The “Wow in the World” podcast from NPR is just one of the many kid-friendly podcasts that can be curated by the Leela Kids app, which is available on iOS or Android. Download the app to your mobile device (search for it under “iPhone Only” in the iTunes store – even though it works fine on iPads), and open it up to see a simple menu that allows you to choose an age bracket (3-5, 5-8, 8-12, 12-15*) and a category (Stories, Music, Animals, Ocean, Space, and Curious). Once you’ve made your selections, you can then see either a list of specific episodes or the list of shows that provide those episodes. The duration of each podcast episode is listed under the title. Some are a minute long, while others can be almost a half hour.
How could you use this? Well, as a parent and/or a teacher you may know how difficult it is to search for appropriate podcasts. Now you have a treasury your children can listen to during long car trips or in classroom centers with a set of headphones. The great thing about this is that podcasts have frequent updates so there is a slight chance that you will never run out of episodes!
If you are using this in the classroom, you can gather student reflections using a response sheet like this one from Chase March. Students searching for topics for Genius Hour projects may find something that they may want to research further. Another idea is to use the app to find relevant podcast links for class, and embed those links in a Hyperdoc.
As you can see, there are many ways to use podcasts in class, and the Leela Kids app just made it even easier.
*If you teach secondary students, here is an article on “Likewise,” a more robust collection of podcasts that can be used in the classroom.
