The Wonderful Power of Listening Material

Sometimes life can get pretty busy, especially with little ones in the home. I am always looking for ideas to make our home a more peaceful place. One of the things that we have decided is to almost eliminate screen time. Most days we don't even turn on the t.v. Instead we have found the amazing power of listening material.  I am all for free learning material and we have discovered a few audio tools that are really fun and helpful in our home. These tools and materials have been a great blessing in our lives recently, not only for helping us learn new concepts, but for bringing the Spirit into our home.

1. Audio books on CD and E audio books

At our library we have the ability to put books on hold and go pick them up when they are ready. We have loved reserving some great books on CD. Our most recent one was The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe. We put some of these books on as we work on projects or play. They have also been a HUGE hit at quiet time for my seven year old. We purchased a portable CD player "walkman" style, for him to listen to audio CDs for quiet time. He listened to The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe in three days!

Our library also has another resource called OverDrive. It's an app you can use to download E audio books onto your device. I love listening to books with the kids, and I am even currently enjoying listening to Little Women as I make and clean up dinner.

2. Podcasts

We downloaded a podcast app and we are really enjoying a podcast called Brains On. It is geared toward kids. The radio show is really entertaining and educational. We all love it! We have also enjoyed a podcast called Story Nory in the past.

3. Mormon Channel app and Gospel Library app

We love listening to Scripture Stories (a program for kids), 24/7 talk, 24/7 music, on the Mormon channel app. On the Gospel Library app I really enjoy listening to the talks suggested as I study and prepare for my lessons at church for Young Women. We have recently also liked listening to The Friend Magazine on the Gospel Library app as we eat breakfast. It makes a great devotional.

We use my ipad and a portable blue tooth speaker. I can take it anywhere we are. I also recommend a portable CD player and headphones for those audio books on CD during quiet time. These free tools have truly been ejoyed by all my little ones and myself. My children are asking questions and their faces light up to hear new fun information. I can see their love of learning grow as we use these resources in our home.