The MP3 Audio Connection: Reading For Meaning

The MP3 Audio Connection: Making Reading Assignments Meaningful Middle school teachers will relate to how some students don’t think of reading assignments as “homework”. One teacher found ... See More

The MP3 Audio Connection: Making Reading Assignments Meaningful Middle school teachers will relate to how some students don’t think of reading assignments as “homework”. One teacher found that creating MP3 audio recordings of the textbook, which included interspersed commentary, brought more student interaction with their texts and helped students practice reading strategies. The author calls the recordings, “Annotated Readings”, and an outline of the 3 steps to follow to make a recording is included. The recordings can be uploaded to a school’s website for student access, and students are able to download files to their iPods or other MP3 players to listen to on their long bus rides or at home. Copies of the files can be burned on a CD for students using iTunes. The author uses personalized recordings to reinforce and draw attention to challenging vocabulary, highlight relevant visual images in the text that help create meaning to the concepts, and to help build student rapport and motivation through various shared personal connections. There are added benefits for English-language learners who have difficulties with word pronunciations and for those students who prefer an auditory learning style.

MP3's Files for Students

This author uses MP3 files to annotate student reading assignments using a process he calls THIEVES (see article). He explains how to use this technique and explains how to make an annotat... See More

This author uses MP3 files to annotate student reading assignments using a process he calls THIEVES (see article). He explains how to use this technique and explains how to make an annotated reading. He points out diagrams in the text as well as providing side notes for students. These sounds like a good solution to encourage kids to do reading as homework however in some states where textbooks are being changed you would have to reinvent the wheel with the new text or in the state where I live where I live textbooks have not been adopted due to lack of funds.