Have you heard of
Playaways? Imagine if someone managed to make a simpler version of an already simple product -- the audio book. That is a playaway. A playway is a self-playing, pre-loaded digital media player that is so easy to use. There are audio and video versions, although up to this point, we only have experience with the audio books.
We discovered these at the library a few weeks ago. They seem to be all the rage in northeast Ohio because the founder of the company is a Case MBA grad (as is my husband), and his company is headquartered in Solon. The
Cuyahoga Library branches carry many playaway books and videos.
My children have popped their headphones on and have listened to everything from literary classics to the latest Rick Riordan tale. Sometimes they find the printed book and read along. Other times they just listen. The playaways are user friendly and so portable. There is always huge value in hearing something read to you, rather than just reading it yourself. In my spare time, I've listened to
Anne of Green Gables (one of my favorites) while rereading it again. I've looked into purchasing some, but they are rather pricey. However, we'll continue to borrow our library's copies for now. Hope you find some near you.
I would LOVE to read the chronicles of your life!
ReplyDeleteWe have a lot of those at our library, too. My oldest, especially, enjoys them. I try to get him to read along (if it's not too advanced), but he's sort of a reluctant reader at this point. But, I figure it counts as a "read-aloud" either way. The earbuds kind of gross me out, but I suppose I could just switch them out with ours . . . .
ReplyDeleteOh, yes. I should have added that we always use our own headphones, not theirs.
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