Favourite Language Arts Links

Wednesday, October 23, 2013

Increasing literacy with your E or Audio books!

Never has literacy been so immediate and gratifying!  Never has an iPad, Sony, Nexus e reader or even your laptop seemed so inviting!!  Oh wonders to have the blessings of e reading/listening at your fingertips.  So the purpose of this post (as you may have realized) is to encourage you to try out some of our audio books;)  Now you might say well isn't that a bit like cheating?  Horrors!!  Reading and/or listening critically to the content, and then making connections with the heart, is the reason we enjoy books.

If you have not enjoyed the advantages of audio books, here are a few reasons why you need to partake...


  • Audiobooks can take students to the next reading level, introducing advanced vocabulary, whilst modelling higher level reading.  Statistics have shown that students who listen to more advanced literature will have an improved vocabulary as a result, and will recognize the words on the page faster if they have heard it before.
  • They may introduce new genres, and help Dyslexic students understand the nuance of humour.
  • They may help students understand in-congruencies in dialects/language like works on Shakespeare.
  • Provide a space for multi-age students and family to bond together over the joy of reading classics like Charlotte's Web, or Oliver Twist.
  • Audiobooks provide a bridge not only for struggling readers, but also for gifted readers. 
  • Audiobooks are a wonderful tool for listening pleasure in the car, on the way to a soccer game, or on a family holiday.
So please check out some of these amazing audio books on our e library with HCS E learning commons. We will even loan you an e reader.  If you don't know how to access e books in our e library please contact me and I will lead you to the best pickings!  Blessings on your reading/listening journey!

Here are a few of my favourites taken from our e library,  (images derived from HCS Overdrive library):

    Click here to view Audiobook details for Stuart Little by E.B. White
    Click here to view Audiobook details for Winnie-the-Pooh by A. A. MilneClick here to view Audiobook details for How to Eat Fried Worms by Thomas Rockwell
  • Click here to view Audiobook details for The Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan
  • Click here to view Audiobook details for The Indian in the Cupboard by Lynne Reid Banks




Sunday, October 6, 2013

Art for the analytics!

After watching this video I have a much better understanding about the purpose of art history!  Who knew that so many deductive skills were involved in creating an art story.  For more on this site check this link.