Audio-books!

We are both more visual readers than audiobook listeners. However, we see the value and ways audiobooks can be excellent. I’ve currently been listening to a lot more while walking my dog or doing chores. They can really work for our students, too. I’ll do a graphic novels post soon (one of my true loves) but I wanted to give audiobooks their time to shine and provide a mini celebration and reminder that audiobooks are valuable and reading, too! 

We love them because: 

• They are accessible and inclusive! 

  • Excellent tool as a repeat to an in-class read-aloud, review for homework/bonus work, or with headphones as a calming time. Incredibly enjoyable for some kiddos. 

  • Some of us are audio-first strength humans. This format can really be what feels best for students. 

  • It can be its own assignment - in a fun and real-world application way while practicing fluency. Students can hear strong models/examples of readers, work towards it, and TANGIBLY hear their own growth. There are so many ways to record ourselves and use devices now. Students who like to perform (or need an audience but can’t always get one right in the moment) might love this. 

  • Like a read-aloud, audiobooks let kids interact with books on their thinking level/grade level even if they aren’t doing all components of reading at that level. 

• They can be a great tool (fluency, assessment, practice, review) 

  • It can be used as a read-along aspect to build fluency, confidence- or a review after reading a page themselves. Options, options, options! You know your kids best, but this may be the trick for accountability instead of a dreaded reading log.

  • Great tool for comprehension too (are you wondering about comprehension skills only, separate from their decoding or phonemic proficiency skills? This can be a great way to see their strength with comprehension only as they build up their other relative areas of weakness in decoding / phonological awareness. 

• They are fun!!!

  • Some books SHINE in this format (the trick is knowing which ones) 

• They are a special kind of company.

  • Students who are on buses/long commutes/ need a break from family and it is hard to focus at home... headphones can be such a gift. Escape to another world without having to engage in the exhaustion of visual reading, while still falling in love with storytelling and reading. 

Some recent favorites: 

Picture book:  Pete the Cat - white shoes (the narration includes the singing of the song)

Middle Grade: Mysterious Benedict Society (longer, but it is so well-read and so much fun!) Great for pre-Harry Potter or similarly leaning kids. 

YA : I actually really haven’t explored these in that way - I think YA has too much tension and I need to control turning the pages!?  Any favorites you all have?

Adult! 1) A Man Called Ove (In case you wanted to know, I love listening to this one and cry, Trigger warning: suicidal). 2) The Dutch House (the book was actually just good, but Tom Hanks reads a story like a true master and makes it great).

Beyond that, I’ve been on the deep dive on podcasts (check out our post on these here), but they are VERY specific to my tastes (read that as... all things WNBA and Chinese History) but, I have been listening to a lot of interviews/podcasts that go with my Science of Reading deep dive and you can check those out! 

Triple R Teaching by Anna Geiger

Science of Reading: The Podcast by Amplify Education

Teaching, Reading, and Learning: The Reading League Podcast by Laura Stewart