Stories are shared in many ways including spoken, visual, and written forms. Language is often first learned through listening, with repetition of stories, phrases and lines helping people recognise words, rhythm, and sound before written text is introduced.  

Visual literacy is also an important part of language development. In the Papunya readers, visual storytelling provides information about characters, actions, and relationships, helping readers connect words to meaning. This is particularly important in multilingual communities where children are learning to read while navigating several languages.  

While the Papunya readers include a range of texts, they continue to honour oral storytelling tradition by prioritising visual storytelling and spoken language. For example, Walypalalitju lurtjurinytjaku is written in Pintupi language with no English translation. To derive meaning from the text, readers who do not speak Pintupi rely on the illustrations to understand the story using the image to interpret the characters, actions and relationships. In this way, visual storytelling may support readers in making meaning from the text, even if they do not speak Pintupi. A similar approach can be seen in Piḻkaṯi anta rikuta, where visual storytelling plays a key role in showing relationships between people, animals and Country. 

As written texts, the readers allow stories to be revisited over time which supports language learning alongside developing critical oral and visual storytelling. Returning to a text allows stories to be remembered over time and helps readers build confidence. Sharing stories in different ways supports language learning, understanding, and connection to Country.