While Frederick and I are music lovers, we spend car time listening to and discussing podcasts. As a parent, I love podcasts because they encourage us both to use our imaginations–I liken it to the days when folks didn’t have TVs and they listened to radio shows for entertainment beyond news commentary or music. I also love them because they are a great way to learn without beating a kid over the head with “you’re going to learn something today!” Sometimes, I tune out because I’m pondering other things, but Frederick is always eager to talk about what intrigued him about the episode when they end or as we’re walking from the car to his school in the mornings. It also teaches him patience–he has to wait for the next episode (which was torture for him at first!), unlike clicking on OnDemand or Prime Video or Netflix to see every single episode at once.
Here are our favorites. There are a couple that I like that he’s not so interested in, so I’m not including those. There are a couple that he likes that aren’t all that engaging for me, so I won’t include those either. So here are the podcasts that we BOTH enjoy listening to:
The Alien Adventures of Finn Caspian: This is hands down Frederick’s favorite podcast. It’s a kids’ soap opera adventure series about a kid named Finn Caspian and his friends and their pet robots who all live on a space shuttle with their parents while they explore various planets. Just like the TV shows we watched when we were kids, much of the time, the parents are surprisingly nowhere around when the kids get into shenanigans in which they solve mysteries and save the day.
One thing I love about this podcast is that it’s narrated by a guy who includes his son as an editor and features him after the latest episode so that they can discuss what happened. It makes me want to create a podcast with my bambino that is geared toward black families (which I learned is just not readily available when I first got into podcasts). Also, the show is co-narrated by a “robot” (the narrator using some sound effects) named Beebop. Frederick loooooves Beebop. Between seasons, Beebop hosts his own “Beebop Tales,” and he enjoys these tall tales but most of all the theme song for Beebop Tales. His fave line: “Beebop Tales, Beebop Tales, fighting dinosaurs and mutant whales, Beeeeeeboooooooop Tales!”
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Wow in the World: I think this one is my fave of the kiddie podcasts we listen to. It’s NPR sponsored (yes, I’m an NPR superfan), and the two hosts Guy Raz (who also hosts How I built This, which I love) and Mindy Thomas are very entertaining as they explain science topics. It has a great balance of silly and informational, and they effectively get really deep into the topics. For example, I do believe it was because of Wow in the World that Frederick chose good and bad bacteria as a topic for a project last year as a Kindergartener. He was super enthusiastic about teaching his classmates about bacteria and handled preparing for his project all by himself.
As an added bonus, we both love the theme song. Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Check it out.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Brains On!: This one is Frederick’s go to when he’s run out of episodes from the first two. It’s also a science podcast, and this one is cool because they feature kids at times as they’re explaining a concept. I became a fan of this one when it talked about the Flint Water Crisis and featured a brilliant girl named Gitanjali Rao, who developed a device to detect almost instantly how much lead is in your water. Amazing!
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
The Mayan Crystal: This one is a new one for us, but so far, so great. At the end of each episode, Frederick has asked if he can listen to the next episode next time we’re in the car. I asked him this morning why he likes it so much, and he said it’s because there are bad guys and good guys. The background music is pretty suspenseful so it adds to the intrigue (although sometimes it’s a bit too loud behind the dialogue, but pish posh). I especially like that it’s mystical while talking about an ancient culture, heritage, and lineage. I really would (again, I say) like to see (or create, if I must) a podcast geared toward black families and black heritage. But until then, this story has captured our attention!
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Next time, maybe I’ll talk about the adult podcasts I love the most. In the meantime, what are some of your fave kid-friendly podcasts?