Depictions of Reading in Children's Picturebooks: A Qualitative Multimodal Content Analysis

Using multimodal content analysis, this research study explored the text and images in 20 children’s picturebooks about reading. The purpose of this study was to examine the messages conveyed about reading and literacy  through the images and text in each picturebook. It was found that many of the picturebooks made references to fairy tales, focused on children’s literacy development relating to print, community togetherness and the interests and assumptions individuals hold about reading. These messages were presented through various modes that worked together and separately such as print text, images, and colour. The findings show the emphasis many children’s picturebooks about reading have on traditional forms of literacy. With support from the findings of this study, a discussion about the findings and recommendations about how various types of literacy can be acknowledged to support children and families are presented for professionals working with children and researchers.