Podcast Post

For this assignment I listened to 4 of the recommended podcasts: SmartBoard Lessons, Kidcast, Macbreak weekly, and TWIP. I also searched and found 3 podcasts that I thought were interesting: StoryNory, Motion, Forces, & Energy, and Why? The science show for kids. I will first discuss the recommended podcasts and then spend time on the 3 I chose.

The first thing I noticed about all 4 recommended podcasts was that each one had music as the introduction. Not one of these podcasts started with talking. I like the way the music gave me a chance to get focused and ready for the podcast. Another thing I noticed about each podcast was that they all had sponsors and the podcast subscriptions were free. This means that the sponsors pay for these podcasts and the consumer does not have to. All of these podcasts had hosts that were enthusiastic, easy to listen to, and kept it going. The SmartBoard Lesson podcast consisted of a man and woman, and they discussed using the SmartBoard as a teaching tool. There podcast is almost a weekly occurrence. KidCast has one host and this podcast focuses on using the podcast in the classroom. The podcast happens once every few month. This one did not hold my attention like the first podcast mentioned. It seems better to have more than one person on a podcast to keep it more interesting. The discussion and feedback from others is important. MacBreakWeekly is a weekly podcast and was the most entertaining (even though it was Mac related). There were 3 or 4 hosts and they made the podcast have a more radio show like feel to it. They shared personal information and laughed with one another. This podcast had the most sponsors. It took the main host quite a while to list all of them. TWIP podcast was similar to the MacBreak Weekly. It had the same format and same sort of atmosphere.

Listening to just these 4 podcasts helped me realize 3 things about podcasting in general. Number one: Intro and background music gives the podcast a more professional vibe. Number 2: Having more than one host gives the podcast more life and dimension. Number 3: The host needs to have enthusiasm and fun.

The next 3 podcasts I listened to were Story Nory, Why? The Science Show for Kids, and Motion, Forces, & Energy. Story Nory is a podcast that brings a new story to children every week. The narrator has a lovely voice and is very easy to understand. This podcast would be a great resource for elementary school teachers. I could see a teacher using this podcast during rest time. Allowing kindergartners to listen as they lay on their mats would be a novel way to do nap time. Teachers could let children listen to the story and then draw a picture of what they heard (this would help them with their comprehension). There are so many options for a teacher if they used this podcast. Why? The Science Show for Kids podcast is hosted by a scientist who answers kids questions every week. Of course he can not answer all the questions that are submitted but he does a nice job of having a wide variety of questions and answers. I could see myself using this concept to creating student podcasts and the assignment would be to answer certain questions, work as teams to answer the questions, submit questions about the current material being studied so I could better explain it using a podcast. Again, I can see the podcast being used for so many things in a science classroom. The last podcast was very basic but I really like it. It was a teacher's podcast and he reviewed the different sections in a chapter. He would refer to the text, and then elaborate on the concept. This is a great teaching tool. Once students get home and begin to do their homework they may think,"Now what did he say about..." And all they have to do is go to his podcast and they can hear him say it. I like the way he uses the podcast, and I would like to use it to record my "Note Time" in class. That way if a student is absent they can go to my podcast and hear what we talked about in class. The options for using a podcast in the class room are almost endless. Yeah podcast! To hear any of the 3 podcasts listed above all you have to do is go to Search iTunes Store and type in the name of the podcast.