TeachersFirst's Interactive Audio Books

These educator-reviewed resources from TeachersFirst offer audio books in interactive form so all students, including emerging readers and ESL/ELL learners, can experience reading with audio and visual prompts or interactivity to reinforce and inspire literacy skills and enjoyment as they read. Be sure to explore each site, as many include multiple types of activities, including the interactive books. The helpful reviews suggest ideas for ways to use the interactive books in the classroom or outside of school to reinforce literacy skills, improve English skills, or study literature in new ways. See TeachersFirst's full collection of audio book resources and collection of audio books with accompanying text.

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TaleTrove - TaleTrove.com

Grades
K to 5
3 Favorites 0  Comments
 
TaleTrove is an online collection of user-submitted stories offered in several different formats. Click Good Reads on the top left of the menu and choose from books for young readers...more
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TaleTrove is an online collection of user-submitted stories offered in several different formats. Click Good Reads on the top left of the menu and choose from books for young readers (grades K-3) to browse through book titles. Click on the book icon to choose from different formats to read and hear stories. Options include viewing as PDF, listening to mp3 (audio), or viewing the flipbook. Most stories include all three options; however, a few offer only one or two. Each book also includes a learning guide with suggestions for pre and post-reading discussion as well as ideas for use when reading the book. The Create space menu accesses games, crafts, and other activities to explore and try. Users can submit reviews of the stories available on the site.

tag(s): audio books (25), digital storytelling (152), guided reading (32), preK (263), reading comprehension (148)

In the Classroom

View and listen to stories by opening up two tabs in your browser. Choose one to listen in mp3 format and the other to view using either PDF format or the flipbook reader. View and listen to stories together on your interactive whiteboard or create a link on classroom computers for students to read independently. You could even submit a "review" written by your entire class or have your more able students write one you can submit using a teacher account. Browse for other reading-related activities and crafts. Be sure to include this site on your class web page for students to access both in and outside of class for reading practice.
 This resource requires PDF reader software like Adobe Acrobat.

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Google Read Along - Google

Grades
K to 12
1 Favorites 1  Comments
 
Google Read Along is an entertaining, interactive website designed to help young children learn to read. This site is currently available in English, Portuguese, Spanish, Hindi, Marathi,...more
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Google Read Along is an entertaining, interactive website designed to help young children learn to read. This site is currently available in English, Portuguese, Spanish, Hindi, Marathi, Bengali, Tamil, Telugu, Gujarati, and Urdu. Though you can use Google Read Along on your computer, the best experience will be by using an Android device. Read Along engages young readers with a friendly character named Diya, who provides assistance and feedback when needed. Students receive immediate feedback by earning stars for each word they read correctly. In addition, Diya will help if children are stuck on a particular word. Gamification makes learning to read fun and engaging! Students earn stars and badges and can level up to more advanced books as they become increasingly better readers. Google Read Along also tracks how many minutes students spend actively reading. A Google account is required, and enable your microphone access for your browser.

tag(s): digital reading (19), gamification (78), independent reading (86), preK (263)

In the Classroom

Google Read Along would be a great addition to any preschool or early elementary classroom. Teachers who work with ENL students or adults learning to read may also find this site helpful. Students will gain confidence by practicing reading independently yet still get assistance if needed, all while the teacher can work with individual students or small groups. In addition, many books are cross-curricular, so they can be used to enhance instruction for other core subjects.

Comments

This is a great resource to help my Spanish 1 and Heritage students to learn how to read. Jessica Zapata, , Grades: 9 - 12

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Ada Lace, Take Me to Your Leader - StoryTime from Space

Grades
1 to 5
0 Favorites 0  Comments
 
Embark on an incredible literature adventure as Astronaut Anne McClain reads a book on video. Ada Lace, Take Me to Your Leader by Emily Calandrelli is a story about a ...more
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Embark on an incredible literature adventure as Astronaut Anne McClain reads a book on video. Ada Lace, Take Me to Your Leader by Emily Calandrelli is a story about a third-grader and "inventor extraordinaire." Listen to this three-part story as you learn about Ada Lace's latest invention, a ham radio used to contact people on this planet...and beyond. Strange noises are heard over the ham radio leading Ada Lace to believe that aliens are planning to invade Earth. Listen to the story to find out what happens next on this journey! The story is divided into three short videos ranging from 13 minutes to 22 minutes in length.

tag(s): audio books (25), ebooks (41), space (217)

In the Classroom

This ebook could be used as a whole-group activity by sharing the video on your projector. Students could also view the video on individual devices (don't forget the earbuds). This is a great book to use to connect science and language arts. After each part of the story, extend the learning, and have students answer a teacher-directed question or summarize the main events. After parts one or two, you could have students write predictions about what they think will happen next. Challenge your students to create simple blog posts using edublogs, reviewed here. If students are too young for writing, have them create video responses using a tool such as Gravity, reviewed here.

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Mighty Book - Mighty Book

Grades
K to 3
2 Favorites 0  Comments
 
Engage young children in this colorful site, packed with songs, interactive audio books, art and music interactives, and emergent reading activities. Reaching a wide range of grades,...more
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Engage young children in this colorful site, packed with songs, interactive audio books, art and music interactives, and emergent reading activities. Reaching a wide range of grades, this site offers over 50 different engaging activities. Visit the stories made by children. The free part of this site includes a great variety of topics: Boston Tea Party, alphabet, making mistakes, metamorphosis, Mars, a variety of popular children's songs, nouns, upper case and lower case, Beatrix Potter, jokes, Bach & Van Gogh, Mona and Beethoven, and much more! Some of the activities are also available in Spanish. Check out Teachers at the bottom of the page for Lesson Plans.
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): alphabet (52), independent reading (86), preK (263), sight words (22), songs (44), video (262)

In the Classroom

Use this site for learning as a whole group, learning centers, or individual laptops for reinforcement or enrichment. First, introduce Mighty Book on your interactive whiteboard or projector. Since there are extensive ads, you may want to bookmark or create shortcuts directly to the activity you want children to use and avoid having them get "lost" in the many links that take you off the site. Share the songs and discuss the lyrics and what they are teaching. Use this site in art class to introduce famous artists to even the youngest of learners. After listening to the jokes, have students make up their own jokes. Poems with activities offer a kinesthetic approach to poetry. Songs about colors and the days of the week catch your auditory learners. Share this link on your class website for students to explore (and enjoy) both in and out of the classroom.
 This resource requires PDF reader software like Adobe Acrobat.

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Signed Stories

Grades
K to 5
2 Favorites 0  Comments
 
The goal of Signed Stories is to increase the literacy of deaf children; however, it is a great resource for all children. After choosing an interactive, audio, or text story, ...more
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The goal of Signed Stories is to increase the literacy of deaf children; however, it is a great resource for all children. After choosing an interactive, audio, or text story, you will see the text, hear the story and see it in sign language. Almost 100 titles are available and can be searched by topic or by browsing all titles. Some stories offer all three options others only one or two. Many stories have pause and rewind buttons, so you can replay to see signs again.

tag(s): sign language (10)

In the Classroom

Use stories on the interactive whiteboard or projector to teach story elements - pause as the story is read to allow students to retell details to the stopping point then make predictions of what will happen next. Help students understand disabilities and adaptations to disabilities through watching the stories being told in sign language. This is also a great resource for students with deaf/hearing impaired parents or students/teachers trying to learn or practice sign language. In sign language classes, consider creating your own signed story videos for children's books using a tool like Adobe Express Video Maker, reviewed here, and share them with a tool such as TeacherTube, reviewed here.
 This resource requires PDF reader software like Adobe Acrobat.

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Online Audio Stories - Abbey Rice

Grades
K to 3
2 Favorites 0  Comments
 
Bring classic children's stories to your classroom in an engaging and easy-to-use manner! This site contains many stories such as Jack in the Beanstalk, Rapunzel, The Princess and the...more
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Bring classic children's stories to your classroom in an engaging and easy-to-use manner! This site contains many stories such as Jack in the Beanstalk, Rapunzel, The Princess and the Pea and more in both audio and video format. Choose the story you want to read by genre, theme, author and other choices. Click to play and you are ready to listen and read along with the storyteller. One great feature of this site is that you can click on any word in the story and choose a language to see the word translated - a great addition for ESL students and families. All stories can also be downloaded in mp3 format, meaning that they can be played on most audio players and ipods. Note: This site may take long to load. Be patient.

tag(s): air (103), audio books (25), folktales (34)

In the Classroom

Download stories onto a mp3 player for students to listen to during reading time. Play the audio version of stories while following the written version on the interactive whiteboard. Use the stories during a fairy tale unit to compare and contrast characters. Share this link on your class web page for families to enjoy at home. These stories are worth playing over and over. Be sure to provide this link on your class website for students to explore both in and out of the classroom.

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Reading is Fundamental - Family Literacy Resources - Reading is Fundamental (RIF)

Grades
K to 8
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The celebrated RIF program offers this site for parents to support their children's literacy. You will find resources from infancy to the teenage years and some for the entire family....more
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The celebrated RIF program offers this site for parents to support their children's literacy. You will find resources from infancy to the teenage years and some for the entire family. While there is more available for younger children (through elementary school), the Whole Family area and some of the activities are enjoyable for teens, as well. Click to find practical tips to support your growing readers, monthly features, interactive books, activities for family heritage, authors, polls, a personal bookshelf to collect book recommendations, and more. You can even search for activities by age and activity type. Find interactive and audio with text in their "Skybrary." Some of the videos reside on YouTube. If your district blocks YouTube they may not be viewable in your classroom.

tag(s): audio books (25), authors (105), literacy (117), summer (28)

In the Classroom

Provide this link to parents in support of your in-school reading program. Be sure to share this link before school breaks so parents can support literacy at home to prevent "summer slide."
 This resource requires PDF reader software like Adobe Acrobat.

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U.S.A. Learns - U.S. Dept of Ed

Grades
2 to 12
1 Favorites 0  Comments
    
This site includes FREE lessons in English and Spanish. Prospective English or Spanish learners start lessons with free registration. Registration is not required to USE the site, but...more
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This site includes FREE lessons in English and Spanish. Prospective English or Spanish learners start lessons with free registration. Registration is not required to USE the site, but it is required to track progress. When registering, an email address is optional. After registration, students can choose a course at the appropriate level. There are 3 in English and 3 in Spanish. Students can then choose the specific lessons and follow its specific activities in order for each featured topic. Learning activities include videos, transcripts for the video text, questions, listening, stories, vocabulary practice, writing exercises, quizzes, and even voice recordings for pronunciation practice. Although registration is not absolutely necessary, doing so allows students to keep a record of the activities they have already completed. This site requires Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.

tag(s): pronunciation (33), spanish (107)

In the Classroom

What a fabulous site for ESL, ELL, learning support, and students learning Spanish! Introduce this site on your interactive whiteboard or projector. Share this site with Spanish students who do well at working on learning independently. ESL and ELL students will also benefit from going through the lessons, individually or in pairs. Teachers can register independently from their students and keep track of learner progress and participation. As students learn new vocabulary words, challenge cooperative learning groups to create an online book sharing their newfound vocabulary. Use a tool such as Bookemon, reviewed here.

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Starfall - Starfall Education

Grades
K to 3
4 Favorites 0  Comments
 
Find interactive reading activities for emergent/beginning readers at Starfall. It combines instruction in letter-sound relationships, word recognition skills, and reading comprehension...more
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Find interactive reading activities for emergent/beginning readers at Starfall. It combines instruction in letter-sound relationships, word recognition skills, and reading comprehension strategies. Seasonal activities can also be found on the main page. The four "levels" of reading at Starfall include "ABCs," "Learn to Read," "It's Fun to Read," and "I'm Reading." There is also a premium option, this review is only for the free interactives. The app (available on iOs, Google Play and Kindle Fire) offers more free intereactives than the web version.
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): DAT device agnostic tool (147), phonics (50), reading comprehension (148)

In the Classroom

This website could be used for an entire class using your interactive whiteboard or projector. You could also set up a learning center for use during your L.A. block. Use this site to differentiate reading levels for your students. Be certain to save this site in your class favorites and list this site on your class website for students to access both in and out of the classroom.
 This resource requires PDF reader software like Adobe Acrobat.

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Lit2Go - Florida Educational Technology Clearinghouse

Grades
K to 12
1 Favorites 0  Comments
 
Now you can listen to and read along with the classics and poems through the generosity of this site's creators. Download story files to your mp3 player or listen to ...more
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Now you can listen to and read along with the classics and poems through the generosity of this site's creators. Download story files to your mp3 player or listen to the files on your computer. Don't want to just listen to the classics and other stories? Then, view the text on a webpage or in a printable PDF. Easily browse the site by author or title to locate literature. You are also able to search by reading level; the levels are broken down by month (ranging from 0.0 - 12.0). Stories and poems are added frequently to this site, so check back often.

tag(s): air (103), audio books (25), folktales (34), literature (217), nursery rhymes (9), rhymes (21)

In the Classroom

Print out up to 25 PDF copies of stories and poems if you do not have print versions. Make your own books and leave blank sections to be illustrated for aiding comprehension. If you have iTunes installed on your computer, you can download many of the selections directly into your iTunes library. Use individual laptops for reading the stories online or as a download. Make sure your sight-impaired students know about this helpful site. Special ed teachers and ENL//ELL teachers will love the availability of audio files and text together.
 This resource requires PDF reader software like Adobe Acrobat.

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Inkless Tales - Elizabeth Bushey

Grades
K to 5
8 Favorites 0  Comments
 
Viewers of this very appealing site listen to and read a variety of stories and poems, while viewing accompanying drawings and test. Not all stories have the audio features. Teachers...more
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Viewers of this very appealing site listen to and read a variety of stories and poems, while viewing accompanying drawings and test. Not all stories have the audio features. Teachers will like the Read a Story options with simple Dolch words. Children can submit their own poems and may see themselves published online, but you will want to get parent permission first! Many writing prompts and easy writing tasks look like fun on this site; additional games on the site have an educational aspect. In addition to online activities, there are a few stories and games available to print out. A few activities, and the audio poems require the Flash; however, the audio stories are now in podcast format.

tag(s): audio books (25), listening (93), poetry (194), reading lists (78), writing (324)

In the Classroom

The animated alphabet is certain to appeal to pre-K and kindergarten teachers and students. Make it a center that students can explore over and over!

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Storyline Online - Screen Actors Guild Foundation

Grades
1 to 6
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This wonderful site has a collection of original stories read by actors and actresses. This is an excellent way to show children that reading is valued by folks in all ...more
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This wonderful site has a collection of original stories read by actors and actresses. This is an excellent way to show children that reading is valued by folks in all walks of life! An example is "Dad, Are You the Tooth Fairy" read by Jason Alexander. Many of the story titles are parodies of famous tales. Viewers can see the actor holding the book and turning the pages as he hears and sees the story being read. An accompanying Teacher's Guide with activities and an activity guide complete the offerings. The activities are terrific comprehension checkers and build solid reading strategies. The videos are available in two different programs: YouTube and SchoolTube.

tag(s): reading comprehension (148), reading lists (78), reading strategies (103)

In the Classroom

Make the stories a center or use a projector for the whole class to watch the video. Then, share the link on your teacher's web page for students to read it over and over at home. Make sure your speakers are turned up! Depending on the age of your students, once or twice a month, extend student learning by having them participate in a Flip, reviewed here discussion with their peers. Ask them to explain which was their favorite book and why, then have them listen to and comment on their classmates' impressions.

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Learn to Read - Starfall.com

Grades
1 to 3
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If you're looking for a resource that will engage reluctant readers or help new readers with unfamiliar vocabulary words, you may want to incorporate these fun and interactive stories...more
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If you're looking for a resource that will engage reluctant readers or help new readers with unfamiliar vocabulary words, you may want to incorporate these fun and interactive stories into your classroom. Students can read through the interactive texts independently, click on troublesome words, and listen to their pronunciations. Select from movies, videos, and games that illustrate special sounds, pronunciations, and spelling rules.

tag(s): sound (73), sounds (42), vocabulary (238)

In the Classroom

Use the movies to introduce the class to the alphabet. After working on letter sounds use the games and books during station time to reinforce letter sounds and spelling rules.

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