5.3 million ELL students · 75+ home languages
Text to Speech for ELL Students
Native pronunciation in 75+ home languages. The free, browser-based read-aloud tool ELL teachers and ESL classrooms actually use. Built for newcomer support, dual-language immersion, vocabulary scaffolding, and the 5.3 million English Language Learners in US K-12 schools who deserve content in a voice they recognize.
Updated September 2026 · 149 languages · Native-quality neural voices
In one sentence
FreeTTS supports 149 languages with native-quality neural voices, covering the home languages of US K-12 English Language Learners (Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, Vietnamese, Portuguese, Russian, Haitian Creole, Hmong, Somali, French and 65+ more) for paired English + home-language audio, vocabulary scaffolding, native-pronunciation models, and content access for newcomer students. Free for the first 15,000 characters per month, no account or signup needed.
2026 By the Numbers
The scale of the ELL classroom
Why language coverage is a real differentiator for any TTS tool used in K-12 schools.
283
distinct home languages spoken by US public school students nationwide.
Source: NCES Condition of Education
75+
languages covered by FreeTTS with native-quality neural voices vs ~30 in Read&Write, ~20 in Speechify.
Source: FreeTTS catalog · browse
Language coverage
30 of the 149 languages we support for ELL classrooms
Highlighted languages are the top home languages of US ELL students per NCES data. Browse all 75+ on the voices page.
Spanish
76.4% of ELLs
Arabic
#2 home language
Chinese
#3 home language
Vietnamese
#4 home language
Portuguese
#5 home language
Russian
Top 10
Haitian Creole
Top 10
Somali
Top 10
Hmong
Top 10
Korean
French
German
Hindi
Bengali
Tamil
Telugu
Punjabi
Urdu
Filipino
Thai
Indonesian
Japanese
Turkish
Hebrew
Polish
Italian
Ukrainian
Amharic
Burmese
Khmer
Browse all 149 languages with sample voices: freetts.org/voices →
Tactical workflows
Five pairing strategies for ELL classrooms
How experienced ELL teachers actually combine English + home language audio for different student needs.
Newcomer scaffold
Home language first, English second
Generate the same content in both languages. Newcomer student listens to home-language version first to understand the meaning, then English to hear the new vocabulary in context.
Spanish audio → student understands
↓
English audio → vocabulary acquisition
↓
English audio → vocabulary acquisition
Vocabulary practice
Word, definition, example
Three short audio files per vocabulary word. The English word, the home-language definition, then an English example sentence using the word. Students listen on repeat during independent work.
EN: "photosynthesis"
ES: "Es el proceso por el cual..."
EN: "Plants use photosynthesis to..."
ES: "Es el proceso por el cual..."
EN: "Plants use photosynthesis to..."
Content access
Grade-level content, home-language audio
For students with strong home-language literacy but limited English, generate the textbook chapter or article in the home language. Same grade-level concepts, accessible delivery. They engage with the content while building English separately.
7th-grade biology textbook
↓ paste into FreeTTS
Native Spanish audio
→ same content, accessible delivery
↓ paste into FreeTTS
Native Spanish audio
→ same content, accessible delivery
Test prep
Practice with audio instructions
Many state assessments allow ELL students audio access to test instructions. Generate practice materials in the same format students will encounter on test day. Reduces test-day anxiety, improves performance.
Practice quiz instructions
→ FreeTTS English audio
→ student listens before reading
→ familiar with audio format on test day
→ FreeTTS English audio
→ student listens before reading
→ familiar with audio format on test day
Parent involvement
Newsletter or notice in 5 languages
School newsletter, IEP summary, or parent-teacher conference invite. Generate audio versions in the home languages of your ELL families. Parents listen on their phone while commuting. Engagement with school communication goes up dramatically.
Parent newsletter (English)
→ FreeTTS in 5 languages
→ link in email to each family
→ they listen, they show up
→ FreeTTS in 5 languages
→ link in email to each family
→ they listen, they show up
Real classrooms
Six ELL classroom use cases
Specific workflows ELL teachers run today, by language and grade level.
01
Spanish · Grade 3 newcomer
Listening center with home-language passages
Newcomer 3rd grader from Mexico, 2 weeks in US schools. Teacher generates the week's science reading in Spanish for the listening center. Student follows along on the page, builds reading-listening connection in their stronger language while building English separately.
02
Arabic · Grade 6 ELL
Math word problems in home language
ELL student understands math but English word problems are a barrier. Teacher pastes the word problem into FreeTTS, generates Arabic audio. Student listens, understands the problem, solves it. The math isn't the issue. The English wrapper around it was.
03
Mandarin · Grade 8 dual language
Daily announcement audio in both languages
Dual-language program teacher records daily announcements in both English and Mandarin via FreeTTS. Posts both audio files in Google Classroom. Students listen to whichever fits their day. Builds bilingual literacy through repeated exposure.
04
Vietnamese · Grade 10 ELL with IEP
Home-language audio for textbook chapters
Vietnamese-speaking 10th grader with reading disability. IEP includes audio access to grade-level textbooks. SpEd teacher uses FreeTTS PDF-to-Audiobook to convert chapters to Vietnamese audio. Student listens while building English vocabulary. Both accommodations stacked.
05
Haitian Creole · Grade 5 newcomer
Vocabulary practice with paired audio
Newcomer student from Haiti. Teacher creates a vocabulary list with paired audio for each word: English pronunciation, then Creole definition, then English usage example. Student listens on repeat. Vocabulary acquisition triples compared to English-only flashcards.
06
All families · Parent communication
School newsletter in 5 home languages
Elementary school principal generates the monthly newsletter in English, Spanish, Arabic, Vietnamese, and Haitian Creole. Sends as audio links in email. Parents who don't read English fluently listen during commute. Family event attendance triples.
Compare
Language coverage compared
For ELL classrooms with diverse language populations, voice catalog breadth matters.
| Tool | Languages | Voice quality | MP3 export | Free tier |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FreeTTS | 75+ | Neural | Yes | 15,000 chars/mo |
| Mote | ~60 | Mixed | Limited | Limited |
| Read&Write | ~30 | Standard | No | Trial only |
| Speechify | ~20 | Neural | PRO only | Trial only |
| NaturalReader | ~20 | Standard | Paid only | 20 min/day |
| Microsoft Immersive Reader | ~70 | Standard | No | Free in M365 |
| ChromeOS Select-to-Speak | ~10 | Robotic | No | Free built-in |
For districts with rare-language ELL populations (Burmese, Karen, Hmong, Amharic, Tigrinya, Pashto), FreeTTS coverage is significantly broader than competitor tools. For Spanish-only ELL classrooms, most options work; for any class with 3+ home languages represented, language breadth becomes the deciding factor.
FAQ
ELL text-to-speech FAQ
How many ELL students are in US public schools?▼
About 5.3 million in 2021-22, representing 10% of all K-12 enrollment, per the National Center for Education Statistics. The number has grown steadily; in 2011 it was 4.6 million (9.4%). ELL students speak 283 distinct home languages nationally.
What's the most common home language of US ELL students?▼
Spanish, by a wide margin: 76.4% of all US ELL students speak Spanish at home. Arabic, Chinese, Vietnamese, and Portuguese round out the top five. Other commonly served languages include Russian, Haitian Creole, Hmong, Somali, French, and Korean.
How can text-to-speech help English Language Learners?▼
Three main ways. First, native pronunciation: ELL students hear English words pronounced correctly while reading along, which builds phonemic awareness and proper accent. Second, home-language scaffolding: students hear instructions or vocabulary in their home language for comprehension support, then in English for language acquisition. Third, equity in access: students who can't yet read English fluently aren't blocked from grade-level content.
How many languages does FreeTTS support for ELL classrooms?▼
149 languages with native-quality neural voices. This includes the top 10 home languages of US ELL students (Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, Vietnamese, Portuguese, Russian, Haitian Creole, Hmong, Somali, French) and 65+ others including Hindi, Bengali, Tamil, Telugu, Punjabi, Urdu, Filipino, Thai, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Turkish, Hebrew, Polish, Italian, Ukrainian, Amharic, Burmese, and Khmer.
Can I use FreeTTS to create paired English + home language audio?▼
Yes, this is one of the highest-leverage ELL workflows. Generate the same content twice: once in the student's home language for comprehension, once in English for language acquisition. Students listen to both, follow along on the page, and build vocabulary across languages. Many teachers create paired vocabulary lists, paired text passages, and paired test instructions.
How does FreeTTS compare to Read&Write for ELL classrooms?▼
Both work well. Read&Write supports about 30 languages with strong Google Docs integration and word-by-word highlighting. FreeTTS supports 149 languages with more natural neural voices and downloadable MP3 files (so you can share audio with students who don't have Read&Write at home). For districts with rare-language ELL populations (Burmese, Karen, Hmong, Amharic), FreeTTS coverage is significantly broader.
Does FreeTTS work for newcomer ELL students who can't read at all yet?▼
Yes, in their home language. A newcomer student who reads Spanish but not English can listen to a Spanish audio version of their math problems, science worksheet, or class instructions while building their English skills separately. As their English develops, the same workflow scales — increasing the English ratio over time.
Can ELL students with IEPs use FreeTTS?▼
Yes. ELL students with IEPs benefit from text-to-speech in both English and their home language. Many IEP teams write accommodation language that explicitly covers both. See our IEP accommodations guide for sample wording, including a template line for ELL students with IEPs that covers home-language audio support.
How can teachers use FreeTTS for ELL students taking standardized tests?▼
Generate practice materials in the same audio format students will encounter on test day. State assessment guidance varies; check your state's accommodation manual for ELL accommodations and specific TTS allowance rules. Practice with the format reduces test-day anxiety and improves performance regardless of disability status.
Is FreeTTS free for ELL teachers and ESL classrooms?▼
Yes. The free tier supports 15,000 characters per month with no signup, no credit card, and no account required. That's enough for most teachers' weekly needs (vocabulary lists, short passages, worksheet instructions). PRO at $19/month unlocks 1 million characters per month, MP3 downloads without watermark, and PDF-to-Audiobook for full-chapter conversion.
Can parents of ELL students use FreeTTS at home?▼
Yes, the free tier works for parents too. A common workflow: parent pastes the homework reading passage and generates audio in either English or the home language so the student can listen while reading. Particularly valuable for parents who may not be confident reading English content aloud themselves.
Does FreeTTS support dual-language immersion programs?▼
Yes. Dual-language teachers use FreeTTS to generate balanced content in both languages. A 50/50 Spanish-English program, for instance, can use FreeTTS to create morning announcements, vocabulary practice, and content area readings in both languages with consistent voice quality across both. Spanish, Mandarin, French, and Korean are the most common dual-language program languages and FreeTTS covers all four with neural voices.
Does FreeTTS support right-to-left languages like Arabic and Hebrew for ELL students?▼
Yes. FreeTTS correctly handles right-to-left text for Arabic, Hebrew, Urdu, Farsi, and other RTL languages. Paste RTL text directly into the text box — it processes correctly and generates accurate audio with the right voice. Arabic alone has 18+ regional variants (Egyptian, Gulf, Levantine, Moroccan, Iraqi, and more). Hebrew and Urdu are also supported with native neural voices. For ELL students whose home language is RTL, this is a real differentiator vs tools that cover only Latin-script languages.
What is the best TTS tool for Hmong-speaking ELL students?▼
FreeTTS is one of the few browser-based TTS tools that supports Hmong with a native neural voice. Hmong is consistently in the top 10 US ELL home languages (particularly in California, Minnesota, and Wisconsin school districts) but is absent from most mainstream TTS tools including Google Translate TTS, Speechify, and Read&Write. FreeTTS covers Hmong through its Azure Neural TTS engine. For Hmong-speaking newcomer students, this matters: vocabulary lists, homework instructions, and reading passages can be generated in Hmong so students understand content while building English skills.
Can FreeTTS read math problems and science content aloud for ELL students?▼
Yes, for standard problems. TTS reads exactly what's written in text, so 'three plus five equals eight' works correctly. Numbers, basic operations, and science vocabulary read cleanly. The one limitation: special notation like x² (superscript), fractions in visual format, or integral symbols won't read as intended — they need to be written out in plain language first ('x squared', 'one third', 'the integral of'). Most teachers preparing ELL audio versions of math worksheets write out the notation as a standard practice. For science vocabulary specifically, TTS is excellent because ELL students can hear the correct English pronunciation of terms they're reading for the first time.
Sources
Research and references
NCES — English Learners in Public Schools
5.3 million ELL students (10% of K-12 enrollment) in 2021-22. Spanish dominates at 76.4%. Top home languages and trends. nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator/cgf
NCES — Fast Facts on English Learners
Federal statistics on ELL enrollment, demographic trends, top languages, and state-level breakdowns. nces.ed.gov/fastfacts
Migration Policy Institute — ELLs in K-12 by State
State-by-state ELL student counts and home language profiles. Useful for districts comparing their demographics to national patterns. migrationpolicy.org
U.S. GAO — How States Identify English Learners (Including Those with Disabilities)
Federal accountability office report on ELL identification practices, including students who also qualify for special education services. gao.gov
WIDA Standards — English Language Development
Widely-adopted ELD standards used by 41+ US states. Frames ELL instruction across content areas with audio access as a core support. wida.wisc.edu
Colorin Colorado — ELL FAQs for Educators
Comprehensive ELL educator resource with research-backed strategies for newcomer support, dual-language programs, and home-language scaffolding. colorincolorado.org
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Try FreeTTS for your ELL classroom
Free in the browser, no signup, no credit card. Generate native-quality audio in 149 languages in 30 seconds. Your newcomer student gets to hear content in a voice they recognize.