Because of the pandemic, I have been unable to check out books from my library since the middle of March. A favorite place, my library was both a source of recreation and professional development. After checking out a biography or two for leisure reading, I would check out a dozen or so children’s books that might be used to enhance children’s reading skills. Unable to check out physical books, I charged up my Kindle Fire, which had been given to me as a gift several years ago but which was largely unused because I preferred physical books. My local library offers two popular streaming services: Hoopla and Overdrive.
Hoopla
Hoopla offers digital movies, TV programs, music, audio books, comic books, and e-books. Hoopla’s collection for kids include Dean’s Pete the Cat series and Mo Willems’ Pigeon series and also the Frog and Toad and Biscuit series and hundreds of other beginning readers along with lots of books for the older kids. A number of the books have a read-along feature. Students can regulate the rate at which the text is read. Books can be read on computers, tablets, or smart phones.
Overdrive
Overdrive offers an extensive collection of e-books, audiobooks, and movies that can be downloaded to computers, mobile device, or e-readers, such as Kindle. Some of the books have a read-along feature that includes the ability to regulate rate of reading. Books can be searched by topic, grade level, Lexile, or ATOS level. Overdrive also offers Sora, a student reading app that allows students to download materials and use highlighting and read-along tools and keep a record of their reading. Sora is available to schools.