My family has been zipping all about here and there to keep busy and in search of good things to eat! But what that also means is that we are spending a good amount of time in the car. While I love Taylor Swift like the best of them, I am pretty sure that I have shaken it all off and my car audio somehow magically cannot play that song anymore BUT, no need to fret we have something new to listen to during our commutes: Stories! That’s right, good old-fashioned storytime has been captivating audiences since…well, I don’t know how long but it’s an old idea and it’s a good idea…and not talking just cool to me – my girls LOVE it!
I am going to split this into two categories because depending on how old your automobile may be – you may or may not have certain options available to you:
AUDIOBOOKS
If you are riding around from home to camp to vacation then back home again in something classic, you may prefer the soothing sounds of the compact disc (CD) variety or maybe even books on tape!! There are so many classic and new titles available, especially for the older kids….and you can do it for FREE!! You all know how much I love the public library – if not you can read all about my library love here – but nonetheless, you can search for and reserve great titles for your big kids like the Harry Potter Anthology or the Magic School Bus series to listen to as you travel over the hills and through the woods. And of course, you can get the same titles from your favorite bookseller. For the younger set, Amazon sells a series of CDs called Songs and Story that takes classic Disney stories and mixes them up with Disney songs. Most stories are condensed to be just long enough to keep the little ones interested. The CDs retail from about $5 to $9. Some of my favorites are pictured below:
APPS and PODCASTS
If you are able to connect your phone to play through your car (and your data plan can handle it), these Apps make a great option for listening to stories on the scenic byway. You can also search for these same apps as podcasts on your Android or Apple device and download and play them that way. There are 4 that I am particularly fond of that I describe below:
1. Audible.com – This is a way to listen to entire books that you purchase through Audible.com or Amazon.com. A good option for older kids since many chapter books and series are available.
2. The Story Home -The mission of The Story Home is to provide original and classic children’s audio stories, to delight and inspire children and their families, throughout the world. How can you NOT listen?? I like this one because there are lots of classic stories like those written by Beatrix Potter BUT also new original stories.
3. Librovox – LibriVox Audio Books App provides free access to over 15,000 audiobooks as well as thousands of radio dramas read by volunteers. Each audiobook can be streamed over the internet or downloaded for later use. We have been able to find such goodies as the Wizard of OZ!!
4. Disney StoryTime – This is actually an app that reads Disney stories to your kids. I mean let’s be honest Disney knows how to capture the minds and imagination of the little ones and this app does not hold back the magic. When you download it you get 3 stories free and you can purchase more.
Do you listen to books/stories in the car with your kids? What apps, podcasts are your favorite while on the road?
