Books on Tape

"This is by far the easiest project to do and tons of fun for yourself and volunteers. Talk to Mrs. Stevenson, the music teacher, and Mrs. Leftwitch they do books on tape normally, and have a collection in Mrs. Stevenson's room for whomever would like to check them out. One problem is that not all the teachers nor AmeriCorps know about this so do as much publicity as you can. The newsletter, Monday meetings, e-mails, Margo, and talking to teachers about these books on tape they can use is a great way to hype it up.

To get started, find volunteers, a group of kids, college students, teachers, or anyone interested. The Jack and Jill Foundation, a coed group that does community service projects, did this project with me and said they would like to come back. Their contact person is Anita Dabney. Pick out the books. Mrs. Leftwitch, Mrs. Stevenson, or Margo can help you chose those books that children would want to follow along with and that are interesting. Get the books together and give them to the group of volunteers at least two weeks to a month ahead of time so they can practice and decide who is doing what voice. Next, ask Mrs. Stevenson if you can use her room, mic, and recording stereo and when you can use it (usually Saturday mornings work best) . Give her a couple of dates then, give your volunteers the dates, and ask what date would work best. The day before the recording, make sure you give them a 'reminder call' and set up the music room. I have found that if you move two tables to the middle of the room along with the stereo, you can accommodate more readers. The day of the recording, do a test run yourself and wait for your volunteers. If you can try to bring some orange juice and donuts, the kids love it.