Read Aloud reads parts of your Quill activities out loud to you. As the words are read, they are highlighted on the screen so you can follow along. You can use Read Aloud to hear directions, questions, sentences, hints, feedback, and reading passages in Quill Connect, Quill Grammar, Quill Diagnostic, Quill Proofreader, and Quill Reading for Evidence activities. Learn more about how to use Read Aloud below.
Table of contents
Turn on Read Aloud
Your teacher decides whether Read Aloud is turned on for you. When Read Aloud is on, you will see speaker buttons next to the text in your activities.
Note ⚠️
If you do not see any speaker buttons in your activity, please ask your teacher to turn on Read Aloud for you.
Listen to directions, questions, and sentences
To listen to a piece of text, click the speaker button next to it. Quill will read that text out loud, and each word will be highlighted as it is read so you can read along.
Tip 💡
Wearing headphones can help you hear clearly without distracting your classmates.
Listen to a long passage
In Quill Reading for Evidence and Quill Proofreader activities, long passages are split into sections. Each section has its own button that you can use to play and pause the reading.
To start listening to a section, click the play button for that section.
To pause the reading, click the button again.
If you click into the passage to highlight text or make edits, the reading will pause. When you are ready, click the play button to keep listening.
Note ⚠️
In Quill Proofreader activities, Read Aloud always reads the original passage, not the changes you have made to it.
What Read Aloud does not read
Read Aloud does not read:
Anything you type, such as your answers or edits
The feedback you see after you write a response in a Quill Reading for Evidence activity
Quill Lessons activities
If you need help hearing any of these, please ask your teacher.
Why the voice sometimes sounds different
Most of the time, you will hear the same natural-sounding voice. Sometimes, if your internet connection is slow or part of an activity has not been recorded yet, your computer will read the text using its own voice instead. This voice may sound more like a robot, but it is still reading the same words, so you can keep working on your activity.
What to do if Read Aloud is not working
If you cannot hear Read Aloud, try these steps:
Make sure your computer's volume is turned up and is not muted.
If you are using headphones, make sure they are plugged in or connected.
If you still cannot hear anything, or you do not see the speaker buttons, please ask your teacher for help.
Have more questions?
If you have more questions about Read Aloud, please ask your teacher to reach out to us at support@quill.org.