This study investigated the differential effectiveness of two instructional techniques for field-dependent and field-independent fourth graders. Instruction consisted of eight worksheets and two tests. For one group worksheets contained perceptual structuring while for the other they contained both perception and cognitive structuring. This structuring was applied to arithmetic word problems. One-hundred forty students were assigned to treatments randomly within sex and field-dependence group as determined by scores on the Children's Embedded Figures Test. Data were gathered from the worksheets and tests. Field-independent subjects scored significantly higher than field dependent subjects on problems requiring no additional structuring, while there was not significant difference between field dependence groups when both perceptual and cognitive structuring were involved. Field-dependent subjects were significantly benefitted by the use of cognitive and perceptual structuring overall. On tasks involving computational skill, field-independent subjects performed significantly better than field-dependent subjects. (SD)