Abstract
Effects of sorting stimulus figures on a subsequent free and cued recall in kindergarten children (4 year-3 months to 6 year-6 months) were investigated. In Experiment 1, children were imposed sorting figures randomly disposed according to their color or categorical concept. They were then tested for free recall, followed by color-cued or conceptual-cued recall. Correct responses in cued recall increased by the conceptual sorting task and by giving the conceptual cues. The accordance of the cue given in the sorting task with the one in recall facilitated cued recall. In Experiment 2, the effects of imposing figure-sorting and the way of the disposition of stimulus figures were tested. Figure-sorting facilitated correct responses in cued recall. In addition, children responded more correctly when clustered disposition of stimuli was used in the stimulus figure presentation period than in the random one. The results were discussed in terms of encoding specificity and accessibility of information.
