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All links in the Symbaloo below will take you to the iTunes page so that you may learn more information about each app or install it on your iPad.

Read to Someone  Apps

Reading to Someone can happen in different ways.  Students can buddy up and pair read a book or article.  Or maybe a small round robin group is more your cup of tea. I wish this were called "Read for an Audience" instead of read to someone.  I think it would give the reader a different perspective on how to approach the text and might inspire him or her to attack the content with more of a purpose.  

With that in mind, the apps I've selected allow the students to record themselves reading.  One of my favorite lessons is from when I worked with a 3rd grade class.  The teacher wanted the students to be aware of their fluency with the text. Using an app like the ones in the Symbaloo, the students snapped a picture of the page they were reading.  They then recorded themselves reading the page aloud. When listening back, students were able to re-record or post their finished story so that the teacher could then take a listen and intervene or enhance where needed.  The kids LOVED being able to hear themselves read.

The first 3 apps listed (Screenchomp, Educreations, & ShowMe) are classified as "screencasting" apps.  This means that users can utilize images, drawings, text and audio recordings to make videos.  A lot of times these types of apps are used to make how-to videos or to provide instruction for people.  However, these apps work wonderfully for literacy centers as well.  

 

The next 3 apps (Book Creator Free, Storyrobe, & Story Creator) are a more traditional way to make eBooks.  The same procedure applies here as it did with the screencasting apps.  Students photograph what they are reading and record themselves reading it.

 

The next 2 apps are straight up audio recorders.  Students can read books into the audio recorder and listen back to themselves to check for fluency and re-record as necessary.  Kayla Delzer has written an article on how she uses the app Audioboom with her students.  Upon reading it, I had an AHA moment.  She actually creates QR Codes, prints them out and attaches them to the books the students have read.  In doing so, she has created material for her Listen to Reading center of the Daily 5.  Cool stuff for sure.

 

The next app is Adobe Voice.  It's kind of a hybrid between the screencasting apps and the book creators.  It is set up to create slides with pictures.  The slides can be narrated and a background music can be added as well.  I've used it with primary students who were creating research reports.  The finished story can be saved to the camera roll and exported.

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