Young children's buddy reading with multimodal app books: reading patterns and characteristics of readers, texts, and contexts

• Published in: Early child development and care Vol. 188; no. 8; pp. 1012 - 1030
• Main Authors: Christ, Tanya, Wang, X. Christine, Erdemir, Ersoy
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Abingdon Routledge 03.08.2018; Taylor & Francis Ltd
• Subjects: Animation; app books; Buddy reading; Children; Cohort Analysis; Comparative Analysis; Comparative Education; Cues; digital books; early childhood; Early Childhood Education; Electronic Publishing; Emergent Literacy; Foreign Countries; Gender Differences; Interpersonal Communication; Interpersonal Relationship; literacy; Meaning; Multimedia Materials; Native Speakers; Navigation; Navigation (Information Systems); Qualitative Research; Reading; Reading Fluency; Reading Habits; Second Languages; Social interaction; Socioeconomic factors; Socioeconomic Status; Student Characteristics; Text Structure; Video Technology; United States; Turkey
• ISSN: 0300-4430; 1476-8275
• DOI: 10.1080/03004430.2016.1241776

This qualitative study investigated 27 US and 28 Turkish dyads of children between 4 and 6 years old who read 12 app books across a school year. Emergent coding and constant comparison were used to identify reading patterns in which the dyads engaged: hotspot-centric, text-centric, and integrated. Then we examined how characteristics of readers (socio-economic status, language, and gender), text (animations, navigation features, and typographical cues), and context (social interaction styles) were related to these reading patterns. Children read differently in their native versus a foreign language, and social interaction styles played a role in how reading patterns changed over time. Integrated reading, navigating sequentially through the app book, and collaborative social interactions were related to deeper meaning-making and the use of more effective reading patterns over time. Implications include how to model and scaffold app book reading practices, select texts for instruction, and design app books with features that have been shown to be effective.