Alexander Pascual - ILA Newsletter Project: Effective Literacy Website #3

 

Storyline Online (https://storylineonline.net/) is a web-based platform that serves as a vast library of literary content such as audiobooks, e-books, videos, and more. Most notably, Storyline Online promotes literacy through its advocacy for stories being read aloud. The online platform emphasizes the importance of oral reading by having celebrated actors and actresses guest narrate literary content streamed from its very website. Some of these actors include Oprah Winfrey, Kristen Bell, Viola Davis, Sarah Silverman, Betty White, Wanda Sykes, and several many more. In some regards, this online resource acts as a proxy for storytime read-alouds commonly done in bookstores or libraries, but transports the experience into the online realm.

Each online story is accompanied by supplemental lessons and curriculum that parents can deliver to their students. The aim of this is to extend the story to peripheral skills outside of just reading, such as in comprehension, speaking, and writing. Additionally, the supplemental lessons can aid not only general education students, but can effectively help struggling students or English Language Learners. Students would simply select a story from the library of books, press play, and complete the accompanying activities. For parents or other related adults, the platform lists helpful information for each story such as its runtime, suggested grade level, and the featured narrator.

Essentially, the idea behind Storyline Online lies in its promotion of reading stories aloud to children. As research has shown, read-alouds helps boost literacy in children by allowing them to experience literacy multimodally. In other words, children who partake in read-alouds through this platform not only hear the story, but can also visualize, react, and reflect on the story simultaneously. This encourages a healthy amount of time for cognition in children, boosting performance in communication and focus, as well as increasing an intrinsic love for books and the craft of reading.

Of course, with the nature of its content focused solely on beginning readers, Storyline Online is not a platform meant for upper-grade level students. Though, a work around to this could be in letting older siblings help select and administer stories to their younger siblings as a shared story experience.