English Language Learners Need Books on Audio (part 2)

Celebrating Hispanic & Latinx Heritage Month

This project is a part of the Hispanic & Latinx Heritage Month celebration because it supports a Latino teacher or a school where the majority of students are Latino.

I currently teach first grade. I have 28 students enrolled in my classroom. The students mostly come from low-income homes and according to the Illinois State Board of Education 95% of the students at my school were low-income students in 2006-2007. All my students are English Language Learners (ELLS), which means that they speak a second language at home that is not English. They do not have the luxury of having someone at home to read a picture book to them in English. Their reading comprehension and fluency would be improved in English if they were read to everyday at home. Unfortunately, my parents do not have the funds to purchase their children picture books and let alone buy them CDs. I am trying to incorporate more picture books that come with CDs or cassettes into my classroom library. I would like to have the students check them out and be able to take them home for their enjoyment and of course to practice! My students love to take home the books that come with an audio CD or cassette. The books with CDs would also be used for our listening center in our classroom; they would be able to listen to CDs throughout the school day. For our listening center we need at least 4 copies of each book so that each child could listen through the headphones and follow the story individually. I really feel that having more books on CDs or cassette will help my students reading comprehension and fluency. Most importantly, it will help them learn English and gain new vocabulary. I was an ELL student myself and did not have anyone at home to read to me in English, but I did have many books on records that I would listen to for hours. I feel that the books with records that I listened to were partly responsible for my success in learning English and in fostering the love that I have for reading till this day! With your generosity, we can get some new books with CDs or cassetes for our classroom! Reading can unlock many doors for them and give them opportunities for a bright future. Please help foster a love for reading for my first graders; it is the best gift they can receive!