There are many ways a parent or loved one can use technology at home to help their child foster a love for reading and writing. Before trying out the following fun ideas, it’s worth mentioning that reviewing internet safety with your child and providing adult supervision are both important when using any internet connected device. Once those ground rules are covered, smartphones, tablets, and computers are amazing resources you can use to jumpstart your child’s literacy development.
Technology is particularly useful in teaching kids literacy skills because it caters to every learning style– visual, auditory, and kinesthetic. This helps to foster an environment of fun and engaged learning; which is something we are very passionate about at The Literacy Project. Here are a few simple ways to integrate technology into your child’s literacy development and improve their literacy skills.
Use Apps to Practice Writing Letters and Numbers
Apps can be a great tool to get children psyched about learning to read and write. There are apps like LetterSchool that can be downloaded for android or IOS, which makes practicing your letters and numbers fun and interesting. This technology takes something that might be viewed as hard or boring, and transforms it into an enjoyable game. The app uses engaging animations and sound effects to encourage active participation and focused learning.
Use Photos to Make a Virtual Scavenger Hunt
This is an easy way to utilize the camera on your smartphone or tablet to create an interactive vocabulary learning experience. Simply use your device’s camera to take pictures of objects that you might find on your child’s vocabulary list. Have your child point out the object in the photo and then practice writing it down. Your child will benefit from this fun activity by internalizing new vocabulary both visually and verbally.
Create A Digital Poster Board of Your Child’s Next Book
You can use technology to create excitement about reading print by assembling a digital poster board based on a grade-level appropriate book. Search Google to find the book’s cover artwork and paste the images to a document or slide show.
You can also find easy to read, one-sentence reviews and include this on your digital poster board too. These reviews are a great way for them to get pumped about reading while also learning new vocabulary.
If the book has been adapted to film, you might be able to find a movie trailer to watch together as well. Including images from the movie or a link to the trailer are just some examples of interactive additions to your poster that your child is sure to love.
These are just a few ways in which technology can help children to become confident readers and writers. It’s The Literacy Project’s mission to shrink the literacy gap in struggling second graders by sharing tips like these with parents and families. We are passionate about making this information accessible to those who want to make a positive impact in their children’s lives at home.
Integrating technology into your child’s literacy development can transform reading and writing into a fun activity for children. At The Literacy Project, we strive to foster environments that help children who struggle with illiteracy and bring out that enjoyment. For more innovative ideas and other important literacy information, please visit our site’s helpful blog page.