As an English teacher and a librarian, I am a huge proponent of audiobooks. I am often asked, “Is it really reading if you are listening to a book?” and I always answer with a resounding “Yes!” After all, we read to children — most cultures have transmitted information via a rich oral tradition! But just in case you want some additional reasons to listen to books, here are my top five:

1. You will find time to read again.

I rarely have a chance to sit down, let alone being able to sit down and read without a huge list of tasks that I need to complete hanging over my head. I also tend to want to go to sleep once I lie down in my bed, despite the pile of books waiting for me on my nightstand.

However, I have many "stolen moments" such as driving in the car while running errands or waiting for kids at after school activities that I can pair with audiobook listening. Students also have many "stolen moments" throughout their week, which means that if they listen to a text, they can’t complain they “didn’t have time to read.” Which leads me to my next point...

2. My chores are no longer boring.

I am not the world’s best cook, nor do I love washing dishes, driving to work, gardening, cleaning, doing laundry, and so on. Now, though I find myself looking forward to these tasks (“No, no honey, I’ll get the dishes!”), because as I’m doing them, someone is weaving a story for me. The same thing can happen for my students! Which leads me to my next point…

3. Someone is reading you a story!

I am a good reader — I can hear characters’ voices in my head and I can visualize the action of a story, but I am pretty bad at pronouncing names. I also sometimes mispronounce vocabulary words, and often skim quickly over action scenes to get to the resolution. When someone reads you a story, the names and vocabulary words are pronounced for you, and you stay right in the thick of the action for the entire scene. Your students will, too. Speaking of which...

4. Someone else is doing the voices for you (and your kids).

I am not good at oral reading for my students or my children. My voices are never consistent, my accents are horrible, and, again, my pronunciation of names is quite bad. When a trained actor is reading a story, however, it’s a totally new and amazing experience for you AND for your family. If you don’t believe me, listen to Harry Potter read aloud by Jim Dale. Whether you are in the car for a long trip, or just driving your kids to soccer practice, it will change your life, I promise.

5. You can still read quickly.

Our school’s band director and I have many awesome conversations about the books we are listening to, and he was the one who told me about “speeding up” the playback of my audiobooks. The only complaint I had before about audiobooks was that sometimes it took too long to get through one because of the pace of the reader. Andy showed me how to adjust the speed to 1.25 or 1.5 on my device and I’ve been speeding through books — though without missing any of the good parts — ever since.

Getting your Hands on Audiobooks

So how and where can you get your hands on audiobooks? Your first stop should be the local public library. Ask your librarian how to borrow e-audiobooks or check out audiobook CDs. You can also pay to belong to audiobook subscription services, but it isn’t really necessary. So far, I haven’t needed go beyond the wide selection at my town’s library.

Great for the Reluctant Reader

Don’t forget — your reluctant readers can also read at much higher reading levels with audiobooks, so partner with your school and/or local librarian to help them download titles to their devices. That way, they can “rock out to books” no matter where they are. You can also set up listening stations in your school’s media center or library, or in your own classroom if you have a laptop or tablet that for your students to use for independent reading.

Please let me know what you think and share any tips about using audiobooks to increase your own reading time and your students’. I hope that I’ve inspired you to read in a whole new way!

If you need more reasons, read this article filled with ideas entitled, "Why Listen".