Podcasts

Since being in graduate school I have learned so many new pieces of technology.  There are things that I never new really existed.  That either makes me really old or not so tech savvy, but I do not feel like either of those things!  Technology is constantly changing, therefore, we must be constantly learning, which matches my teaching philosophy perfectly: growing life long learners.

Podcasts are something new to me.  I have created one last semester to introduce myself to the class.  I thought it was an interesting way to get to know people without "meeting" them face to face.  They remind of tv on the radio, from way back before my time.  There is not a visual, but rather an audio recording giving you information.

I signed up for Sound Cloud and Podomatic.  We did not have a great internet connection and Sound Cloud was the app that was working the best at school.  I will never understand how the connection in a school can be so spotty, but it is something we have learned to deal with.  It was fairly easy to record and save the Podcast.  Then, I was able to log in on the computer, add a picture, and get the link to embed it into Blogger.  The process was painless and took no time at all.  I think my students could do all of it themselves after some direction.

I chose to record one of my sweet girls giving a book summary/review for one of her favorite books.  We had a great time making the recording, and all the other students are very excited to make their own now too.  I cannot wait to set this up as one of our reading stations and see what they come up with!  I think she will make you want to read this book too.  I wish you could have seen her expression as she was talking.  She was truly speaking from the heart about this book.



Podcasts are a great tool to use in the classroom and in the library.  I definitely plan to let my students use this for book reviews and even to teach each other how to do things, such as the steps to solve a 3 digit addition problem.  They could even record themselves reading a picture book and we could share it with our kindergarten buddy class so the students could "listen" to the story when we are not able to be there.  In the library, Podcasts would be great for tutorials on how to use databases or find just the right book.  I love the idea of interviewing students for book recommendations or for just plain book talks.  The possibilities are endless and if you love to talk, but not in front of people, then this is the right choice for you!  It really does take the pressure away since people cannot see you.  You are able to speak freely and from the heart.

A special thanks to "Brooke" for helping me out with this Podcast, and of course, her mom for giving me permission!