I don’t know if you caught it, but the lead article in today’s Publishing Perspectives is titled: Vitamins 2.0: How Children’s Books Can Change the World in a Digital Age.
The gist: give children beautiful books full of beautiful imagery–rather than digital bells and whistles– and they’ll be better prepared for managing the “high-stimulus” digital future. And start early. The earlier the better.
My reaction: Of course. What took you so long ?
The idea of exposing children to great books isn’t new. In fact, the idea that “great books build great minds” is at the foundation of most progressive literacy initiatives of the last 50 years. I appreciate the new emphasis on the “visual” aspect, but I think it’s just that the mainstream may be waking up to what librarians, teachers, authors, and children’s book publishers have known all along.
There are a wealth of great picture books which have been building imagination and visual perception since the golden age of the mid-twentieth century: Harold and the Purple Crayon, Where the Wild Things Are, and Goodnight Moon to name just a few. No one who has fallen in love with those books thinks the words are doing the heavy lifting.
And I also believe we’ve got a bumper crop of amazing artists right now who are pushing the boundaries of the children’s book artform. Mo Willems, Emily Gravett, Lane Smith, Brian Selznick, Adam Rex, Kevin Henkes, Melissa Sweet, Peter Brown, Antoinette Portis, Loren Long, Shaun Tan, Matthew Reinhart, Peter Reynolds, Bob Shea… I could go on and on.
I don’t think it’s that books need to get flashier or more artistic, and in fact, adding too many bells and whistles can actually get in the way of developing great habits of mind through reading. Just adding more pictures doesn’t add more meaning. It’s hard to imagine how to improve on the bedtime experience of Goodnight Moon, for instance.
Here’s what we need to change: adults need to get better at understanding and encouraging active engagement with media. In general we tend to lack understanding of exactly how sophisticated a learning tool a great children’s book can be. Asking questions about the story, looking for details in the illustrations, anticipating what might happen next–-these kinds of activities create great analytical skills and an empowered reader.
This kind of reader will hopefully go on to ask better questions of all media, evaluate the quality of information, and make thoughtful decisions about what is worthy of their attention. THAT’S a 21st Literacy Skill, not multi-tasking per se.
In fact, I would argue that ATTENTION–-the ability to decide what needs one’s attention at any given time–-a single source, or multiple sources and how to switch back and forth mindfully–-is a much more critical skill.
How many adults do you see wrestling with that one when they are juggling a cell and driving? I’d say they haven’t mastered the literacy of Attention themselves, so how will they teach it to their children? Multi-tasking without the ability to also mindfully focus is just culturally-generated ADD. The successful thinker of the future needs to be able to do both.
What we want from a new crop of children’s books are great stories, and nuanced artwork that engages the imagination. Sometimes this means restraint as opposed to more visuals, so the message is clearer.
If you want to see a BRILLIANT example of this, check out Polly Dunbar’s recent series of Tilly and Friends Books for Candlewick Press. They are so visually rich, and so elegantly spare, they are masterful examples of powerful storytelling for young readers. They are pitch perfect at capturing the zeitgeist of a toddler, and they have some great ideas to teach.
As for older readers, I think there are great opportunities to enhance books with multimedia features like online content, games, and related video, but here’s the catch: these elements should be about inspiring the reader to immerse themselves further, to follow their curiosity, to expand their knowledge, or to participate with others in a community around a book.
They shouldn’t just be there because publishers and developers think kids need the “cool-factor.” Kids are amazingly sophisticated these days, and they don’t swallow every hook, line, and sinker–especially if it doesn’t have deeper meaning.
Although I’m very happy to see kids books getting this kind of coverage, I think this article misses the point. It’s not enough to say “books prepare kids for a digital future.”
I’d argue that great children’s books and a rich experience of visual storytelling prepare kids for every future, digital and otherwise. They help kids build all the skills they will need for every eventuality: Attention, Empathy, Creativity, Imagination, Writing, Storytelling, Self-Awareness, Logic, Collaboration, Community, and Critical Thinking. It’s hard to beat that, and I think it’s amazing that the larger publishing community is just getting around to discussing it.
17 comments
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March 24, 2010 at 9:16 am
Jules
I already emailed you this, but I’ll say it again: Brilliant! And thanks for writing this.
March 25, 2010 at 1:01 am
Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast » Blog Archive » Just pointing out brilliance when I see it…
[…] read this from Kristen McLean over at pixie stix kids […]
March 25, 2010 at 3:45 am
5minutespeace
Just wonderful writing. You are so informed and clearly read the original article well.
I’ve come from the recommendation of 7 Impossible Things Before Breakfast and i’m so glad I did. As my blog focuses on children’s literature it’s always useful to keep up to date with what people think about the state of children’s publishing- I agree with what you said.
As I want to get into publishing, I’m always asking myself how would I market a new children’s book to show I have fresh ideas above the norm? You’ve highlighted a great issue that publishers can’t just ‘lure’ the reader in, there has to be a promise of something greater beyond that, something that will complement their reading experience.
Just fantastic, I’ll be mentioning you on my book blogger hop tomorrow.
Oh and Emily Gravett is just marvellous and I just came across Shaun Tan’s work on Monday and hope to review his work soon, just beautiful.
Thanks for sharing.
March 25, 2010 at 8:58 am
kmclean
Thank you guys for your awesome comments. I always appreciate knowing someone is listening.
😉
March 25, 2010 at 10:49 am
kmengwasser
Excellent insights here. Your point about focus and attention, and the new skill of “mindful tasking” is key for me. It’s critical that we teach children how to slow down and enjoy a book, a conversation or the process of artistic creation, and how to determine what deserves their valuable attention. Not all books need to become content saturated, multi-media digital gateways.
March 25, 2010 at 11:39 am
Matthew Cordell
As an illustrator (non-digital), I am in no hurry to see my drawings presented on screen. But, of course, it’s inevitable. And reading is good, screen or paper, so I gotta get over it. I totally agree with what you say about presentation. Any urges to turn a book into clickable images, animation, and general whiz-bang should be put down. Consistency and repetition are key for the little ones. That’s why print, to me, to them, is irreplaceable. It cannot be changed (unless they tear it up, draw on it, etc…).
March 25, 2010 at 4:40 pm
Young Adult fiction today: What the market needs « 5minutespeace's Blog
[…] written this post tonight is because I was inspired by Kristen McLean at Pixie Stix Kids Pix https://pixiestixkidspix.wordpress.com/2010/03/23/obvious-watch-preparing-kids-for-the-digital-future… to think about the importance of a child’s progressive reading experiences as they grow […]
March 25, 2010 at 7:49 pm
Keith Schoch
Love, love this post! How could I not? It contains so many of the ideas I’m constantly preaching through my blog and presentations, although I don’t always express them as eloquently as you.
What’s often missing (and I know, since teachers will tell me this) is a solid foundation in teacher prep courses in the “hows” and “whys” of teaching with good literature, at any level.
I guess awareness of its importance is a good start.
March 29, 2010 at 7:14 am
Children's Literacy News and Reading Studies | Scrub-a-Dub-Tub, a Reading Tub Blog
[…] McLean has a great article at Pixie Stix Kids Pix about using books to help prepare kids for the digital future. For example: “adults need to […]
March 30, 2010 at 10:08 am
kmclean
Once again, a very nice group of thoughtful comments. This issue of the intersection of 21st century literacies and kids books is something I’m very interested in right now. I’m working on an article for Publishing Perspectives that will look a the future of reading in media culture. I’ll let you all know when it goes out. Thanks to everyone for reading and commenting.
May 14, 2011 at 3:07 am
Najlepsze Gry Hazardowe
This is an epic post, maybe I should add add this blog to my blogroll? 🙂
July 15, 2011 at 1:38 pm
Children’s Literacy and Reading News Roundup – 29 March | Book(re)Marks
[…] McLean has a great article at Pixie Stix Kids Pix about using books to help prepare kids for the digital future. For example: “adults need to […]
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May 14, 2018 at 6:52 am
Children’s Literacy and Reading News Roundup – 29 March
[…] McLean has a great article at Pixie Stix Kids Pix about using books to help prepare kids for the digital future. For example: “adults need to […]
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