Julianna Huth, a second grader at Green Primary School, in Green, Ohio, is a fan of the digital world. The 8-year-old enjoys e-books at home and at school. "It's just cool that you can read on your IPad," said Julianna, who started using e-books when she was 6. "It's more fun and you learn more from it." Children would say that books on e-readers are fun. They include music, cartoons and other interactive  functions that make reading a book feel like playing a video game. But is it better than a book? Julianna's teacher, Kourtney Denning, thinks highly of e-books. "Traditional books aren't good enough anymore," she said. "We have to transform our learning as we know it." Julianna's mother, Cathy Ivancic, said that electronic devices  like the IPad were new and fun and gave children the motivation to read, including those who didn't like reading. Some people, however, are suggesting a closer look, especially for younger children learning to read. "Read traditional books with your child. We don't have any evidence that any kind of electronic device is better than a parent," said Julia Parish-Morris, who has studied e-books and how children interact with them. Ms. Parish-Morris and educators are concerned that children can be distracted by the cartoons and gamelike features within e-books. Keeping a focus on the story is important in developing reading and writing skills. "The most important thing is sitting and talking with your children," said Gabrille Strouse, a professor who has studied e-books. "Whether you're reading a book or an e-book, co-interacting, co-viewing is the best way for them to learn." Lisa Guernsey, director of the early education initiative at the New America Foundation, says conversations about how events of a story relate to(......) the child's own life, or asking open-ended questions about what happened, are examples of natural dialogue. But this kind of interaction is often different with e-books , she said, and in some cases, disappears. "We are seeing some evidence that parents expect the e-books to do it all and are stepping back from communicating with their children," she said. Who doesn't approve of kids reading e-books?
Julia Parish-Morris. Julianna Huth's teacher. Gabrielle Strouse. Julianna Huth's mother.