1. Digital Literacy
“Today’s preschoolers are growing up in a world where the dominant way of making meaning has shifted from print on the page to image on the screen.”
(Wohlwend, 2010, p. 145)
Michele Sano

2. What is Digital Literacy?
Digital literacy is the utilization of digital tools to support skills, strategies, and comprehension using a range of modalities.
What Digital Literacy provides:
Children the opportunity to become digital citizens
A deeper interaction with texts
Opportunities for abstract concepts to be learned
Flexibility across all curriculum areas
What Digital Literacy is NOT:
Word-processing based instruction
*Digital literacy goes beyond using computers like typewrite-like devices
“It is important to note that this shift does not seek to eliminate old literacies;
rather, it proposes to braid together new digital literacies
and old or already established literacies.”
(O’Brien & Scharber, 2008, p. 13)
Technology is used every day by children of all ages to communicate with others, research information, exchange ideas, and share opinions.
Abstract concepts such as: theme, audience, point of view, and voice
Digital literacy= to enhance literacy experiences, not to replace

3. Why Use Digital Literacy?
Benefits of Digital Literacy:
Increased engagement and motivation
Struggling learners often excel in this area compared to traditional literacy practices (Sylvester & Greenidge, 2009)
Promotes inquiry
Enables participation in interactive and collaborative ways
Often improves the quality of work of all students (Sylvester & Greenidge, 2009)
Broadens the audience to create a more meaningful experience
Sharpens letter recognition skills (Wohlwend, 2010)
Enhances fluency (Wohlwend, 2010)
Allows for a multitude of skills to be learned within a context
Promotes literacy risk-taking
It’s dynamic, interactive, nonlinear structure builds flexible thinking
“Even without access to real tools, children find these technoliteracties so compelling that they pretend digital devices into being by playing that a plastic carrot is a cell phone; by making an iPod from paper, yarn, tape, and pipecleaners; or…playing a videogame with markers and paper.” (Wohlwend, 2009)

4. How Can I Use Digital Literacy in My Classroom?
Digital Storytelling
Podcasts
Digital Book Trailers
Glogs
E-Zines
Character Facebook Pages
Wikis
Virtual Field Trips
Blogs
PowerPoint
Prezi
Creating WebPages
Discussion Boards

5. Digital Storytelling How to Guide A Student's Digital Story (Example)
Difficulty Level:
How to Guide
An alternative means of expression that incorporates multimedia text such as still images, soundtracks, and possible video clips to tell a story or present a documentary.
Digital stories allow the integration of a combination of elements:
Point of View
Dramatic Question- plot
Emotional Content
Audience
Pacing
Soundtrack/Voice
Where to Begin….
1. Compose Your Story
2. Create a Storyboard
3. Add Visuals
4. Record Your Story
5. Create Movie
6. Finalizing
7. Publishing/Sharing
A Student's Digital Story (Example)
These are often harder to learn/ abstract concepts to students. Digital storytelling allows students to learn these concepts by doing. [Emersion into the experience]

6. Podcasts
Difficulty Level:
Any audio, or video, file that can be uploaded to a website, so that others may access it.
Skills addressed:
Vocabulary
Writing
Editing
Public speaking
Presentation skills
Also:
Expands awareness of audience
Helps construct point of view
Podcast Example:
Room 208 Example Podcast
Link to “Room 208” Website:
Good Reference:

7. Digital Book Trailers
Difficulty Level:
Audio or video glimpses about a book that intrigue the viewer
and motivate them to read the text.
Sample Digital Book Trailers
In order to compose a digital book trailer, students must understand:
Main ideas
Characters
Themes
Setting
Audience
Also…
Students must construct higher-level thinking questions
Connect the audience to the text
Persuade the viewer to read the text

8. Glogs www.glogster.com Interactive Online Posters Sample Glogs
Can span across all curriculum areas
Sample Glogs
Difficulty Level:
Easy to make
A “How To” guide is provided on glogster.com

9. E-Zines
Difficulty Level:
“E-Zines are much like any other small pamphlet or booklet, the important difference being that they are independent, noncommercial, and self-made” (Yang, 2010, p. 573)
Online
Provides a world wide audience
Free!
Span across all curriculum areas
Based on students’ interests
Can increase student motivation and engagement
Resource:
BE AWARE: Unlike Glogs, E-Zines do not have a privacy feature
The website (teenink) as a whole is the E-Zine, the students would be creators of different articles****
Precautions:
Users can write anything
Authors
Commentators

10. Character Facebook Pages
Difficulty Level:
The teacher acts as the historical or fictional character and posts comments, photos, speeches, quotes and status updates. Kids interact with the page in much the same way they would on an actual page.
Students create a Facebook page of a historical or fictional character. Students would then respond to each others’ pages.
Similar to a “multimodal” written conversation
To counteract possible concerns, some suggest printing off an online template of Facebook
Possible Problems to Consider:
No access at school.
Parent concerns about
social networking.

11. Prezi’s are a web-based presentation tool
One topic is connected through a guided pathway.
Spans across content areas
Difficulty Level:
Sample Prezi

12. knowledge or tools.” (“Wiki walk-through”, 2006)
Wikis
Difficulty Level:
“A wiki is a website that lets any visitor become a participant; you can create or edit the actual site contents without any special technical
knowledge or tools.” (“Wiki walk-through”, 2006)
Why use wikis?
Easy to use
Many free and open sources
Flexible
Why not use wikis?
Vandalism and spam
Not trustworthy
Examples of Wikis:
Classroom Wiki (Example)
"1,000 Names" Wiki (Example)
Create a wiki for free at:
Flexible: format, topic, audience

13. Virtual Field Trips
Difficulty Level: Fluctuates
A virtual field trip is a guided exploration through
images and information.
It is viewed online, but it transports the viewer to places that would normally be inaccessible
Historical battlegrounds, museums, landmarks
National Parks
Wildlife habitats
Example:
Virtual Field Trip of Anne Frank's Hideout
It can be done as a whole class or it can be an independent/pairs activity
Difficulty level fluctuates depending on the website and the grouping of students

14. What Are Some Criticisms of Digital Literacy?
Lesson preparation is time consuming
“Digital Divide” exists
“Inequities of access to technology, based on factors of income, education, race, and ethnicity.” (O’Brien & Scharber, 2008, p. 67)
Standards and assessments don’t match technology
[This is starting to change BIG time]
Lack of teacher background knowledge
HOWEVER . . .
HOWEVER….
Lesson preparation: Suck it up! Payoffs of student learning are big.
Digital divide: Should children be further pushed away from access? View technology as a learning opportunity and do not assign activities that can only be done at home
Standards: When incorporated correctly, multiple standards across content areas are met
Lack of teacher background knowledge: professional development collaboration with peers, and research