Program details
- Priority area: Communication (language development), access and inclusion
- Primary audience: Educators, parents/carers, children
- Delivery mode: Resources (book, kits, manuals), online
- Strength of evidence: Level 3 – Promising research evidence
- AEDC sub-domains:
- Language and cognitive development – basic literacy
- Language and cognitive development – interest literacy/numeracy and memory
- Communication skills and general knowledge – communication and general knowledge
- Item cost: Low (<$200 per person/item) to Moderate ($200-$2,000 per person/item)
Program description
Story Box Library is a digital story telling platform that provides access to diverse stories and storytellers, assisting with language, learning and social development for all children. Story Box Library’s digital storytelling platform increases inclusivity during planning and practice in early childhood education and supports diverse learning styles. The platform delivers the experience of being read aloud to, helping children engage with books and develop the skills they need to communicate and read with confidence.
Story Box Library features rich vocabulary, text structures and language devices in a growing library and world of stories. Storytellers are chosen to ensure a diverse range of voices, ages, gender and backgrounds are represented.
Story Box Library provides supporting resources such as ‘Activity Time’ provide educators and families with ideas for exploring the themes and language within stories further with children. The providers also offers subscribers the opportunity to partake in termly professional development sessions. These sessions are held online, and cover a range of topics related to literacy and student engagement. For example, previous sessions have included:
- Creating a diverse library: the importance of representation and diversity in children’s literature
- Twelve steps for engaging readers
- Using digital stories to enrich play and learning in early education.
Detailed cost
Story Box Library is a subscription-based resource. Pricing is dependent on the number of funded kindergarten children enrolled at your service, rather than on individual children or rooms. Prices below are for a 12-month subscription with unlimited access and are inclusive of GST:
2025
- 1–49 kindergarten children: $275
- 50–99 kindergarten children: $365
- 100–199 kindergarten children: $540
- 200-299 kindergarten children: $725
2026
- 1–49 kindergarten children: $300
- 50–99 kindergarten children: $400
- 100–199 kindergarten children: $595
- 200-299 kindergarten children: $795
Implementation considerations
- Target population: educators, children, parents/carers, families and early childhood professionals.
- Program/practice descriptions and details: story Box Library offers a flexible online delivery mode. Children can listen to stories individually on listening posts, storytelling zones or as a whole group. Stories can be accessed via the website or the StoryBox app, both at the services and by families at home including any siblings not enrolled at the service. Stories range in duration of around 3–8 minutes so the time commitment required is also flexible in that participants can tailor their viewing to suit their needs.
- Factors to consider: collection includes stories with Auslan translations and closed captions to increase accessibility.
- Tools and systems: access to a device with internet connection is required.
VEYLDF alignment
Item uses these practice principles
- Partnerships with families
- Respectful relationships and responsive engagement
- Equity and diversity
Item responds to these sub-outcomes
- Children interact verbally and non-verbally with others for a range of purposes
- Children engage with a range of texts and get meaning from these texts
- Children express ideas and make meaning using a range of media
- Children begin to understand how symbols and pattern systems work
- Children use information and communication technologies to access information, investigate ideas and represent their thinking
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