Blog B: Podcasting

Blog B :

I listened to a total of three podcasts to add up to about 20 minutes. The first two podcasts were made by junior high school students in the classroom while the last one was created by a high school history teacher who became very famous for it.

1.) Edgar Allan Poe

I found this first podcast on a site known as Podcast Central under the heading “Celebrating a Birthday.” The Students in Mrs. Kaplan’s eighth grade class did a study on Edgar Allan Poe and to honor his birthday on January 19, a group of approximately six students put together a podcast all about him. First, the narrator describes the sad life of Edgar Allan Poe by stating that Poe lost his mother at a young age and his work never made him money. Thus, he died two years after his wife, “penniless and alone” (Narrator of the podcast). Next, a few students read some of his work and the narrator does a short analysis on the piece of writing. There is eerie music playing during the podcast which sets the mood of the topic. This podcast is a creative way for students to show how much they learned about Poe. There were just a few questions that popped into my mind while this podcast was playing. If the entire class did a study on Poe, what did the other children do to show that they learned the information as well? Did another small group of five or six students create a podcast?

This podcast is an example of how students can creatively share research that they do rather than strictly writing a paper which is beneficial for many students who struggle with writing because they can dab into their creative side.

2.) Hurricane Katrina

This podcast was also created by an eighth grade class as a language arts assignment and it was very powerful. These students recognized the catastrophe of Hurricane Katrina and they actively took part in supporting the victims of this huge devastation by providing the contact information for all the organizations and charities that are supporting the men, women and children who were truly affected by the storm. The students used this podcast as an opportunity to spread the information to those who may not know how they may help the families. This is a starting point for many people and the organizations must have greatly appreciated the work and research that these students did in order to create this podcast. I really like how a podcast can be used to reach out to thousands of people in need just by sending out information online.

This is a different type of podcast because it is used by the eighth grade class, but it created for the benefit of the victims and it helps to publicize the organizations. I think this is a great use of a podcast.

3.) History Teacher Becomes Podcast Celebrity

I chose this last podcast because it was interesting to me how it was used. A high school history teacher went from teaching in the classroom to teaching around the world simply by posting his lectures on a podcast. The news article write up on this podcast stated that about 140,000 listeners heard it (New York Times ). This teacher, Lars Brownworth, loves studying Byzantine History so he created podcasts that summarized his research. There were many podcasts that he posted but I chose to listen to his introduction which is over ten minutes long. The lecture is interesting and I like how he describes that history has to be seen through the eyes of the major people at that time. For instance, he stated that we would probably not know about the Reformation if it weren’t for Martin Luther King Jr. because we study his life and see the major events that took place during his lifetime.

This last podcast is an example of how teachers can use it in the classroom. A woman I play volleyball with said he posted podcast lectures online for her students to listen to when classes were canceled due to the weather. I can see how teachers can benefit from this because they could post a podcast and ask for feedback from other teachers around the world.

After viewing these three podcasts, I was able to get a sense of how they can be used to enhance teaching in the classroom. Out of the three types of podcasts that I listened to, my favorite one was the podcast created for the victims of Hurricane Katrina. Not only are the students staying tuned to the current news, but they are reaching out in love to help out those who were hit hard by the storm. I think teachers can play a huge role in encouraging children to think about others and this type of podcast is just one way teacher can do that. Podcasting seems very new and I still have many questions about how to get the whole class involved. There are many activities that could use podcasting, but I wonder if I would be able to figure out which activities would be best for the students and their learning.

Podcasts can be very beneficial when used in the classroom because it can greatly enhance literacy instruction by teaching the students to read loud and clear. The students will want their voice to be smooth when they hear it on the podcast because it is more professional. In addition, most children are scared of public speaking so they try everything to avoid it and podcasts will help students to still practice public speaking. Instead of presenting in front of the class, they will be speaking into a microphone.


There are many activities where podcasting could be used in my first grade practicum classroom. First, I could have the students read their own narrative stories aloud which will help them practice their verbal skills. Second, I could have each student read a fact over the podcast about a particular subject that they are studying such as Maine. Next, I would have the students draw a picture to go along with their fact and the final result would be a factual podcast. Third, I could have the students read a book of their choice into the podcast and teach them about expression when reading. Fourth, I could have the students write a song and sing it into the podcast and then we could make a CD of all the students songs. The last idea I have, is one that I thought of for my language arts lesson plan. I would have each student choose a spelling rule such as long and short vowels and then I would have them state the rule into the podcast. I would also make sure they give examples of words that follow the rule. Finally, I would compile all the rules from the students and we would listened to the podcast as a class. At the end of each rule, the students would have to call out additional examples of words that follow the rule. This would teach all of the students the rules of spelling.

Language Arts: Themes and Ideas

1.) I would like to create a first grade unit which would explore the importance of French culture in Maine. Currently, the students are studying the language of French and I would like to design a unit which branches out to describe why French is so important here in Maine. For instance, Canada is our neighboring country and many citizens of Maine have lived in Canada or they have relatives or ancestors from that area. Thus, through this unit, I hope to intertwine the learning of French with the study of the culture. Throughout this unit, I would have the students communicating with French-speaking first grade students in Canada in order to find out about the culture. At the end, the students would write an informational paper which would include all the facts that they learned about the language and culture of French in Maine.

2.) My second idea for designing a first grade unit would be based on Dr. Seuss’ birthday. I would design a unit that has the students focus on the style of writing that Dr. Seuss creates. The students would be learning the importance of rhyming words and by the end, I would have students creating their own poems which would be typed up and assembled into a book of poems which honors Dr. Seuss birthday. Not only would the students be practicing their reading skills with the fun variety of Dr. Seuss books, but they would also be learning the importance of words which can be put together in different ways to create a certain style such as rhyming.

3.) Since fairy tales are very common to young children, I want to design a unit which focuses on the retelling of tales by using technology. I would have the students create a podcast by recording their voices as they retold fairy tales stories. Since the students would also be acting out the play and performing it in front of the class, pictures would be taken to go along with their recorded voices. Thus, the end result would be a slide show which would teach the students how to use technology while practicing reading aloud and retelling of stories.

4.) Since it is important for students to know the different types of jobs that people have, I would like to design a unit which allows students to research the different aspects of a job. Thus, I would have the students interview their parents or a person of their choice to find out what their job entails. Throughout the unit, adults would be asked to speak in the classroom about their job. The end product would be a published dictionary of the different jobs that people have. In addition, students will present the jobs that they researched in front of the class and they will be graded on the presentation.

5.) Another unit idea that I have would focus on comparing narrative and persuasion texts. I would have students choose their favorite hobby and write all the ideas of why they like that hobby. Next, the students would have to use a variety of tactics to either persuade students to try this particular hobby or create a narrative which involves this hobby. In the end, the students would have to make a claymation video of the hobby with a recording to go along with the video. An essay would be turned in as well. The students would present their claymation videos to the class and the rest of the students would have to determine if the videos are persuasive or narrative.