Open Source Digital Picture Book
All children need access to engaging stories in languages they are fluent in. Teachers work to cultivate a love of learning and reading is critical in that effort. Kids love a great story. Unfortunately, finding books for English Language Learners (ELL) can be a challenge. Free, Open educational resources (OER) like the ones featured below allow teachers to provide a wide range of reading options to students in their native language. These sites offer translated versions of stories and feature titles that celebrate other cultures which can enrich any classroom.
Storyweaver
Storyweaver.org offers over 17,000 stories in dozens of languages. Download books and save them as PDF files or print for use in your classroom. Filter titles by selecting the language and reading level (see below):
Create Your Own Story
Amazingly, Storyweaver allows registered users to create their own stories by piecing together illustrations from their collection of over 2,000 images used in their books. Select the category of your choice (animals, weather, backdrops, etc.) and style (digital art, clay, pencil, etc.) to filter images. Download any images as *.jpeg files to use in classroom activities. Imagine creating a writing activity with this. Try adding images into a Google Slides presentation that you share through Google Classroom. Challenge students to author a story of their own.
Read Along
The Read Along section lists titles that have an audio component to read aloud. English or Hindi are the only language options for Read Along. Words are highlighted as the stories are read, making it easier to follow along.
Unite for Literacy
Uniteforliteracy.com is a rich collection of non-fiction stories for children in 43 different languages. Find texts connected to specific topics by looking through the collections.
Set Your Language Preferences
Select your language preferences to filter titles. To do this, click the “pencil” icon in the top left corner of the homepage and pick from 43 available languages.
Narration in Native Languages
Unite For Literacy has a unique narration feature. Based on your preferences, the story can be played in two languages. For instance, English and Spanish as shown in the short video clip below.
Additional ELL Resources
- Related Post: “Technology to Support English Language Learners“.
- Technology to Support English Language Learners Workshop Handout
