Few studies examine young children's multimodal responses to nonfiction picture books, and even fewer examine teaching practices that encourage these responses. This case study of a kindergarten class illustrates how one teacher regularly conducted interactive whole-group read-alouds using nonfiction picture books. After examining the multimodal…

This study aims to explore the meanings communicated by young children with visual cultural semiotic resources available in the science classroom. It is a case study in an Early Childhood Education classroom of 23 children (3-4 years old) and their teacher, all engaged in a long-term science project about snails. We focus on the analysis of two…

There is a need to better understand the agentic choices that students make to communicate meaning through their multimodal compositions. Utilizing a case study approach, this article examines the composing of two first-grade students and discusses how these students utilized multimodal composing techniques from structured writing units during an…

The purpose of this dissertation is to explore ways in which educators can provide space for critical literacy and transactional responses with literature in early childhood classrooms. This approach to early literacy involves bringing the following three theories into practice when teaching young children: Transactional Theory of Reader Response,…

Visual-verbal paired-associate learning (PAL) is thought to be related to reading acquisition and, more specifically, to word reading skills. To date, the uniqueness and strength of this relationship has remained unclear because most studies have been conducted in opaque orthographies such as English, and few studies have controlled for all of the…

Numerous studies have compared the effect of input mode (video-based vs. audio-only) on the listening comprehension of adult second language (L2) learners. However, there is a notable absence of research regarding how various types of audio-visual input in a listening test affect young learners' listening comprehension. To address this gap, this…

This article reports on findings from a case study of an intergenerational project between a nursery school and a residential care home for people with dementia in the South-East of England. It examines how multi-modalities support meaning-making between 3-year-old children and older adults. The study is qualitative, interpretative and…

In the elementary school, children's learning, thinking, making and doing are usually regarded through universalizing and progression-based accounts particularly from child development. Further, within these developmental frames, learning is often considered as a cognitive process that occurs solely within the conscious mind. In this dissertation,…

This paper contributes to the contemporary focus on literacy and digital stories in early childhood education and care (ECEC) institutions. When a group of young children create an animated story together, they might collaborate, both with their peers and with their teacher. By drawing on social semiotic multimodal perspectives as the theoretical…

In today's digitally interconnected world, one's ability to collaboratively create with others and compose multimodal texts is essential. Yet, high-stakes standardized assessments that value individualistic print centric conceptions influence instruction, leading schools to often undervalue the multimodal and collaborative composing processes and…

Introduction: Learning environment is an important factor in the development of preschool children. However, those who have different learning styles and sensory behaviors might not reach the same achievements in the same learning environments. The objective of this study aimed to develop a guideline program that considers learning environments,…

Postmodern picturebooks do not follow the established norms of traditional picturebooks and instead invite readers to navigate nonlinear structures and attend to metafictive devices, including counterpoint and multiple narratives, experimental typography, nonlinearity, intertextuality, and ambiguities in meaning. These qualities challenge readers…

The COVID-19 pandemic caused unprecedented disruption in education across the United States. Prior to the pandemic, students in third grade struggled with low reading proficiency, a difficulty that predicts persistent academic struggles, school dropout, and even delinquency. Districts in South Carolina and around the United States adapted to the…

Background: Artificial Intelligence (AI) literacy is a crucial part of digital literacy that all individuals should possess in today's technologically advanced world. Despite the potential benefits that AI education offers, little research has been done on how to teach AI literacy to children. Objectives: This study aimed to fill that gap by…

Drawing from a multiple-case study of professional learning in literacy, this article presents vignettes from a Grade 1 classroom where the professional learning focused on multimodal literacy pedagogies that combined digital and print-based resources to expand children's meaning-making. Linking children's opportunities for expansive literacy…