Profiles of verbal learning and memory performance were compared for typically developing children and for four developmental disorders characterized by different patterns of language functioning: specific language impairment, early focal brain damage, Williams Syndrome, and Down Syndrome. A list-learning task was used that allowed a detailed examination of the process of verbal learning, recall, and recognition (California Verbal Learning Test-Children's Version). Distinct patterns of performance characterized the four disorders. These patterns were consistent with the language deficits typically seen in the disorders, with the exception of a dissociation seen in Williams Syndrome.