Digital Books for Children

DIGITAL BOOKS

FOR CHILDREN:

WHAT PARENTS, TEACHERS, AND LIBRARIANS

NEED TO KNOW

SILVIA K. SPIVA

2013

S A N J O S E S T A T E

U N I V E R S I TY

S C H OOL O F L I B R A R Y

& I N F O R M ATI O N

S C I E N C E

M L I S S T U D E N T

I ’m a Mom.

My passion for

education and

commitment to

children’s literacy

stem from my

curiosity about the

future.

@silviakspiva 1

WHY I CHOSE THIS TOPIC

2013

D I G I TA L B O O K S F O R C H I L D R E N

@silviakspiva 2

WHY THE TOPIC IS IMPORTANT

2013

“The value-added of education

has shifted:

With information and thus

knowledge at everyone’s fingertips,

the premium we must seek from

education is skills –

l iteracy and numeracy to be sure,

but also twenty -first century skills

such as critical thinking, creativity,

problem-solving and collaboration .”

- B ec ker , S . ( 2 01 1) . A sk , d o n ’ t te l l :

C a n i t wo r k fo r K - 1 2 ? O n t h e H or i z on ,

1 9 ( 3 ) , 2 2 6 - 231 .

D I G I TA L B O O K S F O R C H I L D R E N

@silviakspiva 3

SUMMARY OF THE RESEARCH

2013

Parents, educators, and librarians around the world are observing differences between how children choose to read for fun, and how they are expected to read for academic assignments.

“A highly l iterate child is

not necessarily a reading child

and, similarly, not every child

with reading dif ficulties will dislike

reading .”

- B ro c k , A . & R a n k in , C . ( 2 01 3)

L i b r a r y s e r v i c e f o r c h i l d re n a n d you n g p e op l e :

C h a l l e ng e s a n d op p or t u n i t i es i n t h e d i g i t a l a g e .

L o n d o n , UK : Fa c et P u b l i sh in g .

D I G I TA L B O O K S F O R C H I L D R E N

- S c h o la s t i c . ( 2 01 3) . K i d s & Fa m i l y Re a d in g Re p or t , Fo u r t h E d i t i o n .

Ret r ieved f ro m h t t p : / / m ed iaro o m .sc h o la s t ic . c om / f i l es/ kf r r 201 3 -wa p pen d ix .p df

@silviakspiva 4

CHILDREN’S READING HABITS

2013

D I G I TA L B O O K S F O R C H I L D R E N

- S c h o la s t i c . ( 2 01 3) . K i d s & Fa m i l y Re a d in g Re p or t , Fo u r t h E d i t i o n .

Ret r ieved f ro m h t t p : / / m ed iaro o m .sc h o la s t ic . c om / f i l es/ kf r r 201 3 -wa p pen d ix .p df

@silviakspiva 5

DIGITAL READING DEVICES

2013

D I G I TA L B O O K S F O R C H I L D R E N

“User interface in a

children digital l ibrary

is similar to a

traditional l ibrary entrance .”

“Simplicity, attractiveness,

being easy to understand,

and of fering search facilities

are the most important criteria

which must be considered in

designing a children user interface .”

- G i l va r i , A . , N o o sh in f ar d , F. & S ed ig h i , Z . ( 2 01 3)

C h i ld r en d ig i t a l l i b r a r ies a n d u se r in te r f a c es : P ro p o s in g a set o f c r i te r ia .

I n te r nat i ona l Jou r n a l o f I n f o r mat i on S c i e n c e & M a n a g em e nt 1 1 ( 2 ) , 5 9 - 7 5 .

@silviakspiva 6

BEST PRACTICES FOR BUILDING

DIGITAL LIBRARIES

2013

D I G I TA L B O O K S F O R C H I L D R E N

@silviakspiva 7

EXAMPLE: SIMPLICITY

2013

Storia app for iPad, by Scholasticw w w. sc h o las t i c . co m /sto r ia

Requires book purchase and download by adult.

Internet connectivity is needed for initial download, but once installed on device, books can be read offline.

D I G I TA L B O O K S F O R C H I L D R E N

@silviakspiva 8

EXAMPLE: ATTRACTIVENESS

2013

Bibliothéque numérique

des enfants –

Salle de lecture h t t p : / / enfa n ts . b nf . f r / sa l led e lec t ur e/ ind ex .

p h p

Music and moving images

are entertaining.

Exploration requires

ability to read (in French)

Internet connectivity

required to move from

book to book, and from

page to page. Flash design, not for iPad.

D I G I TA L B O O K S F O R C H I L D R E N

International

Children’s Digital

Library

w w w. c h i ld r en s l ib r ar y. o rg

Internet

connectivity

required to move

from book to book,

and from

page to page.

@silviakspiva 9

EXAMPLE: SEARCH

2013

Search categories and icons

designed by children for children.

D I G I TA L B O O K S F O R C H I L D R E N

Make reading fun!

“As a result of the decreasing interest in reading and the growing appeal of computers, it has been suggested that the electronic environment is becoming more important to the growing number of children who do not respond well to traditional print media and who are reluctant to read .”

- M ay n a r d , S . ( 2 010) . T h e im p a c t o f e - b o o k s o n yo u n g c h i ld r en ’ s r ea d in g h a b i t s . P u b l i sh i ng Re s e a rc h Q u a r ter l y, 2 6 ( 4 ) , 2 3 6 - 248 .

@silviakspiva 10

MULTIPURPOSE

2013

D I G I TA L B O O K S F O R C H I L D R E N

Beyond the digital book,

children use digital reading devices

to learn through

multisensory experiences

what they want, when they want.

@silviakspiva 11

MULTIMEDIA

2013

Sight

Sound

Touch

D I G I TA L B O O K S F O R C H I L D R E N

Children prefer to read

what they want, when they want.

@silviakspiva 12

CONCLUSION

2013

Parents, teachers and

librarians need to

provide children with

ready-to-read content

(print or digital),

and then

give them their

space.

D I G I TA L B O O K S F O R C H I L D R E N

THANK YOU! SILVIA K. SPIVA

2013

S A N J O S E S T A T E

U N I V E R S I TY

S C H OOL O F L I B R A R Y

& I N F O R M ATI O N

S C I E N C E

M L I S S T U D E N T