Wednesday, December 4, 2019

The Great Thanksgiving Listen- Creating Podcasts of a Family/Friend Story or Interview

Over Thanksgiving you participated in Storycorps "The Great Thanksgiving Listen"as you interviewed an older relative or friend. Today you are going to share the stories you heard and think about one story that interests you most to turn into a podcast. 
Part I- The Debriefing

Discussion
1.  Share with your group what it was like to do the interview.  Who did you interview? Where? How long was the interview? Did you record it or take notes? How did it go?
2.  Next, think about what you learned about the person from the interview.  What surprised you? What had you already known? What story or stories did you find most interesting? 
Planning
3.  In your Writer's Notebook, write 2-3 stories or topics that you might want to share or turn into your podcast. 

Part II- Deconstructing a Podcast

Defining Podcasts
In your groups, discuss the following questions. Be prepared to share your responses with the class.
  • What's a podcast
  • What are podcasts about?
  • Where can you hear podcasts?
  • Why would YOU listen to a podcast?
  • What makes a podcaster different from a YouTuber?
Listening to Podcasts 
In your groups, listen to a few podcasts to determine the elements and qualities of a podcast.

1.  Kind World: So Chocolate Bar (7 mins, 23 sec.)
In this episode of Kind World, host Erika Lantz uses sounds and interviews with multiple people to tell a story about a friendship.
2.  Hidden Brain: The Haunting Effects of Going Days Without Sleep (7 mins, 2 sec.)
Play this story twice. The first time,make a note of all the sounds they hear and people that speak on tape. Afterwards, compare notes with your group. Then, play the story through a second time — following along with the transcript to check your work.
3.  How I Built This: Instagram: Kevin Systrom & Mike Krieger (33 mins, 32 sec.)
This is a long one, so perhaps just listen to a few minutes at the beginning. (A good place to start is about 30 seconds in.)

Still interested?  Here are a few more:
Kind World: A Different Window (7 mins, 2 sec.)
Hidden Brain: How Labels Can Affect People's Personalities and Potential (6 mins, 35 sec.)

And some examples of Storycorp Interviews/Podcast-
Driving Lessons 
Storycorps The Great Listen
Amnesty Days
Danny and Annie

Debrief
1.  What types of sounds do podcasts include?
2.  What are some ways that podcasts are structured?
3.  What podcasts did you like best? Why?

Other Podcasts to explore-

Pickle
Is it ever okay to tell a lie? What makes a real friend? And here’s a question: How much is a person’s life worth? Yikes, that’s a tough one! Join the cast of Pickle as we explore life’s stickiest wickets, with the help of curious kids --and the occasional elephant. It’s philosophy, made fun.
Story Pirates
The Story Pirates aren’t your typical swashbuckling sailors. We don’t steal gold, pillage villages, or claim land; We’re searching for a different kind of treasure: kids’ wildest, most imaginative stories.
NPS Peas In A Podcast
NPS Peas in a Podcast features our 5th and 6th grade classroom at Newington Public School. It's the definition of a student-led podcast as the writers, directors, hosts, voices, and editors are all age 12 and younger. Tune in to see what our amazing class is up to.
The Memory Place- The Memory Palace is a storytelling podcast and occasional radio segment created and produced Nate DiMeo in 2008.
Talking with Thunderbirds-This podcast will feature guests in the community of Tuba City that students deem to be heroes. They will interview these heroes about their job and how it led them to their current position.
Freakonomics-  Discover the hidden side of everything with Stephen J. Dubner, co-author of the Freakonomics books. Each week, Freakonomics Radio tells you things you always thought you knew (but didn’t) and things you never thought you wanted to know (but do) — from the economics of sleep to how to become great at just about anything

adapted from NPR (https://www.npr.org/2018/11/15/662116901/teaching-podcasting-a-curriculum-guide-for-educators#overview)








Tuesday, December 3, 2019

Charles Dickens and "A Christmas Carol"

"A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens

Next week you will be going to the play "A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens.  Before you attend the play, you are going to learn a little about Charles Dickens and his writing and read the play.
Click here to watch this Brain Pop video introducing the famous playwright. 

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