Digital Literacy Made Simple

Book excerpt: Discover and explore simple ways to teach digital literacy skills throughout the day and across various content areas, without a formal digital literacy curriculum. Digital literacy describes skills and ways of thinking related to the use of technology, including the technical competence to communicate, evaluate and interpret digital information, navigate websites and understand why all these skills are important. All students need these skills to be responsible participants in school and society. However, teaching digital literacy can be challenging for teachers who have many other content standards they must address. In this book, two innovative educators demonstrate how to weave digital literacy skills throughout instruction in small ways, with simple strategies to discuss, model, mentor, build a learning culture and create digital experiences to improve students’ digital literacy skills and habits. The book: • Defines the fundamental elements of digital literacy and why they are important for students to understand. • Offers teaching strategies for integrating digital literacy into lessons across a range of content areas. • Provides case studies of classroom teachers using mini-strategies to improve students’ digital literacy skills and habits. • Includes resources for teachers to use as they develop digital literacy strategies. Through the use of practical examples that all teachers can implement immediately, this book is a useful guide for any teacher working to encourage digital literacy in their students. Audience: Elementary and secondary teachers; instructional coaches; technology leaders; and school library media specialists