Living in a media world: helping kids learn to question, create and make sense of it all

Dr Levido, from the Faculty of Education, was invited by ABC Kids to collaborate on content for the ABC Kids Media Literacy in Early Learning Hub to mark Media Literacy Week 2026 in Australia.

The materials are aimed at educators to help them support children’s learning.

“Talking with children about what they see, hear and play is one way to help children understand more about the media. The point is to get them to think a little bit more about what they engage with – not take away their enjoyment of the media,” said Dr Levido.

“This can help them understand why people make media, and why people enjoy it.”

Dr Levido said media literacy doesn’t appear all at once, whether you’re an adult or a child.

“The development of media literacy happens over our lifetime as we experience media both as audiences and creators. We learn about the media through our engagement. So we might know what happens next in our favourite program because we know the structure it usually follows.”

“But more intentional media literacy is needed to ensure there are opportunities for children to pause, consider, ask questions about the media and create their own media. Children’s own experience are incredibly important springboards for this – we should always start from what children already know and support them deepen their understanding of the media.”

Dr Levido said she was thrilled when the ABC Kids team invited her to contribute.

“ABC Kids is such a trusted source for educators and families. To collaborate with them on these resources shows their commitment to media literacy education for young children. The ideas we developed are informed by research, with the hope that educators can adapt the resources to suit their own context.”