“As we saw in this pandemic, reading digitally is not going anywhere… and, in fact, is what made learning even a possibility the past year and a half.” ~ Dr. Lauren Trakhman
If reading digitally is not going anywhere, how can we help our kids learn to read digitally?
Encourage them to slow down while reading. Digital texts encourage behaviors such as skimming and keyword seeking. We also assume that reading faster means that it is better understood. Encourage your child to take deliberate moments to stop, think, and reflect on what he/she is reading - Do you agree with the author? Why or why not? You can also balance digital reading with writing key points on paper.
Be familiar with the digital environment and environment. Not knowing how to use digital tools to annotate adds another complexity to the task of reading. By the time the student has figured out how to use the tools, he/she may have forgotten what the text was about. Take some time to use the digital tools with simple, familiar text before complex reading. For example, enroll in Parent University to be familiar with the digital tools in Schoology to help your child.
Minimize online distractions. It is easy to get distracted when reading online, with having multiple tabs opened and notifications set. Minimize those distractions by muting notifications while reading.
If possible, change the view of the document. Most readers retain and comprehend the digital text better when it is in a page view, as opposed to scrolling. One of the reasons why is because we associate the text and ideas with their placement on the ‘paper.’ When reading for knowledge and comprehension, try to change to page view to simulate page-turning, as opposed to scrolling.
These are some of the tips summarized from The Science of Reading’s podcast interview with Dr. Trakman and Dr. Alexander. For more, listen to The Science of Reading: The Podcast - Season 4, Episode 4: Learning to Read Digitally vs. in Print.
And for more tips about reading online, check out last year’s parent pointer about reading online!
Encourage them to slow down while reading. Digital texts encourage behaviors such as skimming and keyword seeking. We also assume that reading faster means that it is better understood. Encourage your child to take deliberate moments to stop, think, and reflect on what he/she is reading - Do you agree with the author? Why or why not? You can also balance digital reading with writing key points on paper.
Be familiar with the digital environment and environment. Not knowing how to use digital tools to annotate adds another complexity to the task of reading. By the time the student has figured out how to use the tools, he/she may have forgotten what the text was about. Take some time to use the digital tools with simple, familiar text before complex reading. For example, enroll in Parent University to be familiar with the digital tools in Schoology to help your child.
Minimize online distractions. It is easy to get distracted when reading online, with having multiple tabs opened and notifications set. Minimize those distractions by muting notifications while reading.
If possible, change the view of the document. Most readers retain and comprehend the digital text better when it is in a page view, as opposed to scrolling. One of the reasons why is because we associate the text and ideas with their placement on the ‘paper.’ When reading for knowledge and comprehension, try to change to page view to simulate page-turning, as opposed to scrolling.
