M5 Blog Post 4

    A topic that interests me is the use of digital literacy and digital resources in the elementary classroom to support literacy learning. I find this interesting as an educator that works with many students that are reading below grade level. I am interested in the idea of using different digital literacies available to students today to enhance my literacy instruction to support my students' needs, as well as teach them using more relevant resources. I am also very interested in using storytelling and drama/theatre education to support students' literacy education. I believe there is a way to combine both digital literacy and theatre education to help support students' literacy and digital skills in a modern age. The resources below center around digital literacy in early-intermediate childhood education. 

• Cahill, M., & Moore, J. (2017///Spring). A Sound History: Audiobooks Are Music to Children's Ears. Children & Libraries, 15(1), 22-29. https://sunyempire.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/sound-history-audiobooks-are-music-childrens-ears/docview/1901236132/se-2

This article starts by giving a brief history on audiobooks and the production of audiobooks. It also discusses the shortcomings and the benefits of audiobooks for people of all ages. This article goes into details about the production such as, various narration styles, sound/music elements, and the final production steps. Lastly, this article discusses how audiobooks benefit students in the educational setting. This relates to my topic because of the use of audiobooks in literacy development for elementary aged students. 

• Maureen, I. Y., van der, M. H., & de, J. T. (2020/04//). Enhancing Storytelling Activities to Support Early (Digital) Literacy Development in Early Childhood Education. International Journal of Early Childhood, 52(1), 55-76. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13158-020-00263-7

This article discusses the relations between play-based learning and early literacy skills. The research is on three different kindergarten classes that each received different literacy instruction. The first class was the control class, their instruction did not change. The second class received instruction and engaged in play-based learning and storytelling. The last class received instruction and engaged in literacy based on digital storytelling and activities. The research looks at how much the two groups that received differing instruction from the control group grew in their early literacy skills, based on an early literacy assessment. This article is useful in my research because it directly relates to using digital storytelling and play-based drama to tell stories and improve literacy in the classroom.

• Vasalou, A., Benton, L., Ibrahim, S., Sumner, E., Joye, N., & Herbert, E. (2021). Do children with reading difficulties benefit from instructional game supports? Exploring children's attention and understanding of feedback. British Journal of Educational Technology, 52, 2359–2373. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjet.13145

Gamifying instruction is something that is becoming more popularized in this digital age of education. This article looks at the benefits of using games and apps to help support student literacy and reading goals. This study is on  students in upper elementary grades who are struggling readers. These students are given digital games with no pre-learning before they began this gamified instruction. The games provided feedback to the students as they got questions correct or incorrect. This article is useful for my research because it gives an interesting and thoughtful perspective on the use of digital apps to teach literacy in the classroom. 

• Wohlwend, K. E., Buchholz, B. A., & Medina, C. L. (2018). Playful literacies and practices of making in children’s imaginaries. In K. A. Mills, A. Stornaiuolo, A. Smith, & J. Z. Pandya (Eds.), Handbook of Writing, Literacies, and Education in Digital Cultures (pp. 136-147). New York, NY: Routledge. 

This article explores the use of play and children’s imagination in increasing a child’s digital literacy and literacy skills. This article also looks at the use of film-making as a new literacy to teach storytelling skills to students. It looks at how we can use digital media and technology to help improve our play based learning, introducing our students to brand new worlds of literacies they named, “maker literacies.”  Maker literacy encompasses all of the different and unique things that are needed to tell stories, such as, props (digital and not), drama, animations, etc. This article is great for my research on the use of technology in storytelling in the classroom and the use of theatre as a way of improving comprehension of text and understanding of stories. 

• Xanthippi Tsortanidou, Thanasis Daradoumis & Elena Barberá (2021) Waldorf inspired hyper-imaginative learning trajectories: developing new media literacies in elementary education, Early Child Development and Care, 191:7-8, 1287-1301, DOI: 10.1080/03004430.2020.1835881

    This article discusses the positives and negatives of the use of iPads and technology within the classroom. It describes the concerns that many have for students, especially very young students, when introducing them to technology. It also talks about the balance that needs to be created between new and traditional media within the classroom. Finally, it explores why it is so important for students to get instruction on media and how to use it at such a young age.