{"id":37363,"date":"2015-03-18T06:30:11","date_gmt":"2015-03-18T10:30:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/simplehomeschl.wpengine.com\/?p=37363"},"modified":"2026-02-16T11:01:47","modified_gmt":"2026-02-16T16:01:47","slug":"audiobooks-homeschool","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/simplehomeschool.net\/audiobooks-homeschool\/","title":{"rendered":"7 ways audiobooks enrich our homeschool experience"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"audiobooks-in-homeschool-2pm\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Written by Anne Bogel of Modern Mrs. Darcy<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

I<\/span> love to read, and so far (knock on wood<\/em>) we seem to be raising kids who love to read as well.\u00a0Despite my love of reading actual paper books<\/em> for myself, to my kids, and with my kids, over the past few years I’ve come to rely heavily on audiobooks in our homeschool.<\/p>\n

We have four kids at four different grade levels, and\u00a0using audiobooks helps preserve my voice (especially during spring allergy season) and my sanity (all the year round) when this introvert needs a break<\/a> from the noise noise noise noise<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Aside from the obvious convenience factor of audiobooks, they bring a richness and depth to our literary experience that we couldn’t get any other way.<\/p>\n

These are our\u00a0favorite (obvious and not-so-obvious) ways we\u00a0use audiobooks in our homeschool:<\/strong><\/p>\n

1. Story of the World.<\/strong> We use Susan Wise Bauer’s history curriculum,\u00a0but the way we used\u00a0it changed when I discovered the audio recordings. Three of my kids are covering the same\u00a0Story of the World<\/a> material right now.<\/p>\n

With the audio version, they can listen to it all at the same time; the weaker readers can still learn the material without me having to read out loud.<\/p>\n

\"audiobooks<\/p>\n

2. Read-alouds.<\/strong> I\u00a0read aloud to my kids every day\u2014especially my preschooler\u2014but their interest in good books lasts longer than my voice. Audiobooks let the story continue\u00a0even when my voice (or my nerves) are shot.<\/p>\n

3. Reinforcement.<\/strong>\u00a0My older kids are starting to read some tough books for their literature classes. We’ve begun using\u00a0audiobooks to reinforce the\u00a0content after<\/em> they’ve read the physical book themselves.<\/p>\n

They already know the basic arc of the story, and the audio version\u2014as with any second read-through\u2014solidifies new vocabulary words and\u00a0gives them a deeper understanding of the material.<\/p>\n

4. Bring a story to life.\u00a0<\/strong>Great audiobook performances make a story leap off the page in a way that isn’t possible with the plain text. Our favorite audiobooks feature gripping narration, authentic accents, singing, even fiddle music.<\/p>\n

5. Early readers.<\/strong>\u00a0My second grader\u00a0is transitioning from simple books to beefier chapter books. She wants<\/em> to read independently but she isn’t quite ready.\u00a0Audiobooks are smoothing her way, serving as her training wheels.<\/p>\n

She reads with her eyes while she listens with her ears, and the audiobook fills any gaps in her pronunciation or understanding.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"audiobooks<\/p>\n

hot tip: put your phone in a bowl or mug with the speakers facing down to amplify the sound<\/em><\/p>\n

Amazon’s Whispersync for voice<\/a> makes this especially easy (if you have the right device, sigh).<\/p>\n

With their immersion reading feature, you can read and listen simultaneously with real-time highlighting. (If you don’t have the right device, at least Whispersync lets you get great deals on audiobooks<\/a>.)<\/p>\n

6. Fidgety kids.<\/strong>\u00a0If\u00a0your student can’t sit still, audiobooks\u00a0make it possible for them to learn while they’re literally bouncing around the room.\u00a0Restless kids can knead silly\u00a0putty or stack legos (or even fold the laundry) while they’re listening to the story.<\/p>\n

7. Mom gets to listen, too. <\/strong>I first got interested in audiobooks for my own sake, not my kids’ sake: I love a good story as much as they\u00a0do! Audiobooks let me enjoy the listening experience with<\/em> my kids instead of always being the one to provide it.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Note: If you’re a newbie to audiobooks, here’s a beginner’s guide<\/a> to where to find them, how to listen, and what titles to start with.<\/p>\n

Do you use audiobooks in your homeschool? I’d love to hear your favorite tips, tricks, and titles in comments.<\/i><\/p>\n

<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Written by Anne Bogel of Modern Mrs. Darcy. I love to read, and so far (knock on wood) we seem to be raising kids who love to read as well.\u00a0Despite my love of reading actual paper books for myself, to my kids, and with my kids, over the past few years I’ve come to rely…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":49,"featured_media":37436,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_kadence_starter_templates_imported_post":false,"_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[334,336],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-37363","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-daily-life-activities","category-family-activities-ideas"],"yoast_head":"\n7 ways audiobooks enrich our homeschool experience<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Anne shares the many ways that audiobooks enhance her family's homeschool. 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