Audiobooks for Car Trips with Kids
I make no secret about the fact that I'm a fan of dvd
players (or other visual media) for long car rides. I use movies for long
trips. I use educational videos for short trips. No, we don't watch something
every time we drive, but I also don't fight the idea. Not only does it keep the
girls calm and happy, it allows my husband and I to have our own conversation
in the front seat.
However, I'm also a big fan of turning off the screen and
popping in an audiobook.
Personally, I got back into audiobooks a few months ago.
Whenever I'm alone in the car, I love to have someone "read aloud" to me,
telling me my favorite stories. If you listen to an audiobook with a quality
reader, it is captivating.
I had been in the car alone, listening to one of my old
favorites, when I picked up my daughter from dance. Rather than flip her screen
on, she decided to listen along with me, and was soon just as involved in the
story as I was. One of my favorite books quickly became one of hers too, and
rather than just hearing me read to her, she listened as someone read to both
of us. We chatted about the story as we listened, and the car ride home flew
by. There are huge benefits to being read to, and in the car, you are a captive
audience. Vocabulary, fluency, all those skills grow when you're being read to.
A
fter I realized how much she loved listening to audiobooks
too, I started looking for good stories that would keep us both engaged. You
can find audiobooks on Amazon (through CDs or Audible) and the library.
- Audible.com - Pros: Audible has a huge library with every possible book you could want. There are even recent movie narrations - like Moana and Finding Dory. Once you buy them, you own them and can listen over and over. Cons: Audible can get expensive quickly. Some children's books are under a dollar, but others are not.
- Library - Pros: Both CDs and digital files are available, for free! Cons: Just like any library, you may not find exactly what you're looking for and need to wait (yes, even for digital files! Your library can only lend out a certain amount at once). You also may run into inconveniences like scratched discs. You also have a due date that you need to remember, and a digital file will simply disappear from your device when you pass that deadline.
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