How read-alouds transform ELs and struggling readers into eager learners

Posted on by StoryWorld

For many children who struggle with reading, decoding text can feel overwhelming. 

These student may encounter unfamiliar words, lose their place on the page, or focus so much energy on “sounding out” that they lose track of the story altogether. This creates a cycle of frustration and stress that can erode motivation and confidence. The worst outcome is that these students simply never become good readers.  

Over and over, I’ve seen how read-aloud supports—whether from a teacher, caregiver, or digital audio—can help break this cycle by giving students access to meaning first, before tackling the mechanics of decoding.

Read-Alouds Lower Stress and Increase Engagement
Research shows that when learners comprehend the gist of a text before attempting to decode it, their stress levels decrease and their engagement increases. According to groundbreaking research by Immordino-Yang (2016), when students feel emotionally safe and interested in the text, they are more likely to take risks and persist in challenging tasks. Similarly, research by Krashen (2004) on comprehensible input emphasizes that learners benefit most when they can understand material in context, which reduces anxiety and allows space for skill development.  For ELs and struggling readers, hearing a text read aloud provides this “meaning cushion” that lowers cognitive load so learning can begin.
Comprehension Creates Space for Decoding
By supporting comprehension in advance, read-alouds allow students to focus on decoding without the fear of “getting lost.” August and Shanahan (2006) highlight that comprehension scaffolds—such as listening before reading—enable multilingual and struggling learners to allocate more attention to word recognition and decoding skills. This mirrors Scarborough’s Rope model (2001), which illustrates how skilled reading is woven from both word recognition and language comprehension; strengthening one thread can give room for the other to develop.
Building Vocabulary and Background Knowledge

Read-alouds also build background knowledge and vocabulary, which are essential for reading growth. When students already understand a story, they can map the sounds of words onto known meanings more effectively (Nagy & Townsend, 2012). For example, a child who has listened to a story about a bear in the forest will have an easier time decoding and remembering the printed words bear and forest because they carry meaning the child already holds.

Practical classroom applications include pairing audio with printed text, conducting teacher-led story read-alouds before shared reading, and encouraging parents to read stories aloud at home—even in the family’s home language. These strategies help children approach decoding with confidence rather than dread. Teachers often find that once the pressure to “figure out everything at once” is removed, struggling readers show more willingness to engage in practice and improvement.

The Path to Joyful Reading

In short, read-aloud supports give ELs and struggling readers a head start by making meaning accessible first. Once they understand the story, they can focus on decoding without the paralyzing stress of confusion. 

As the research shows, lowering anxiety and supporting comprehension pave the way for stronger skill development and leads to joyful reading experiences that makes students come back for more!

📌 Teacher Tip: Allow students to listen to a story read aloud before asking students to read it again silently or in small groups. Once they know the storyline, struggling readers will be less anxious and more eager to practice decoding the words on their own.

Cynthia Harrison Barbera

Cynthia Harrison Barbera is President and CEO, StoryWorld International.  She served as VP Educational Technology for Scholastic and is the recipient of two US Presidential awards for educational programs. An Emmy-award winner for a television series on education, she has taught English to native-speakers and ELL students in the US and overseas.

References:

  • August, D., & Shanahan, T. (2006). Developing literacy in second-language learners: Report of the National Literacy Panel on Language-Minority Children and Youth. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
  • Immordino-Yang, M. H. (2016). Emotions, learning, and the brain: Exploring the educational implications of affective neuroscience. New York, NY: W. W. Norton.
  • Krashen, S. (2004). The power of reading: Insights from the research (2nd ed.). Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
  • Nagy, W., & Townsend, D. (2012). Words as tools: Learning academic vocabulary as language acquisition. Reading Research Quarterly, 47(1), 91–108.
  • Scarborough, H. S. (2001). Connecting early language and literacy to later reading (dis)abilities. In S. Neuman & D. Dickinson (Eds.), Handbook of Early Literacy Research (pp. 97–110). New York, NY: Guilford Press.
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