Janet Chemotti has been the Library Media
Specialist for nine years at West Genesee Middle School, with a population of
800 students in grades 6-8. The library is a very busy place - over 320 students
use the facility daily!
Our
audiobook collection is used extensively and enthusiastically by students and
teachers - here are some quick ideas on how I get them involved: TIPS:
 | Build
your collection with only the best quality audiobooks.
We have
extensive waiting lists for the most popular tapes, and have purchased more and
more every year. Drama, comedy, terror, danger, surprise, suspense, happiness,
all the elements of a great "read" come alive with quality audiobooks. Great narrators
get everyone excited about audiobooks!
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| Get
some enthusiastic teachers involved to help spread the word.
We
are all great readers here, and love to listen to a great story! Selected teachers
along with our entire Library staff, comprise my informal "review" group, and
everyone takes an interest in promoting great audiobooks with the students. Teachers
often use them to introduce novels, themes, concepts, and exciting characters
-- the dialects and points of view in "Bull Run" for example, introduced a huge
project on the Civil War in 8th grade. Students really tune-in when the stereo
goes on. (We recently purchased several stereo systems for the school, to get
the most out of the recordings!)
Audiobooks can make the daily
commute to school more fun too! Many teachers on our staff live 20 minutes to
an hour from school, and they enjoy listening to an audiobook to get focused in
the morning, and unwind in the afternoon.
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| Get
the parents involved!
Brag about the program in the parents' newsletter
and present at your school's PTA meetings - handing out a list of audiobook titles
available, playing samples of audiobooks and handing out a sheet of information
on how audiobooks help students learn.
Parents who call me for
help with their child who "hates to read" are extremely happy with our audiobook
collection and program. Recently one mom called me to celebrate her son's grade
of 85 on a book report -- it had been his highest grade ever in English class,
and all because he fell in love with a story by Bruce Coville that we had in an
audiobook! He has checked out at least 6 more books in this Library since then
(October), with the companion audiobooks. Last year, he didn't take out any! He
and I love to talk together about his/our favorite stories now.
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| Play
audiobooks over announcements to intrigue the entire school.
You're
kind of like a DJ, playing your favorite audiobooks so they become the students
favorites!
I have found that with the excellent quality audiobooks,
students easily become intrigued and involved. Our grades are divided into smaller
groups and often classes combine to explore thematic projects. For example, in
7th grade, the science and English classes combine for survival projects -- in
science, students study animals and their adaptations, the food chain, etc., while
in English class, survival fiction and nonfiction books explore the concepts they
have learned, as both fictional and real characters face problems of survival.
Audiobooks have really helped the kids connect with this theme. Some of the best-received
are those in which the author narrates, especially biographical works. |
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On a personal note... I recently moved to
a town 30 minutes away, and when friends ask about how I'm weathering the drive
(I used to live 10 minutes away), I always tell them that audiobooks make it a
breeze! My family has used them for at least 7 years, beginning with trips to
South Carolina for Spring vacation -- I quickly found my children calmer and more
attentive when in the car for extended periods. My husband and I first listened
to an audiobook on a trip to Toronto -- when we finally arrived in the city, the
story had 45 minutes or so to go, so we drove around the outskirts of Toronto
so we could hear the ending!
| Here
are some proven ways to use audiobooks - from the staff at West Genesee Middle
School: |
Suzanne Pray, 8th Grade English teacher -
 IT
WORKS!
- Listening to selections from audiobooks helps me keep up on new books
so I can make reading recommendations to students.
- Introducing
a new book to the entire class by playing the first chapter motivates most students
to read on independently. They are hooked!
- Listening to books
that use a lot of dialects gets students started on the tone and sound (e.g.,
Southern US, European, Western US)of what they're reading - without audiobooks
many students will give up books that have dialect.
- Listening
and following the book helps poor readers and ESL students recognize words and
hear fluency in language.
Mary Bily, Library Aide and ESL Tutor -
IT
WORKS!
Using audiobooks
to tutor ESL students...
Along with working in the Library,
I am a tutor for a group of students from the Ukraine. Having a Ukranian upbringing
myself and knowing the language and heritage gave me the opportunity to share
my knowledge and help students in need.
I started by using lower
reading level audiobooks to encourage these students to learn. They would take
them home and literally the whole family began to listen to this new language.
It was great because they could follow along in the book and listen to how the
words were being pronounced.
As time went on, one of the students wanted to be up
to par with what his classmates were assigned to read. I would get the necessary
assignments ahead, and try to find the corresponding unabridged audiobook. The
student would then listen to the tape over and over and over, until he somewhat
comprehended the book. His assignment with me would be to discuss what was read
and write down the words that he had trouble understanding.
Audiobooks
are a wonderful tool! To be able to see the joy in a child's face when they are
engaged in listening to a narrated story, sharing in the excitement of hearing
the performer's different voices and changes of emotion, is a great reward! What
better gift to share with all children, including those with language disabilities,
and those who have no one to read to them?
Contact Janet
Chemotti at jchemott@wgmail.cnyric.org.
FREE! EXPERT
ADVICE!
Visit with eight
educators who have proven success using audiobooks as a teaching tool.
Go ahead and e-mail them with your questions! |
 EDUCATORS:
If you make good use of audiobooks in your approach
to education and feel you have some good tips and inspiration to pass on to others,
would you like to be considered for our Educator of the Month feature?
If so, contact Heather Frederick, Publisher at Audio Bookshelf at 1-800-234-1713
or audiobooks@prexar.com
We want to honor you!
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