A Case study of Young Children’s Use of iPad for Digital Storytelling for a Study of Self

Abstract

Young children gain an understanding of self via play. Visual representations of self via art in early childhood are often associated with children’s drawing or painting; the current study reports on digital story telling, rarely used by children. Reasons vary, including the lack of user-friendly technologies and difficult analysis of young children’s self-learning process and results. This study was innovative by involving a case study of a 7-year-old child’s play with iPad and whether and how this child could reflect on self and present results by using visual artistic presentation other than traditional painting or drawings. This 4 week study found that the participating child could use apps, such as iPad app camera, to produce a digital story presenting her study of self. Although this study has its limitations, it does provide a new area for early childhood educators to explore and study further.