A free literacy website on which you can find videos featuring well-known actors reading books for children. The stories are brought to life with animated illustrations recreated from the books.
INTRODUCTION:
Teachers, parents, and tutors constantly worry about our kids’ lack of motivation toward reading. The Digital Era, media, visual prompts, and busy lifestyle don’t leave much room for quality reading time. On top of that, parents these days are overwhelmed with the number of books and very often do not have time to spend time and encourage their kids to read, not to mention read to them. And yet, not only does reading aloud to children help develop a habit and make them fall in love with reading, but it also allows kids to enhance the skills such as writing, communication, or logical thinking.
WHAT IS IT?
In a nutshell, Storyline Online is a free platform that features at the moment around 70 high-quality videos of well-known actors and performers reading aloud their favourite children’s books. As a result, youngsters around the globe can get the virtual bedtime-story experience as the stars bring their best performance and get into their voice-acting skills, appearing on the screen along with the animated illustrations from the books. At the end, the actors explain what they love most about the story.
Storyline Online is a program of the SAG-AFTRA Foundation, a non-profit organisation that relies on donations only. It is, therefore, available for kids on YouTube, Vimeo, and SchoolTube free of charge. There is also an app for iOS, Androids, and Chrome.
Each story is accompanied by the synopsis, information about the writer, illustrator, reader, and suggested target age. On top of that, there is also a TEACHER or PARENT GUIDE, which is a fantastic resource, as it provides ideas on how to use the book in the class, pre- and post-reading comprehension questions, and activities related to social and scientific issues explored in the story.
IS IT USEFUL?
PROS:
It is FREE and user friendly
No registration or subscription is needed
It is great for elementary students
There are tons of high quality imaginatively produced videos featuring celebrated actors
The videos include subtitles which allow English Language Learners to follow the story easily
Each book is provided with a TEACHER or PARENT GUIDE aiming to strengthen comprehension and verbal and written skills for English-language learners
It is a great tool to introduce behavioural and social issues children struggle with at a specific age
There is an App available for iOS, Android, and Chrome
It can be used in class or set up homework
CONS:
Kids’ experience is somewhat passive unless it is reinforced with some comprehension activities.
It will never substitute an actual reading-aloud experience with a parent, tutor, or an older sibling.
HOW TO USE IT IN AN ESL CLASSROOM?
IN CLASS:
Using the TEACHER GUIDE to create a lesson plan and introduce specific vocabulary or behavioural or social problems.
Using the STORYTELLER to draw students’ attention to intonation, and acting voice
Using the STORY to spark a conversation about the main characters, the setting, and how they felt while listening to the story.
PROJECT:
Tell your students to choose a book on the Storyline Online website or assign one.
Make sure that the books do not repeat.
Students should watch the selected video at home and prepare a show-and-tell presentation.
Tell them to research the information about the author, the reader, the main characters, what they like or dislike about the story, and what the moral is.
Then choose a book, give them a copy and tell them to read it and prepare a similar project but in the notebooks.
WRITING:
Use the videos of the books to explain how to write a REVIEW in class.
CONCLUSION:
Honestly, I am not a massive fan of substituting the real parent-child reading moment with screen time. However, I must admit that the videos provided on Storyline Online are just a tremendous push for parents and kids to even reach for the books themselves.
If you are looking for non-prep activities that might inspire children to reach for a book or
ask their parents to read one to them - Storyline Online is an excellent option. Besides, it is nice to have a read-aloud done by someone other than you once in a while. Moreover, it is a fantastic way to show students that reading is valued by people from all walks of life.
Check their website and let me know what you think. Maybe you have some ideas on how to implement it in your classroom. I'd love to hear from you!
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