This is one of those centers kids love coming to.  They love hearing books, and the funnier the better.  This is a center designed to grow a students love of books, to practice interactive listening skills, and to even write beginning book reports!

This center consists of a couple of sets of headphones, a book on cd or tape, and a quick handout at the end.  This is one of the more straight forward centers, but it is VERY important that you go through all the steps of using the CD player with your students and talk about sharing the book with each other.  It is also a good idea to talk about how when you have headphones on you don’t have to yell just because you can’t hear what people are saying.   Just trust me on this one.  Another thing I have always done is to put stickers on the buttons they should use, like a big ‘p’ sticker on the play button, or a stop sign on the stop button.  I have found this makes it easier for kids to use the cd player.

Students will read their book, and then when they are finished they should color a picture of something they saw in their book.  Use Teachable Method’s free handout, or make your own based on the book you are reading that week.

The biggest problem with this center is where to get all these books on CD/Tape.  The best place I have found is through Scholastic Book Orders.  Just get the monthly sampler of four, and before you know it, you will have an entire set of themed books for your classroom!

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