Library subscribes to TumbleBooks—February 3, 2012
More and more adults are reading eBooks these days, but now the library is providing access to many eBooks for children as well. All you need is a computer with Internet access.
The Hastings Public Library has subscribed to the TumbleBookLibrary, an online collection of animated, talking picture books for children. TumbleBooks start with existing picture books and add animation, sound, music and narration. You can read these books yourself or have them read to you.
To access the TumbleBookLibrary, just visit the library’s web page at www.hastings.lib.ne.us and click on the link for TumbleBooks found in the center of the page. There is nothing to download to your computer and you do not need a library card to access the website.
Selecting “Story Books” will take you to a listing of picture books available, while “Read-Alongs” brings up chapter books for older children or more accomplished readers. There is a dropdown menu in the upper right corner of the page that will allow you to select English, French or Spanish.
In automatic mode, the pages turn by themselves and are narrated. If you select manual mode, the narration and animation continue but children turn the pages at their own speed. Clicking on the “sound off” button mutes the narration so that children can read to themselves. The “pause” button allows you to stop the story to talk about new vocabulary words, discuss the pictures, predict what will happen next, and so forth.
Selecting the “Tumble TV” link brings up pre-set playlists of books. “Puzzles & Games” is a collection of educational activities that accompany each book. The “Language Learning” link on the homepage takes you to a selection of books in Spanish and French, many of which are bilingual titles. You’ll also find a link to “Non-Fiction Books.”
Clicking on the “Index” link at the top of the page takes you to a listing of all the titles and authors available on TumbleBooks. You can add your favorite titles to the “My Favorites” section to make them easier to find. You may also create your own “Playlist” of titles that will play these books one after the other.
The library has also subscribed to TumbleReadables, an online collection of titles for elementary, middle school and high school students. This collection includes chapter books, teen novels, high interest/low level books for middle school and high school students, and also classics of American and English literature. They feature adjustable online text and complete audio narration. Sentences are highlighted as they are being read and the pages turn automatically.
Try TumbleBooks today and watch for a link to TumbleReadables, coming soon on the library’s homepage!
