Old Time Radio...Our Favorite Online Audio Sites

It seems it was just Christmas, yet here we are already halfway through May and heading straight on into summer. I have already seen a few comments on Facebook about the oppressive heat in some places kicking in with a vengeance. Today it is overcast here, following thunderstorms yesterday and last night, with the potential for more in the next few days. Moments like these, when there is a goal that requires solitude for Mom (I am frantically trying to finish the second of two grad classes for re-certification by May 31), I wish it was sunny, and I could kick the kids outside for the day. But alas, today it is WET and were I to send the kids out, they'd be covered in muck in moments, and the next thing you know, it would be me and the whole house covered with mud, too, requiring baths and mopping and more loads of laundry. Normally, I am a "cool" mom and I'd let them go out and jump in puddles to their hearts' content, but today I just can't do it...I have too much to do.

That's when I am very glad for the Internet. Not as a source for games or learning activities, though we have enjoyed those, too, but as a source for free audios the kids can listen to. The kids love to gather in the front room with their blankets and favorite stuffed friends, and listen to audio books. It makes me think of what it must have been like for families back when it was just you and a radio, no TV. I think listening to stories helps develop vocabulary and imagination, and sometimes Mom (or her voice) just needs a break, so...I thought that today I would share some of our favorite audio sites with you.

Here they are, in no particular order:

• Adventures in Odyssey---our family favorite collection of Christian stories...we want to move to Whit's End!
• Down Gilead Lane---similar to Odyssey, but different folks and a different town 
• Your Story Hour ---we started listening to the Ernest Shakleton one today. It is about his adventures crossing Antarctica, and is both fun and fascinating!
• Paws and Tales---Christian stories, for younger kids
• My Audio School ---a wonderful resource...this is the awesome list of free titles, but it is only $14.95 a year to subscribe for hundreds more!
• Books Should Be Free---great selection of classics like Pollyanna
• Kiddie Records Weekly----old vinyl children's records here, some real treasures... the stories bring back memories of childhood
• Homeschool Radio Shows---changes weekly/monthly, old timey shows
• Storynory---fairy tales and cute stories
• Reading Well---Landmark book titles, historic stories

I hope your family will enjoy exploring these sites. All of these sites and a few more are archived at my homeschool-for-free site.

Blessings,

Heather