E-Books in the Elementary School: Strategies & Resources for Supporting Reading Development Developed by Suzanne M

1. E-Books in the Elementary School: Strategies & Resources for Supporting Reading Development Developed by Suzanne M. Rose, Ph.D. Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania ACEI Convention April 2010 Phoenix, AZ

2. E-Books in the Elementary School This presentation is designed to: • introduce teachers to e-books • encourage utilization of free online resources of electronic books to supplement classroom libraries, motivate students to read more, and to support students' reading development.

3. What are “E-Books?” E-Books are texts that are available online, are downloadable, or which are available in CD-ROM format. They can be read online or with the use of a specific “e-book reader.”

4. E-Book Readers There are several commercially available “e-book readers,” including the popular Kindle, nook, iPad and Sony Reader. While these have some advantages and special features, they tend to be too expensive for classroom usage at this time.

5. E-Books Online It is NOT necessary to use an e-book reader in order to use e-books! E-books can be read online using a computer, which makes them more readily available for most classrooms. At the end of this presentation, numerous resources for locating FREE e-books online will be provided!

6. Using E-books E-books can be used in a variety of ways to: • motivate reluctant readers • support vocabulary and comprehension development • increase reading fluency • support emergent and ELL readers • expand your classroom library for free

7. Ideas for Using E-Books When working with very young children, use your computer and a projector (or whiteboard) to display an e-book for the entire class. You can then use the e-book in the same ways as you would a “big book” for literacy instruction.

8. Ideas for Using E-Books E-books projected in this way can be used to: • Reinforce emergent literacy skills • Build oral reading fluency through choral reading or echo reading • Support sight word identification or word identification activities using authentic text • Teach use of picture clues • Demonstrate use of context clues, author word choice, etc.

9. Ideas for Using E-Books E-books which are read aloud to the students online can be used to support emergent readers and English Language Learners. Commercial e-book readers can provide integrated dictionaries and other tools that can help students identify unknown words during reading. Although most online e-books do not have these features, free online e-books ARE available in a variety of languages.

10. Ideas for Using E-Books With upper elementary students, e-books can be downloaded into a word processing program, divided into sections, and used to develop illustrated books, classroom plays, or instructional activities.

11. Ideas for Using E-Books Since e-books are available 24/7/365, parents can be encouraged to utilize free e-book sites at home. This builds family literacy activities and provides out-of-school reading practice for students.

12. Ideas for Using E-Books Public-domain e-books can be downloaded or printed and used as the basis for classroom reading activities such as: • readers theater • sight word or word part searches • sequencing activities

13. Ideas for Using E-Books After students are familiar with online storybooks, have them use presentation software such as PowerPoint (or the free OpenOffice.com presentation software) to create their own digital storybooks. They can use clip art or digital photos to illustrate their own writing and can also record themselves reading the stories. These digital books can be used to create a classroom virtual library.

14. Why Use E-Books? "Teachers and researchers agree that today's students need and deserve the skills, strategies, and insights to successfully exploit the rapidly changing information and communication technologies that continually emerge in the world. As a result, literacy educators of all grade levels are recognizing the need to respond to the changing array of media technologies and resources used both within and outside of the classroom to make education more responsive to today's learners." (Larson, 2008, p. 121) Larson, L.C. (2008). Electronic Reading Workshop: Beyond Books with New Literacies and Instructional Technology. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 52(2), 121-131.

15. FREE E-Book Resources! There are many websites that are excellent sources of FREE e-books! These books can be read online or downloaded to be used on a computer without an internet connection.

16. Project Gutenberg Project Gutenberg is a website that provides over 30,000 FREE e-books that can be read using an e-book reader or a computer. http://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Main_Page

17. New York Public Library The New York Public Library sponsors a site that provides free children’s books online. These illustrated books are read aloud to the students. The “Tumblebooks” feature prominent children’s authors and are of a very high quality. There are also puzzles and games for some of the books. http://www.tumblebooks.com/library/asp/book_details.asp?Category=PictureBooks&isflash=1

18. The Rosetta Project The Rosetta Project provides historical (antique) illustrated children’s books online, including vintage children’s readers. It is a great resource for children’s literature courses or for use with elementary students who are studying a particular historical era. http://www.childrensbooksonline.org/library.htm

19. Story Place Story Place: The Children’s Digital Library, is sponsored by the Public Library of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County, NC. It presents stories in both English and Spanish, and includes stories for very young children. http://www.storyplace.org/

20. The Online Books Page The Online Books Page, founded by John Mark Ockerbloom and sponsored by the University of Pennsylvania, provides searchable access to over 35,000 FREE books that can be read using an e-book reader or a computer. http://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/

21. The Online Literature Library The Online Literature Library, sponsored by Knowledge Matters Ltd., provides a large number of classic books in e-book format, accessible through title and author lists. http://www.literature.org

22. Magic Keys Magic Keys is a website that has picture books for younger readers to read online. This is a commercial site, so be sure to click on the “Free Storybooks to Read” link. http://www.magickeys.com/books/#yc

23. International Children’s Digital Library The International Children’s Digital Library provides access to a variety of children’s literature from around the world. It provides picture books and chapter books. This resource is especially good for teachers of English Language Learners, as texts are available in a variety of languages. http://en.childrenslibrary.org/

24. SearchLIT.org SearchLIT.org is a great resource for teachers. The site provides grade level information and links to books on other free e-book sites. In addition to the eLibrary, the site also provides resources for teachers and students. http://www.searchlit.org/

25. StoryLine Online Sponsored by the Screen Actors Guild, StoryLine Online features videos of actors and actresses reading aloud well-known children’s books. http://www.storylineonline.net/

26. Bookhive: Zinger Tales Bookhive: Zinger Tales features videos of traditional tales being told by professional story tellers. http://www.plcmc.org/bookhive/zingertales/zingertales.asp

27. Read.gov Read.gov features classic books, author webcasts, booklists, information about services for the blind and physically handicapped, and other literacy-related information. The classic books section is extensive and features books for kids, teens and adults. http://read.gov/

28. Other Resources Clifford the Big Red Dog (online stories and activities) http://pbskids.org/clifford/stories/index.html RIF Reading Planet Features books, authors and activities http://www.rif.org/kids/readingplanet.htm

29. Other Resources http://www.e-book.com.au/freebooks.htm#2 Lists of websites that provide free e-books http://manybooks.net/ Over 26,000 free e-books These resources are mostly for older students or adult readers.

30. Other Resources BAB Online Stories for Kids http://www.sundhagen.com/babbooks/

31. Image References Slide 4: http://www.irenecookingwiththestars.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/Barns-Noble-Nook-eBook-Reader-1.jpg http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.onlineshoppingpreviews.com/online-shopping-previews-amazon-Kindle-2 ShakataGaNai.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.onlineshoppingpreviews.com/Online_shopping_previews_amazon_kindle_2.htm&usg=__VkwzyIEegdG18ThbFpqTFtwV86E=&h=1767&w=1368&sz=9 &hl=en&start=11&itbs=1&tbnid=Sv5AndpIQMqR4M:&tbnh=150&tbnw=116&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dkindle%26hl%3Den%26gbv%3D2%26tbs%3Disch:1 Slide 7: http://teaching-reading.org/images/photos/SharedReadingBigBook2.jpg Slide 10: http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.michaelcarrizales.com/images/elementary/elementary1/KellyElementary85.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.michaelcarrizales.com/photoalbu m/elementary/elementary1.htm&usg=__WQmR3zWyOXzDltmMn1siE_609Rg=&h=600&w=800&sz=61&hl=en&start=8&itbs=1&tbnid=v_7QEQuFCHNtGM:&tbnh=107&tbnw=143&prev=/images %3Fq%3Delementary%2Bplay%26hl%3Den%26gbv%3D2%26tbs%3Disch:1 Slide 11: http://www.ronalfy.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/06/mother_child.jpg http://www.britsattheirbest.com/images/f_adam_smith_mother_child_2.jpg Slide 12: http://kinderkids.com/en/images/summerclass9.jpg Slide 15: http://i.ehow.com/images/a05/e8/jk/make-e_book_s-articles-800X800.jpg Slide 16: http://stan.uio.no/blog/isne/gut.jpg Slide 17: http://laidoffinnyc.files.wordpress.com/2009/01/new-york-public-library.jpg

32. Image References Slide 19 http://www.storyplace.org/images/storyplacehouse.gif Slide 20 http://www.the-office.com/bedtime-story/classics-aliceinwonderland.htm Slide 30 http://www.picpocketbooks.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/computer_dad_boy.jpg