A total of 42 language-deficient second- through fourth-grade children participated in an experiment investigating the effects on children's skills and self-efficacy of strategy self-verbalization during listening comprehension instruction. An equal number of boys and girls who had been placed in remedial classes received didactic instruction in listening comprehension. Half of the children in each grade verbalized explicit listening comprehension strategies prior to applying them to questions. Methodology included pretesting (using self-efficacy judgments and a listening comprehension skill test), the training procedure (using strategy self-verbalization and no strategy self-verbalization), posttesting, follow-up training, and follow-up testing. Results showed that self-verbalization led to a higher level of self-efficacy across grades. Strategy verbalization promoted performance among third and fourth graders but did not benefit second graders. The results also suggested further exploration of strategy verbalization, as well as covert fading procedures, with young children. The experiment was seen as having implications for clarifying the role of strategy self-verbalization in promoting cognitive skills and for encouraging self-efficacy among children with language deficiencies. (References and a table of means and standard deviations by experimental condition are included). (BJD)