Free Reading Websites for Digital Ebooks and Audiobooks

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for digital reading at home or in the classroom

20 free websites for digital reading at home

or in the classroom
Looking for some free digital reading resources? With the number of classrooms moving
toward 1:1 technology on the rise and homeschooling being an increasingly popular
option, the amount of time students spend reading digital texts is growing exponentially.
Ebooks are now a popular way to get reluctant readers excited to read, and they're also
a great way to expand your classroom library without needing more space.

The downside is that it can become costly to try to keep up with classroom libraries in
two formats so I've pulled together a list of interactive tools to help you build your

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Free Reading Websites for Digital Ebooks and Audiobooks

classroom digital library, and the best part about it is they are all free!

What you'll find on this page:

20 amazing FREE websites to read books online
Free Websites with Stories & Digital Texts
Free Reading Websites for Non-fiction Reading
Free Websites with Audiobooks & Digital Read Alouds
Free Reading Websites with Passages for Test-Prep Practice
Digital reading options for every learner

20 amazing FREE websites to read books online

Click on any item in this list of literacy websites to be taken to the website. While some
require you to register, all the sites are either free or offer free classroom use for
teachers. I tried to give you a little background about each to help save time as you dig
through these great resources.

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Free Reading Websites for Digital Ebooks and Audiobooks

Free Websites with Stories & Digital Texts

To make it easier to find exactly what you need, I've broken this list down into three
sections. This first section is the websites with the best fiction selection, in my opinion.

While some sites are amazingly modern and visual, others are a little less “pretty” but
have some great texts.

1. Epic

This site has thousands of amazing books for K-5, including fiction, nonfiction, and so
much more. There are even audiobooks and video-based book options, and you can
assign students quizzes if you're concerned about comprehension.

It is free for teachers to use in their classroom, and each student gets set up with their
own reading profile and getepic login to allow for differentiation.

Check it out: www.getepic.com

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Free Reading Websites for Digital Ebooks and Audiobooks

2. International Children's Library

This site may not be the prettiest, but it offers all kinds of books for kids. The site breaks
the available stories by age, book length, and topic. This makes it easy to find exactly
what your readers may like.

This site is great for traditional literature units because it offers selections from around
the globe. I love using these free stories.

Check it out: childrenslibrary.org

3. Magic Keys

This site has many free stories and books broken into three categories – young children,
older children, and young adults.

While this isn't the most modern-looking website, it does have good content. An added
advantage is that many of the books include audio so that students can have a model for
reading.

Be sure to check out the great riddles and other resources, as well.

Check it out: magickeys.com

4. iStoryBooks

This app offers a free premium upgrade for teachers, with lots of free texts available.

The stories are aimed at primary learners, so this site is best for K-2 teachers.in fact, I
can tell you from experience, you'll find a ton of great 1st grade books online if that's
what you're needing. Professional narration helps model fluent reading, which is a great
addition for this age group.

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Free Reading Websites for Digital Ebooks and Audiobooks

New books are released every two weeks.

If you teach in a dual-language setting or work with English Language Learners, it also
has text options in Spanish and several other languages.

Check it out: iStoryBooks app

5. Project Gutenberg

This site is a massive open library of classics, but it can be harder to navigate for young
learners.

You'll find lots of popular book options like The Bobbsey Twins series and the works of
Beatrix Potter.

This site is older titles that are all a part of the public domain, so don't plan on finding
Harry Potter or recently released e-books here. However, if you're looking for a great site
to access some classics during distance learning, you'll find this site has exactly what
you need.

Check it out: gutenberg.org

6. Planet EBook

Another great site with the classics. This one is pretty easy to navigate, but it is not
exactly visually pleasing.

This site includes classic books like Alice in Wonderland and The Adventures of
Huckleberry Finn. This site would be ideal for advanced or older readers.

Check it out: https://www.planetebook.com/ebooks/

7. Reading IQ

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Free Reading Websites for Digital Ebooks and Audiobooks

This site had several thousand leveled books including favorites like Curious George and
the nonfiction National Geographic Kids titles.

Teachers can sign up for free access, and each student has their own profile to help you
set goals and ensure they are accessing reading materials at their personal reading
level.

This site is great because it has a lot of updated and new books. Plus the site interface is
definitely geared toward students.

Check it out: https://www.readingiq.com

8. Amazon Free eBooks

Amazon keeps its best-selling ebook list updated hourly, and there is a separate tab for
the free titles. The great part about this is you'll always have new titles appearing on this
page so there's motivation to go back again and again!

You're likely to find a combination of titles you know and love and lesser-known books.
However, this is a great place to grab titles for avid readers.

Check it out: Amazon Top 100 Free EBooks

9. Free-Ebooks.net

This site has lots of great children's books. It includes both classics and titles that are not
available in print, and all titles are downloadable in multiple formats (including PDF).

One warning – you probably don't want to direct students to the homepage for this site. It
contains ebooks for both adults and kids and some of the romance novels appear on the
home screen.

Check it out: Free-Ebooks.net

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Free Reading Websites for Digital Ebooks and Audiobooks

Free Reading Websites for Non-fiction Reading

It can be really hard to find good nonfiction texts. This has only been compounded by the
fact that many students are now learning from home so we need to find materials they
can access online.

Here are some great options if you're looking for nonfiction texts or to cover current
events.

10. NewsELA

It can be really hard to find high-quality, up-to-date content about current events.
NewsELA solves that issue.

This site has great articles to tie into your science and social studies content. You can
select based on topic and reading level, which is great for differentiation.

Check it out: NewsELA 

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Free Reading Websites for Digital Ebooks and Audiobooks

11. Scholastic News

This site is the hub for the Scholastic News magazines that many of us have seen in
classrooms. However, it also offers some free articles and resources related to current
events and topics of interest to learners.

This is kid-friendly news in a great format for classrooms.

Check it out: Scholastic News

12. Freckle (formerly Front Row)

The free version of Front Row ELA allows you to access 5 high-interest ELA articles per
month to assign to your students.

I've used these with my own kiddos during Covid lockdowns, and I've found the topics to
be engaging and the material is presented in an approachable fashion.

Check it out: Freckle

Free Websites with Audiobooks & Digital Read Alouds

Whether you've got students who are struggling or reluctant readers or you just want
your learners to have models of fluent reading, these audiobooks are a great option.

Each of these sites offers a vast selection of free audiobooks that are great for students.

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Free Reading Websites for Digital Ebooks and Audiobooks

13. Storyline Online

Favorite stories read by celebrities including Betty White, James Earl Jones, and more.

This site seems to be adding new books regularly and is funded by the Screen Actors
Guild. It is a great option to include when you don't have a copy of a text you need for
plans for a sub, too.

Check it out: Storyline Online 

14. Storynory

A collection of books with audio stories that lets kids read along.

One especially awesome benefit is you can actually translate the text into different
languages for your ESL students.

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Free Reading Websites for Digital Ebooks and Audiobooks

Check it out: Storynory

15. Oxford Owl

Over 250 free children's audiobooks for your classroom. These are great for a read-
aloud when you have a sub or for kids who do better when listening.

One drawback here is that there is no text offered so students cannot read along.

Check it out: Oxford Owl

16. Starfall

This site is geared more toward the primary grades, so I would recommend you look at it
for K-2 readers.

With four different levels to choose from, this site has lots of options for your readers and
is a great tool for seamlessly differentiating for your struggling readers.

The books are colorful and engaging for students and require students to be actively
involved with clicking through each page instead of tuning out with autoplay.

Check it out: Starfall 

17. Just Books Read Aloud

The title says it all really.

These are kids' books read aloud. This is another site that isn't the most modern, but it
does have quite a few newer titles.

Students can read the words and follow along, and the site includes some great favorites
like The Giving Tree

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Free Reading Websites for Digital Ebooks and Audiobooks

Check it out: Just Books Read Aloud

18. Vooks

This site is offering free sign-up to teachers for a limited time, and it is full of read-along
storybooks. The books are semi-animated which makes it really engaging for students.

This is such a great way to offer engaging read-along options to your class for your
“listen to reading station”.

Check it out: Vooks

Free Reading Websites with Passages for Test-Prep Practice

Test prep is never a fun topic to talk about, but we've got to teach students strategies to
attack this genre. These sites all offer some great texts to help students prep and to get
you data on strategies you may need to review.

19. Read Theory

This site has a bunch of reading passages that are perfect for upper elementary and
gives instant feedback.

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Free Reading Websites for Digital Ebooks and Audiobooks

It is totally awesome!

Check it out: ReadTheory

20. ReadWorks

Another great site for reading passages and reading at a variety of levels for your
students. The site also has a separate piece that is printable passages, lesson plans,
and more.

Check it out: ReadWorks

21. MobyMax

This site is great because it offers paired reading stories, unlike many others.

There are over 800 leveled stories, and more…it is hard to believe it is free. (There is a
paid version with more options, too.)

Check it out: MobyMax

Digital reading options for every learner

I hope you find these great resources useful in your classroom, and if you know any
other great resources send them my way!!

I'm always looking for more great ideas to add to the list.

If you enjoyed this article, you're sure to love these:

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Free Reading Websites for Digital Ebooks and Audiobooks

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Free Reading Websites for Digital Ebooks and Audiobooks

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Free Reading Websites for Digital Ebooks and Audiobooks

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