ABSTRACT
Digital technologies can give some exciting new opportunities in literacy teaching and learning, as explored in several projects worldwide, including a European programme, Digital Literacy and Multimodal Practices of Young Children. New technologies are being used to create more multimodal texts, expanding the modes of writing and reading to make better use of sounds and images, including moving images. G. Kress argues that the effect is a shift from 'telling the world' to 'showing the world'. The chapter focuses on touchscreens, given their wide presence and versatility. Touchscreens can be used for whole-class, small group, pair and independent learning. Pen and paper activities remain extremely important in literacy classrooms. Touchscreens can be used to support traditional literacy activities such as the writing of narratives. One exciting possibility for enriching the literacy classroom is to use touchscreens to support personalised education. Literacy apps include apps which support discrete literacy-related skills such as letter recognition and spelling.
