How can primary literacy teachers effectively identify, adapt, and incorporate developmentally appropriate technologies to support their students' reading development? This article reports results from a case study attempting to digitize a classroom literacy practice--close reading--for Year 2 students. It suggests that digital tools can…

Author/illustrator school visits are literacy events that positively impact children's motivation to read and write. The emergence of COVID-19, however, made face-to-face visits impossible, forcing visits to use video conferencing platforms. The assumption is that these virtual visits are a "lesser version" of the face-to-face visit:…

In this article, we offer insights into the literacy practices that supported students' inquiry and critical media making about the role of monuments in our society. We learned that multimodal making with print-based and digital tools provided an opportunity for the students to engage in critical historical analysis of the monuments in NYC.…

In this article, the authors describe an English as a Second Language (ESL) teacher's attempt to provide more personalized support for her elementary English learners (ELs) during remote learning. The authors provide an in-depth description of using voice recorders, a low-tech and inexpensive device, to mitigate barriers and promote English…

There is far more to the digital divide than meets the eye. In this article, the authors consolidate existing research on the digital divide to offer some tangible ways for educators to bridge the gap between the haves and have-nots, or the cans and cannots. Drawing on Aldous Huxley's notion of a "brave new world," some digital divide…

The purpose of this article was to offer guidance to educators in evaluating the strengths, weaknesses, and most effective uses of commercial reading assessment suites. We provide three resources to help educators who are responsible for making instructional decisions in reading using formal screening, benchmark, interim, and progress-monitoring…

The authors describe a method for integrating video into the work of elementary literacy coaches. Drawing on their research in developing an online application of a successful literacy-coaching program called Content-Focused Coaching, the authors describe an approach that coaches can use to reflect with teachers on their video recorded lessons to…

Children's literature is on the digital move, and many of the new technologies are eye popping in terms of their aesthetic qualities. Books that are already beloved are moving into new spaces well beyond the combination of words and illustration, as movement, sound, and interactivity enter the scene. The purpose of this article is to explore…

As teacher education programs shift to more practice-based methods in the preparation of literacy teachers, the ways in which teacher educators support the learning of their preservice teachers (PSTs) becomes paramount. In an effort to support PSTs in developing competency in instructional literacy routines, coaching has been found to support…

Today's tech savvy young learners are equipped with a variety of technological tools used as easily as pencils and paper. Many reach for the laptop first when it's time to write or look for an ebook when it's time to read. Ebooks are increasingly viewed as an appropriate source for literacy exposure to books and reading by parents…

The Common Core State Standards advocate more writing than previous standards; however, in taking a college and career readiness perspective, the Standards neglect to emphasize the role of context and culture in learning to write. We argue that sociocultural perspectives that pay attention to these factors offer insights into how to interpret and…

Teachers may need tools to use video for reflection toward ongoing toward education and teacher leadership. Based on Goodman's (1996) notion of retrospective miscue analysis, a method of reading instruction that revalues the reader and his or her strategies, retrospective video analysis guides teachers in appreciating and understanding their own…

In the classroom, teachers have long used videos as an addendum to the instruction they provide. Still, using video is often seen in a negative light and is used sparingly. This column calls upon research from a variety of fields that supports the use of video to enhance literacy instruction in classrooms. Relying on both theory and practice, the…

The purpose of this article is to explore ways in which blogs can support literacy communities while developing a writing community. Examples of how a classroom teacher uses blogs to strengthen the writing process is described. (Contains 2 figures and 1 table.)

Podcasting is a relatively new phenomenon that utilizes digital media to provide listeners with unparalleled access to content. Educators have recently discovered this tool and are examining methods it can be used to meet the needs of 21st Century learners. To date, however, more research needs to be conducted to examine the overall effectiveness…