The study reported here investigated the effects of using props to illustrate the meaning of sentences in a syntactic awareness task in which subjects were required to correct ungrammatical sentences. Children scored significantly higher in the props condition though the proportion of meaning-changing errors to total errors was not significantly…

Presents brief annotations of 30 children's books (published in 1994) selected as outstanding trade books for enhancing language awareness among students in grades K-8. (SR)

A study charting the development of 120 participants to define is presented. Participants were asked to define eight concrete and eight abstract nouns. Results indicate that there are significant differences in the way concrete and abstract nouns are defined. (32 references) (GLR)

Describes the acquisition and use of a Chinese metalanguage with which ambiguous spoken words are graphically contextualized. The metalanguage is composed of strategies that range from the actual writing of the Chinese graph (character) to those where the graph is accommodated in a verbal presentation. (12 references) (JL)

Examines cognates (lexical items from different languages that are identified by bilinguals as being the same thing), arguing that the Cohort Model effectively explains cognate properties and that cognates should be defined in terms of their structural representations and the processes that activate and select them. (79 references) (Author/CB)

Presents an annotated bibliography of 29 outstanding children's trade books published in 1991 that can enhance language awareness among elementary school children. (RS)

Proposes a translation framework to be used in the Spanish foreign-language classroom as a supplementary teaching technique. The use of translation techniques in the classroom can bridge the gap between language and culture by helping students develop metalinguistic skills that bring them to a higher level of awareness about the target language…

Presents an annotated bibliography of 30 titles selected as notable for their potential to enhance language awareness among children in grades K-8. Notes that each book demonstrates one or more of the following criteria: (1) dealing with play on words, word origins, etc.; (2) demonstrating uniqueness in the use of language; and (3) inviting child…

Demonstrates the need for a more democratic and pluralist model of reader that may take into account cultural and linguistic differences. Shows why interpretations produced by student readers may be considered as valid as those of critics or teachers if the students ground their response on an explicit account of the language patterning.…

Examines the characteristics of the teaching and learning of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) in secondary schools. Seeks to define language awareness and its role in the context of EFL. Discusses what literature can offer to enhance language awareness. Offers examples of tasks that identify and illustrate aspects of language awareness in a…

Using a word order correction paradigm, this study assessed syntactic awareness skills in children with good and poor reading comprehension, matched for age, decoding skill, and nonverbal ability. Poor comprehenders performed less well than normal readers, and the performance of both groups was influenced by the syntactic complexity and semantic…

Demonstrates the willingness and ability of non-linguists to provide information about "what they know" about everyday speech activities in the form of their interpretive responses to various tape-recorded fragments of talk. Three types of information are identified from these responses, including overtly "available" information about a variety of…

Examines differences in metalinguistic development between monolingual and bilingual children in terms of three subcategories: word awareness, syntactic awareness, and phonological awareness. In each case, some studies have reported advantages for bilingual children, while others have found either no difference between the groups or monolingual…

Presents brief descriptions of 1999's list of Notable Children's Books in the Language Arts: 30 children's trade books published in 1998 chosen for their outstanding potential to enhance language awareness among students in grades K-8. (SR)

Looks at the strategies used by adult nonnative speakers (NNS) when performing pedagogic tasks. Repairs that make use of discourse markers such as "what I mean is," are identified as being effective in overcoming communication difficulties and completing tasks. Suggests that the ability to make use of such devices is evidence of…