This article reports a study that explored young children's digital literacy in the home. The aim of the study was to identify the range of digital literacy practices in which children are engaged in the home and to explore how these are embedded into family life and involve family members. Four children, two girls and two boys aged between 2 and 4 years, were the focus for study. Parents were co-researchers in the study in that they made written observations on children's activities and captured practices using a digital camera and a digital camcorder over the period of 1 month. They took part in a series of interviews during the study in which they reflected on this data and were asked about related practices. Findings suggest that children were immersed in a range of multimedia, multimodal practices which involved extensive engagement with other family members who scaffolded their learning and delighted in the children's technological capabilities. The article suggests that, in the light of socio-cultural developments in the new media age, a change in focus from 'family literacy' to 'family digital literacy' is required.

Summary. The reading attainment of working‐class children, as indicated by reading test performance, is lower than that of other children but there is some evidence that it might be improved if their parents are involved more in the teaching of reading by hearing their children read at home. A study was carried out of a reading at home parental involvement project in a primary school serving a working‐class area. The project was satisfactorily implemented and 76 children completed three years in it. Their reading test scores were compared to those of similar children who had passed through the school before the project. No significant improvement was found in test performance. The findings are discussed in relation to those of the Haringey Project (Tizard et al., 1982). It is hypothesised that the effects of this form of parental involvement may depend on the nature of home visiting which supports it, on the previous extent of parental involvement, or on whether the families concerned are from ethnic minorities. It is argued that there should be continued development and evaluation of parental involvement in the teaching of reading.

Relatively few studies of family literacy programmes have investigated parents’ views, despite their importance for the future development of this kind of programme in early childhood education. This article reports on a family literacy programme from the perspectives of the parents involved in it. The study was carried out in socio-economically disadvantaged communities in a northern English city. Parent experiences were investigated through interviews at the beginning and end of the programme ( N = 85) and home visit records. Interviews with a control group ( N = 73) of parents who had never participated in a family literacy programme were also conducted at the end of programme. Take-up and participation rates were extremely high for child-focused components of the programme, but the adult (parent-focused) education component had lower take-up. Parents expressed extremely positive views about the child-focused component of the programme and all felt it had benefited children. There was evidence, according to parent report, of programme impact on family literacy practices. Implications for family literacy programmes are discussed.

This article reports a study of family literacy practices from the perspectives of five-year-old children drawn from areas of social and economic deprivation in an English city. Methodological and ethical issues of interviewing young children are discussed. An interview survey (N = 71) found literacy activity reported in all homes; fathers involved in literacy with their children; and boys (as well as girls) involved in literacy activity. Findings were compared with those of a further randomly selected sample (N = 77) whose parents had participated in a family literacy programme. The comparison showed a modest, but consistent, increase in child-reported family literacy activity in the programme group, and concludes that the impact of a family literacy programme is discernible through children's perspectives. Implications for family literacy practices and the need for further research, including measures of children's literacy achievement and views of parents and the teachers participating in the programme, are identified.

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