When I was a kid, I had a large and awesome collection of storybook records. You know – those short illustrated stories that came with a 45-RPM record and the charming sound effect of a chime that let you know when to turn the pages in your book. (Yes, I realize I’m dating myself.) Surprisingly, however, read-along stories are hard to come by now that I’m looking for them for my own child. There are a few titles here and there, but nothing that would make up a sizable collection of favorite stories like the one I cherished years ago.
Fortunately, it’s easy to do one’s own rendition of read-along stories today. Recording is easy again (as in the days of cassette tapes) now that mp3s have overtaken CDs. For my own venture this weekend, I used an iPod Touch (which has already been largely co-opted by my daughter), a Mini Microphone ($2.51 at Amazon), the iTalk app from Griffin, a Disney collection of short stories, and a doorbell sound effect from the free Big Button Soundboard app I downloaded on my Android phone. Each story has taken about six or seven minutes to record, and my daughter is happy to listen to her favorite fairy tales over and over again. Sure, I could just set her up with some of the awesome interactive, multimedia story apps available on the iPad. But my DIY solution is a lot cheaper. Not to mention quaintly nostalgic.
Cool idea? For you, what’s the advantage of the Griffin app over the built-in sound recorder?
That should have been “Cool idea!” not “Cool idea?”
I don’t know that there is an advantage with the Griffin app. It’s just what I happened to use along with the Mini Microphone and the Big Button Soundboard. I wasn’t going for anything sophisticated in production. If you’re looking for higher audio quality, I’d check out some of Brad Linder’s recommendations over on Mobiputing. In addition to his mobile focus, he’s also done a lot of radio and podcasting, so he’s got the bases covered on audio.
Mara, this is a great idea! I loved those storybook records when I was little. My wife and I are expecting our first this month and I now I’ve got one more thing to add to my list of to-do’s. ; ) Thanks for the great idea!