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Home » Reading Ideas » Reading Fun » 5 Reasons to Try Audiobooks with Kids

5 Reasons to Try Audiobooks with Kids

January 5, 2017 •

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Here are 5 reasons that listening to audiobooks is a great idea for kids. Suggestions for the best audiobooks for children is also included.

Placing the needle on the vinyl of my 45, I’d cozy myself into the little rocking chair listening to The Brer Rabbit.   Then, in grade school I progressed to books on tape.  Popping in the cassette into the boom box and enjoying  Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.  Fast forward a few more years and I was using books and cds in my classroom.  Kids these days are now listening to audiobooks on a variety of devices.  Technology resources to build literacy skills sure have evolved.

Here are 5 reasons that listening to audiobooks is a great idea for kids. Suggestions for the best audiobooks for children is also included.

Now, it seems like the resources and capabilities for listening to books digitally are endless.  And, the list of benefits of listening to audiobooks is just about as long.

But, why should we use audiobooks with children?

5 Benefits of Listening to Audiobooks for Kids

Full Disclosure:  This post contains affiliate links.

#1 A Surrogate Reader

Reading aloud to kids is the single most important thing we can do to help children become readers.  However, there are times when we just can physically make that time or be present to read aloud.

Kids can still get many of the benefits of a read-aloud through audiobooks.  They get to listen to great stories and hear lots of sophisticated vocabulary. 

#2 Great for Auditory Learners

We all have preferred modes of learning.  Some people are auditory learners and excel in receiving information through listening.  Audiobooks match well with this type of learner.

#3 Makes a Road Trip Seem Faster

We have spent many of road trips listening to an audiobook.  The time just seems to fly by when you get lost (not physically lost we hope) listening to [easyazon_link identifier=”B004EBOZNY” locale=”US” tag=”groboobyboo-20″]Farmer Boy by Laura Ingalls Wilder[/easyazon_link].  Check out these audiobooks paired with your destination for your next family trip.—>AUDIOBOOKS FOR YOUR NEXT FAMILY TRIP

#4 Kids Can Read Along

Try pairing an audiobook with the physical book.  Kids can read and follow along in the book.  This is beneficial for learning words and for building reading fluency.

Audible has a feature called Whisper Sync that allows you to see the text and hear the book read aloud at the same time.

Did you know you can try Audible for free? Try Audible and Get Two Free Audiobooks

#5  Adds More Read Aloud Time Into Your Child’s Day

My 5-year-old is in love with [easyazon_link identifier=”1613753616″ locale=”US” tag=”groboobyboo-20″]The Boxcar Children audiobook series[/easyazon_link].  He listens while he eats breakfast, builds with Lego, riding his bike, and while laying in bed at night. In fact, we have had to set the sleep timer for his audiobooks to shut off at night or he would stay up all night listening to Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny solving mysteries.  I consider these all bonus ways for him to soak in the love of books and reading.

Just like actual books, not all audiobooks are worth a listen.  Get started with our favorites.—>Best Audiobooks for Children

What audiobooks have you already enjoyed listening to with the kids?

Here are 5 reasons that listening to audiobooks is a great idea for kids. Suggestions for the best audiobooks for children is also included.

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Filed Under: Reading Fun Tagged With: technology

About Jodie Rodriguez

Jodie Rodriguez is a mom of two young boys and an early childhood/elementary educator with over 20 years of experience. Jodie's passion is helping parents, teachers, librarians and anyone else interested in nurturing and reaching ALL of our youngest growing readers.

Comments

  1. Amanda says

    January 7, 2017 at 7:22 pm

    What device do you use? Ipad?

    • Jodie Rodriguez says

      January 7, 2017 at 7:24 pm

      We have a Kindle Fire for my son. If we are in the car, we listen through the speakers and use my iphone.

  2. Sarah says

    January 5, 2017 at 7:28 am

    Just curious – where do you get most of your audiobooks? Our library doesn’t have many of these on Audio, and I know you can get some on Audible, but can get expensive. Just curious if there was another source you used?

    • Jodie Rodriguez says

      January 5, 2017 at 9:21 am

      Hi Sarah, our most frequent and free place to get audiobooks is through our library’s online digital system. Our library uses Hoopla. Others use 3M. Ask your library is they have a digital download system. We can then play them on the computer, cell phone, or Kindle. I also take advantage of ordering cds through the library from other libraries. If you are an Amazon Prime member, you can also download a few free ones. I’m researching more ideas and will have a post with more very soon. 🙂

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