Digital childhoods and multilingual identities: Preschool children's interactions with a picture book app

Abstract This study investigates the application and implications of the use of a multilingual picture book app in Swedish preschools, focusing on children's engagement and educators' roles in supporting multilingual development. Employing semi‐structured interviews and video observations, this study reveals the app's potential in reinforcing multilingual identities, bridging home‐school gaps and fostering peer connections. However, it also uncovers complexities in managing linguistic diversity, reflecting societal language attitudes and hierarchies. Grounded in the sociology of childhood, the study provides a critical lens. This approach seeks to understand how digital reading activities are shaping children's linguistic experiences and identities within a specific social and educational context.