Based on the assumption that the same conditions that promote talk in the preschool years might continue to promote oracy if they could be replicated in schools, this paper investigates conditions most likely to promote growth in oral communication, summarizes the findings of two relevant Australian research studies, and draws implications for teaching oracy in schools. It first discusses eight factors likely to promote oracy: the tracking by adults of children's language development, empathy and respect for the child's meaning, the use of speech to achieve specific purposes, interactions with adult speakers, word play, situations that provide challenge and involvement, contexts that promote conceptual growth, and exploratory talk. The paper then summarizes findings of a study that revealed the constricting nature of much teacher questioning at the lower primary level and of a study of the talk environment at the secondary level, which suggested that teachers monopolize the talk space and discourage open communication. The paper concludes by pointing out the need for educators to develop situations that make language demands related to those of the real world, to arrange these situations in a developmental sequence, and to translate the known principles of language growth into a workshop-type approach that provides amply for trial, error, and feedback and that ensures that learners see purpose in the endeavor. (GT)