Interactive Read Aloud Benefits
By MARISSA DESPINS Updated April 09, 2024
Today we are talking all about Interactive Read Aloud benefits. I have so much to share about this engaging reading strategy, as they are one of my all time favorite things to do in the classroom! In my first post, I talked all about what Interactive Read Alouds are. Today I am going to talk to you about some of the Interactive Read Aloud benefits, and why you should implement them into your class schedule.
For some no-prep resources for your next interactive read aloud, click on the button below to check out the resources I have available in my TPT shop!
What do the experts say about Interactive Read Aloud Benefits?
According to read aloud experts Anderson, Hiebert, Scott, and Wilkinson,
“The single most important activity for building the knowledge required for eventual success in reading is reading aloud to children. The benefits are greatest when the child is an active participant”.
Fountas and Pinnell are also big supporters of Interactive Read Alouds:
“Interactive Read Aloud is the foundation of a community that shares literary understandings through thinking and talking together”.
In “The Read Aloud Handbook”, Jim Trelease goes as far to say:
“People would stand in line for days and pay hundreds of dollars if there were a pill that does everything for a child that reading aloud does. It expands their interest in books, vocabulary, comprehension, grammar, and attention span. Simply put, it’s a free oral vaccine for literacy”.
There is significant research that supports the idea of introducing the Interactive Read Aloud in your own classroom, as they are incredibly beneficial to both teaching and learning.
What are some of the benefits of Interactive Read Alouds?
Some of the clear benefits of Interactive Read Alouds include:
•Encourage classroom discussion.
•Allow for thinking time.
•Allow students to build off of each other’s ideas.
•Provide powerful language experiences.
•Help students grow background knowledge and understanding of universal concepts.
•Expand vocabulary.
•Provide practice with comprehension strategies.
•Enhance curiosity, imagination, memory, and creativity.
•Help students make connections to real life situations.
•Provides an opportunity for teachers to model fluency, and allow students to hear what proficient reading sounds like.
•Introduces students to new authors and genres.
•Fosters an enjoyment and love of reading, and increases student interest in independent reading.
•Encourages focus and reflection.
•Builds classroom community.
•Increases student attention spans and listening skills.
•Exposes students to worlds outside their immediate comfort zones.
With so many benefits, it is easy to see how these strategies can help the learners in our classrooms. They provide engaging opportunities for all students to experience language in ways that are powerful and thought provoking. While these experiences are important for all learners, they are especially important for our striving readers; through exposing our strugglers to Interactive Read Aloud experiences, we can close the gaps that result from limited exposure to books that include grade level vocabulary and depth of complexity.
Do you use Interactive Read Alouds with your learners? Let me know some of your tips and tricks in the comments section!
For more information on reading strategies, check out our posts on questioning, visualizing, and predicting!
Looking for some FREE resources to help plan your next Interactive Read Aloud?
Click on the image below to download this FREE resource – it contains information all about Interactive Read Aloud benefits, as well as some different planning templates to help get you started!
Looking for more Read Aloud Resources?
Visit my Teachers Pay Teachers store by clicking here to check out all of the different Interactive Read Aloud resources I have available! I add new ones often!
Interested in reading more about Interactive Read Alouds?
Check out some of the previous posts in my ongoing series on Interactive Read Alouds by clicking on the links below!
Interactive Read Alouds: What are they?
Interactive Read Alouds: Planning Tips
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