Do you think you can "overdo it" with audiobooks?

[melissel]

I just can't seem to shake the feeling that they're somehow substandard, though I couldn't explain why I feel that way. My DD5 is currently in love with audiobooks, though she also loves when we read together, and does read on her own (she's a fluent reader--maybe 2nd/3rd grade level?). But given the choice between a book and an audiobook, she'd pick the audio. Should I be pushing the reading more? For myself, I only try to pick audiobooks that I wouldn't actually want to read otherwise, because I love to read and enjoy the whole experience.

 

I think part of the reason she prefers them is because of the voices. I put a lot of animation into my reading, but I don't do full-range voices. It's just too much for me--I can't do 451 pages of pirate voices! I don't know. Are audiobooks just as valid a form as hard copies? WDYT?

 

TIA!

[LG Gone Wild]

And woman, don't you dare get near my audiobook collection :boxing_smiley:

 

Of course, some books you just have to read but stories are just plain fun to listen to.

[Snickerdoodle]

My son is definitely an audio learner and so we listen to lots of audio books. One nice thing is that he often listens to a favorite section of a book over and over again. More often than I would be willing to reread it. He often memorizes sections of books verbatim. I think the audiobooks are very comforting somehow to him and I know that when he's grown he will look back at his time listening to audio books with great fondness.

[Daisy]

I don't have the answer, but I understand your concern. I'm a visual learner so I tend to place a lot of value in actually "reading" the book. I also want my chidlren to READ a book every now and then. I think as long as there is balance it is fine. Both my children prefer their Dad or I reading to them so an audio book would be a welcome relief to us. LOL.

[Barb_]

In some ways they are better than actually reading. A child can generally comprehend at a higher level than she can decode, so audiobooks expose her to richer language and more complex plots at an earlier age. For this reason, I steer mine toward books that are above their reading level and it all shakes out.

 

Barb

[melissel]

Thank you all, I feel much better now. Right now we're working our way through the Sisters Grimm series (AWESOME books, by the way; I highly recommend them!), and we're enjoying them so much, I'd hate to switch to the hard copies. The narrator does a stunning job with the story and voices. Plus, they are great for quiet time and keeping her busy while she's straightening her room, and at bedtime, and in the car on the long trip to MIL's, and...hmmm. Are you sure I can't overdo it? :lol:

 

I'll keep taking advantage of this great resource. We have SOTW Vol. 1 coming on CD too, so I expect that to help us a lot next year :D

[Jenny in Atl]

Think of them like to the storyteller, the traveling minstrel. Nothing but positive comes from audio bks, especially well narrated good fiction and even non fiction.

[kdeno]

Audiobooks are awesome!

 

Kari

[abbeyej]

I'll simply agree with others. Listening to audiobooks is a slightly different experience from reading the words for oneself, but it can be an extremely valuable one as well. Children can experience books that are above their own reading level, they can listen for longer periods than mama can possibly read (before her voice goes and the laundry piles to a dangerous, tottering tower), and they can listen to the same things over and over enough to memorize them (and assuming that they are listening to high quality literature, this is a very valuable exercise as well!)...

 

Audio books can be especially valuable for children with learning challenges that make it difficult to attain fluent reading. They can internalize stories and the sound of good writing well above their reading skill level so they aren't missing out on developing an ear for rich language and an understanding of good literature simply because their skill at decoding is weak or slow to develop. (I know this isn't the case at all with your child, melissel -- I'm just pointing out that this is another advantage of audiobooks.)

 

I do think there's also value in reading silently to oneself, in reading aloud to others, in reading along with a mother while discussing the work at hand. Each of these is a slightly different experience and exercises different skills. And that's great. The fact that she really enjoys audio books is lovely! :)

 

The only time I would worry is if audiobooks are creating a true imbalance in her world. If a child were spending many hours a day inside listening to audiobooks to the detriment of outdoor play, interaction with siblings or friends, to the point that they snarled when pulled away from the audiobooks... Any of those signs that a single activity has become an obsession for them or is preventing them from engaging in life as a whole... Again, I don't think you describe that at all. And listening for an hour or two a day while doing an art project, etc, etc, is great. (And even listening for many hours in a single day once in a blue moon is fine too!)

[Stacey in MA]

I want to add that we are in a similar boat. My kids seem to prefer audiobooks too. Well, really, my DS9 does. My DD6 loves to read, and will choose to do so in her own free time. DS9 will only read "on command", but never by choice. So, if he gets a few stories in, especially ones that are demonstrating reasonably sophisticated writing styles, then all the better. He likely wouldn't have taken them in otherwise.

 

DS9 is doing SOTW Vol 3, and we just finished "Mr. Revere and I", "George Washington's Socks" and "Ben and Me" on audiobooks (these are our car ride entertainment!). I don't think we would have found the time for them otherwise, but they were a nice complement to what we are learning in history right now.

 

FWIW, I require DS9 to read 30min of "assigned" reading/day, 30 min of "fun" reading/day (his choice), and some reading aloud. So he is getting some reading time in, regardless of how much we are listening to the audiobooks.

 

Anyway, hope that helps. We are doing lots as well! Good luck - Stacey in MA

[Nestof3]

Our eldest listened to audio books while he played Legos. For him, it was great to be able to do two things at once.

 

My 8 year old listened to 100 audio books last year including SOTW. He loves books in any form. He loved being able to listen to books far above his reading level since his vocabulary and thinking skills were above reading level.

 

Our oldest has just started to enjoy reading, and I can say that if I had not given him so many audio books, he would not have read more. He has learned so much from them.

 

I really see no difference except for the skill of pronouncing words on one's own, but not all of reading has to be an English lesson, if you know what I mean.

[KarenNC]

We listen to audiobooks in the car rather than at home (one reason is that the majority we get from the library are on cassette still and the car is the only place we still have a functioning cassette player <G>). As others have mentioned, we do audiobooks that are either above her reading level or, more to the point, above the reading level she would choose for fun. We do the same with bedtime reading. She can read quite well and does so constantly, but still prefers to get shorter books with more illustrations (she's 7, tested on a 4th grade level when she was 6, but comprehension was a good bit higher). Her current passion is graphic novels. Particularly for young children who read early, I think the decreasing size of the print, decreasing number of illustrations and increasing thickness of the books can get intimidating to them as well. I believe that is why my daughter gravitates to the thinner books with more illustrations for her fun reading.

 

Since we are together in the car, the standard for the book is that it has to be something to which *I* am willing to listen. Boxcar Children, for instance, didn't make the cut (I lasted 5 minutes) but Beverly Cleary books did. I find I am enjoying revisiting books like "Anne of Green Gables" and "Little Women" or discovering new ones like Brian Jacques' Redwall series or Avi's "Crispin: Cross of Lead".

 

I think they are very valuable for giving a child a chance to be immersed in much richer language and more complex story lines than they may be able or willing to read for themselves. With a child who loves stories, it also saves my voice a bit. We began the audiobooks when my daughter was about 5 IIRC and they have been an integral part of our life ever since.

[dragons in the flower bed]

Are audiobooks just as valid a form as hard copies? WDYT?

 

They serve a different purpose.

 

I listened to a talk by Andrew Pudewa (of the Institute for Excellence in Writing) which changed my mind and had me hunting down audiobooks for my kids. He said that kids need regular sources of consistently correct and beautiful language.

 

They don't get it it from home conversation, which is quite casual in most families, and they don't get it from TV, and they often don't get it from books because most people skim at least parts of the writing (like long descriptions of the setting). When listening to an audiobook of classic or excellent literature, children are hearing language in it's ideal form.

 

So, unless you can read aloud to her from high quality literature every time your dd asks, I'd give her audiobooks. It's a very, very important thing for kids to have as much exposure to beautiful, correct, sophisticated language as they can get.

[Lizzie in Ma]

Thank you all, I feel much better now. Right now we're working our way through the Sisters Grimm series (AWESOME books, by the way; I highly recommend them!), and we're enjoying them so much, I'd hate to switch to the hard copies. The narrator does a stunning job with the story and voices. Plus, they are great for quiet time and keeping her busy while she's straightening her room, and at bedtime, and in the car on the long trip to MIL's, and...hmmm. Are you sure I can't overdo it? :lol:

 

:D

My dd just plowed through these (not the audio) they were great fun!

[Jenny in Atl]

Yet another house full of Sisters Grimm fans! We are the kind of family that likes to both read a bk and then again listen to it later on.

[Nestof3]

They serve a different purpose.

 

So, unless you can read aloud to her from high quality literature every time your dd asks, I'd give her audiobooks. It's a very, very important thing for kids to have as much exposure to beautiful, correct, sophisticated language as they can get.

 

Perfectly said! I am certain one of the reasons my 8 year old has such a vast vocabulary is because he is always listening to an audio book. I could never have supplied his insatiable desire for language and stories if he waited on me to read. I read a lot, but I also teach the math, the handwriting, cook meals, clean the house and so on. He has listened to far more books than I EVER read growing up. Seriously.

 

Also, if I waited until he was old enough to read well enough to give him Chronicles of Narnia, Wind in the Willows, Wizard of Oz and so forth, he might not have the love of books he has now.

[SparrowsNest]

Where are you all getting these audiobooks?

[Nestof3]

I exhaust my local library. I buy from amazon and blackstone audio. I buy the G. A. Henty MP3s from the Jim Hodges' website. Every Christmas the boys get new audio books. I bought SOTW and Our Island Story on audio. I download free ones from http://www.librivox.com.

[Nestof3]

This code is for homeschoolers. It will give you half off any purchase (not rental) from Blackstone Audio.

 

The code is: af-2003-sb

[SparrowsNest]

Thank you Dawn! :)

 

Off to have a peek...

[Colleen]

nt

[GailV]

Dh has pointed out time and again that many people do not have good listening skills. He is constantly impressed with our dds ability to follow complex plot lines and to retain details while listening to books. He thinks this skill will serve them well later in life.

 

Today was rainy, icky weather here. We had audio books on all day while doing other things around the house.

[Nestof3]

Yes. (nt)

 

Wow, so succinct.

 

Would you care to elaborate?

[Targhee]

My kids love the audiobooks so much they don't have time to bother each other in the back seat of the car! We listen to them every other time we get in the car (the kids take turns with me so I can listen to the radio news or my own music, too), or whenever a squabble seems it is about to erupt in a full row (I just click the disc button and there is instant peace). If nothing else, it makes me a better driver:driving:.

 

The kids also get may turn them on at their leisure while playing (which they usually do). I turn them on in the background while they are engaged in simple tasks (drawing, folding laundry, building legos, etc.). Oh how we love audiobooks!!! I think the only way you could really over do it is if you completely substituted them for print. The kids need a chance to see you reading print, and to read it for themselves. Plus, the snuggle factor with read alouds is important to me, too.

 

We have checked out soooo many from the library. I try to have at least two on my iPod, and one in the car. I have ones from CD that I ripped onto my computer the kids haven't even heard yet. And I get them for me too. I can curl up with my knitting, hot chocolate, and my audiobook at night and chill out. :mellow:I have purchased from Audible.com before, as well, and they have good quality.

[Hannah]

I am certain one of the reasons my 8 year old has such a vast vocabulary is because he is always listening to an audio book.

 

This is our experience with my 8yo dd as well. Many people have commented on her vocabulary. She listens to audiobooks while doing many indoor activities.

 

I got most of our audiobooks from the UK from ebay.co.uk. Our library does not carry any.

[Nestof3]

My kids love the audiobooks so much they don't have time to bother each other in the back seat of the car! We listen to them every other time we get in the car (the kids take turns with me so I can listen to the radio news or my own music, too), or whenever a squabble seems it is about to erupt in a full row (I just click the disc button and there is instant peace). If nothing else, it makes me a better driver

 

I was thinking about this, and look -- you already posted it! I cannot stand distractions in the van, so my boys each have a portable CD player. Ben listens to music (soundtracks and Veggie Tales) while Nathan listens to audio books. Aaron will bring his media player and listen to celtic and classic or an audio book. I keep a little bag of AA and AAA batteries in the glove box.

 

I also have a soft "crate" on the floor between the boys' seats with activity books, clipboards with paper, coloring books, maze books, etc. If we have activity books and coloring books in the house that only have a few sheets left, I'll put them in the van -- they tend to get done faster when the boys are stuck in one place. There's also a little container with colored pencils, crayons and stencils.