Once Upon a Time: Engaging Young Minds Using Mobile Technology and Storytelling. Kathleen Harris

Transcription

1 Once Upon a Time: Engaging Young Minds Using Mobile Technology and Storytelling Kathleen Harris

2 ONCE UPON A TIME: ENGAGING YOUNG MINDS USING MOBILE TECHNOLOGY AND STORYTELLING Dr. Kathleen I. Harris Division of Education Seton Hill University April 4, 2013

3 TECHNOLOGY AND EARLY CHILDHOOD Technology facilitates cognitive development by improving creating thinking, problem solving, and language development Technology supports engaging interactions for positive social behaviors with peers Technology supports STEM learning; the T has the strong potential to increase early literacy skills for young children

4 TECHNOLOGY AND EARLY LITERACY Young children start to play with reading, letters and prints Sound associations Phonemic awareness Oral language Pre-reading Pre-writing Emergent literacy Print awareness

5 WHAT & WHY OF EARLY LITERACY Learning to read is one of the most important skills of early childhood (Dickinson & Tabors, 2001) Early literacy involves: oral language, phonological awareness, and print awareness/letter knowledge Emergent literacy includes: reading, writing, and language

6 TEACHING EARLY LITERACY USING IPADS DURING STORYTELLING Dialogic reading is an approach to reading that engages children by making them as active participants in storytelling (Whitehurst & Arnold, 1994) Conversations between the teacher and the child The heartbeat of dialogic reading includes frequent interactions with the teacher and child Dialogue is encouraged through specific prompts

7 STORYTELLING Creative and critical mechanism for sharing knowledge Creating understanding Transmitting and exploring ethics, values, and moral dilemmas

8 DIALOGIC READING Dialogic reading is an approach to reading that engages young children by making them active participant in the story (Whitehurst, 2001) Conversation s between the child and the teacher Frequent engaging and motivating interactions between the child and teacher

9 DIALOGIC READING & PROMPTS Dialogue reading is encouraged through specific prompts: Completion prompts completing a sentence with a familiar word Open-ended prompts requires more than just a one-or two-word response Recall prompts remembering events from the story Wh prompts who, what, when, where, why Distancing prompts connecting to the child s experiences and background knowledge

10 PEER PROMPTING & REINFORCEMENT Teaching peers to prompt and reinforce the desired response of another peer The peer can also role model and comment when another peer has accomplished one or all of the steps correctly

11 PRINT REFERENCING Print referencing is a technique used to draw children s attention to print, and draw children s attention to print, specifically print within a story (Justice & Pullen, 2003) Children notice and learn about print quickly and with confidence Three specific components to print referencing: Questions about the print asking questions about print on a page Comments about the print talking about print on a page Tracking your finger along the print while reading point to each word as it is read

12 STORYTELLING AND IPADS Selecting developmentally appropriate apps using the ipad: Developmentally appropriate in terms of content and length Age appropriate Challenging yet understanding vocabulary Opportunities for interactions

13 STORYTELLING Preparing for a storytelling session: Consider classroom environment Lighting, physical space, proximity Universal design: Representation Engagement, Expression Distractions Transitions

14 STORYTELLING Role of the teacher-child interactions during storytelling: Repeat, expand on, or add to child s responses to encourage and support Teacher s positive attitude: body language, gestures, tone, facial expressions, attention to the child Focus on the interests and passions of the child

15 REFERENCES Berk, L. (2003). Child development. Boston: Allyn & Bacon. Dickinson, D. K., & Tabors, P. O. (Eds.). (2001). Beginning literacy with language: Young children learning at home and school. Baltimore, MD: Paul Brookes Publishing. Feeney, S., & Moravcik, E. (2005). Children s literature: A window to understanding self and others. Young Children, 60(5), Grisham-Brown, J., Hemmeter, M. L., & Pretti-Frontczak, K. (2005). Blended Practices for Teaching Young Children in Inclusive Settings. Baltimore, MD: Paul Brookes Publishing. Hall, L. J., & McGregor, J. A. (2000). A follow-up study of the peer relationships of children with disabilities in an inclusive school. The Journal of Special Education, 34, Harris, K., Pretti-Frontczak, K., & Brown, T. (2009). Peer-mediated intervention: An effective, inclusive strategy for all young children. Young Children 64(2), Justice, L. M., & Pullen, P. C. (2003). Promising interventions for promoting emergent literacy skills. Three evidence-based approaches. Topics in Early Childhood Special Education, 23, Odom, S. L., & Strain, P. S. (1984). Peer- mediated approaches to promoting children s social interactions. A review. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 54, Odom, S. L. (2002). Widening the Circle: Including children with Disabilities in Preschool Programs. New York: Teachers College Press. Whitehurst, G. J., & Arnold, D. S. (1994). A picture book reading intervention in day care home for children fro low-income families. Developmental Psychology, 30(5),