Thing 19 Podcasts

Which podcasts did you find interesting?
I enjoyed the History teacher's Study Cast for test review. I know this was one of the first examples from the two Wayne RESA videos, but it really struck me when I think about how my students with special needs (and others) benefit from repetition. I use "think alouds" to help kids understand how I approach a math problem and important questions they should be asking themselves an example would be when reducing a fraction to it's simplest form. I think it would be helpful for students and parents to hear my examples, mnemonics and silly stories or songs to help students remember new information.
http://www.liberty.k12.mo.us/~elanghorst/blog

One question I have is in regards to copyrighting, "Could I do a podcast using the silly stories from a book I purchased to help students learn their multiplication facts?" I tend to think the authors wouldn't like it being made available to the public, but what about if I sited the source? These stories are read each day in my classroom. How cool would it be for a student to go home and hear it again or their parents, "Six is chicks, four is door and it equals a denty floor." This doesn't mean much to parents or anyone else unless they've hear the story...then it would make more sense!

Another podcast that I enjoyed, was the Coleycast produced by students. This is really a cross-curriculum activity that could bridge and ELA class and say a SS or Science class. As indicated, kids obviously had to invest some time prior to the podcast to research, write, and practice what they'd say about a historical figure before they did their podcast. What a motivator! I also like the thought that kids who don't like to get up in front of a class could create a podcast of their project that could be heard by the teacher and/or the other kids in the class.

It's exciting that we just got an updated computer lab in our school that includes microphones to make podcasts. I know some teachers in our building are already utilizing this in their classrooms!
I had the fleeting idea of how useful it might be for a student who was absent to hear the class lecture. In my classroom, there are usually multiple interruptions, so it would probably take a long time to edit!! It would be good for me to get outside my comfort zone and try to create a podcast for my students or by my students by the end of the year!