Students who are given the audiobook advantage as an accommodation also have more continuity of learning in the classroom. When students get access to the content and are able to work independently, it gives them the confidence to become successful learners and control their educational outcome. Listening to audiobooks brings the information to the student when they are ready for it, not when they can read it. Just because a student canвЂ™t read the words in the same way as their peers, doesnвЂ™t mean they arenвЂ™t developmentally ready to learn this information. They are now able to work alongside their peers and get hours of time back. Giving students access to grade-level materials by providing an audiobook accommodation improves their self-esteem and increases their participation in class and peer discussions. Develops grade-level appropriate content knowledge. Kids in grades 3-8 who can finally put all the pieces of information together at one sitting, begin to make meaning of text. Reading books word-by-word doesnвЂ™t help create a whole experience. When students can hear the story or information as a whole, read by a human being, their comprehension increases. Anxiety plays a huge part in a struggling readerвЂ™s entire school experience, so the introduction and regular use of audiobooks can actually help students enjoy school more. They also remove the lag time of decoding, which becomes increasingly important as texts become more rigorous.

Audiobooks allow students to be immersed in the meaning of text. Removes printed word decoding anxiety.ДЄs soon as the pressure to read the written word is gone, students are open to learn and happy to find out they can. Building working memory helps make other reading tasks easier and improves reading ability.

The more often this happens, the more confident a student gets around the one subject that has plagued them, reading. This helps them respond to questions about the text more readily. When students begin reading with their ears, they start building their working memory. By eliminating the focus on decoding they are now able to retain, remember, and understand the content. Students who struggle with decoding and the mechanics of reading spend so much time focusing on sounding out the words that it is difficult for them to retain the information they are reading. This is not only frustrating and causes emotional stress, but also limits learning experiences. They lose opportunities to get access to content and information that represents their capabilities and intellect. If students are left to read only materials at their reading level, they lose out. The ability to build background quickly through audiobooks cannot be underestimated. It also helps develop higher-order thinking skills. This exposure helps build their background knowledge, an essential component to an evolving student. Human-read audiobooks expose students to academic vocabulary and the language of books. Students in grades 3-8 come to the classroom with differing experiences for sure, but those whoвЂ™ve also struggled with reading arrive even less prepared. The more words they learn and incorporate into their knowledge-base, the better able they will be to access grade-level materials. Having books read aloud helps these struggling readers move beyond the decoding and right into learning. When students are offered the opportunity to have audiobooks in the classroom, their world can finally open up. Increases word exposure and improves vocabulary. Because listening to an audiobook accomplishes the following: 1. Here are seven reasons why audiobooks are the perfect accommodation for struggling readers. Audiobooks also help students engage in text and gain exposure to more words, ultimately improving vocabulary, comprehension and critical thinking skills. Audiobooks allow students to hear explicit sounds of letters and letter patterns that form words. Providing access to human-read audiobooks can support reading skill development. As they move up in school, reading becomes all about learning new information and content. When students in grades 3вЂ“8 have reading skills that are below benchmark, they lose ground more rapidly.

2017 audio books