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tablets, touch screens and interactive learning

Tablets, Touch Interfaces and Interactive Learning

e-Readers and Digital Books

With the rise of e-readers and digital books, touch interfaces have become increasingly popular. 

Touch interfaces on devices such as Kindle, Amazon Fire Tablet, and iPad allow readers to easily navigate through a book, whether by swiping to turn pages or tapping to jump to a specific section. This can be especially helpful for readers with physical disabilities who may have difficulty turning pages or manipulating traditional book interfaces.

Touch interfaces allow readers to customize the font size, font style, and line spacing to their preference. This can be especially helpful for readers with visual impairments or dyslexia.

With touch interfaces, readers can easily highlight, underline, or take notes on a digital book. This can be especially helpful for students or professionals who need to annotate texts for later reference.

Kindle, Amazon Fire, and iPad tablets can incorporate multimedia elements, such as videos or audio clips, directly into the text of a book. Through touch interfaces, this can provide a more immersive reading experience and enhance the reader's understanding of the text.

Amazon Fire for Kids and iPad tablets can be a valuable tool for helping children learn to read. 

Tablets can support early literacy development in the following ways:

Interactive learning apps:

There are a wide range of interactive learning apps specifically designed to help young children develop early literacy skills, such as phonics, vocabulary, and reading comprehension. These apps can be engaging and fun, and can provide children with targeted practice in specific areas of reading.

For example, here are some great reading apps for kids from Scholastic.  Check out Reading Roo too, it's a new app to help children learn to read.

Here is an example of the Best Reading Apps for 4- to 8-Year-Olds from Read Brightly.

Access to digital reading materials:

Tablets such as the iPad provide access to a wealth of digital reading materials, including e-books, online stories, and digital libraries. This can help children develop their reading skills by providing them with a variety of texts to choose from and exposing them to different types of stories and genres.

Learn about Libby App: ebooks & audiobooks from your library

Audio and visual support:

Devices such as an iPad can provide audio and visual support for children who are learning to read. Many e-books and reading apps include features such as read-aloud options, interactive illustrations, and embedded videos that can help children understand and engage with the text.

Customization and feedback:

Many iPad reading apps allow for customization based on the child's reading level and progress, and can provide feedback on their performance. This can help children develop their reading skills at their own pace and provide them with a sense of accomplishment as they progress.

Apps such as Reading Roo can help assess a child’s reading.

It's important to always remember that technology should be used in conjunction with other reading activities and strategies, such as parent read-aloud, conversation, and play. 

Additional Resources for Parents:

Help a Child Learn to Read at any Age.

50 Creative and Fun Activities for Kids, Parents and Families.

Raz Kids: where K-5 students go to read.

6 Skills to Prepare Your Young Child For Reading from VTech.

K-12 Education by Apple

 

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