them, because it is what favors a greater learning “.
Horst noted that it was already known that children who watch the same TV show or movie over and over “perform better on subsequent comprehension tests.” According to Horst, what happens with reading is thatevery time a child hears the same story he is acquiring new information. “The first time can be only the understanding of the story, the second the perception of the details and the description, and so on progressively,” he explains. “And if the new word is introduced in a variety of contexts, as happened with those to whom three different stories were read, the chances are that the children will not be able to concentrate as much on the new word,” adds the researcher.
In conclusion, Horst noted, “the message could be that children don’t necessarily need a large number of books, but rather they benefit from repeated exposure to those they have.” The full investigation is published this month in the journalFrontiers in Psychology.
