STORIES
4. Stories Podcast
This podcast covers a mix of classic fairy tales and original stories. Some stories span over a few episodes, but the majority feature one short story, wrapped up in 20 minutes or less. Host Amanda Welden is upbeat and has a great, clear story-telling voice. Age 3 and up.
5. What If World*
In each episode, a child tells what he or she likes (American Girl dolls? Star Wars?) and asks a question: What if Dolphins Could Fly?” or What if babysitters sat on babies? Then talented host Mr. Eric tells a story that is inspired by those details with humor, creativity, character voices and sound effects. My kids beg for another story after each episode. Age 4 and up.
6. Story Pirates*
Think Second City or Upright Citizens Bridgade – but written by kids and performed by adult comedic actors. Kids write very short stories or ideas and the comedians turn it into a hilarious audio show. Their YouTube channel is amazing too. Age 5 and up.
7. Little Stories for Tiny People
The title says it all: this podcast features short stories meant for toddlers. I wish I had this podcast back when my four kids were all under age 5 – my older toddlers would pay attention and listen, while my babies would fall asleep to Rhea Pechter’s soothing voice. Age 2 and up.
8. Circle Round*
Produced by NPR, Circle Round tells international folk fables for children. Bonus: for every story there’s a correlating coloring page that goes along with it, making an easy and fun activity to color while listening. The speakers are diverse, professional actors and very engaging. Age 3 and up.
9. Storynory
While other podcasts can tell stories a bit better, Storynory makes up for it with their massive amount of content. This show from the UK has been around for 13 years and offers a huge inventory of audio stories that include Greek myths, ancient historical stories, original stories and audiobooks too. Age 5 and up.
We would love to see KidNuz on your list. It’s the first ever, daily news podcast for kids (that adults will like, too!)
Wonderful ideas. Do you have any podcast suggestions for tweens & teens?
Anyone know of Spanish podcasts for preschoolers??
Thanks for this compilation. I’m excited to discover some new shows.
These WNYC kids’ podcasts – Pickle and This Podcast head Fleas – aren’t on your list and they’re wonderful. We’ve listened to Fleas repeatedly because we can’t get enough of Jones the Cat.
Thanks again.
Doh! Typos… And I forgot to agree the link
https://www.wnycstudios.org/shows/fleas
Amazing podcast! You are the best!
https://persuasivepapers.com/
Have you seen the Pinkaboos podcast? http://www.thepinkaboos.com/pinkaboos-podcast/
It’s a serialized story with fun skits for kids and adults after each reading.
Hi – I just quickly checked it out, thanks for sharing! I have two daughters (ages 8 and 10), this looks like a perfect podcast for them over spring break. Thanks!
I love this list! I am going to look into Peace Out next, thanks for the suggestion.
FYI The host of the OWTK podcast is Jeff Bogle, not John.
Thanks Brian! I’ll make that change in the post. =)
Check out https://www.dadandmelovehistory.com/ – a fun 15-minute history podcast aimed at elementary school kids and their parents, complete with jokes and crzay sound effects. Featured in the media e.g. http://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/short-reads/article/2134407/father-and-son-podcast-duo-answer-lifes-big
Thanks Paul! The Great Wall of China episode looks really good at Dad and Me Love History – my kids love stories and history about buildings. Thanks for the recommendation!
So many of our favorites here. I would also suggest Aaron’s World (www.mydogrocket.com) as a brilliant story/science podcast (it has dinosaurs!) And Spare the Rock Spoil the Child as my favorite kids music podcast.
My kids also have a cute book review podcast at http://www.bookpowerforkids.com . They write and act in it and occasionally give me lines. 😀
Such great suggestions, thanks Brennen! Spare the Rock Spoil the Child looks amazing… They Might Be Giants? Dolly Parton? Elizabeth Mitchell? Flaming Lips? – sold! I’ll check out your podcast too, thanks so much for commenting.
This list looks great! Sorry for the lame question but how do you set up your kids to listen to podcasts in the car? Does it play off your phone, which is hooked up to the car? I have 3 kids (6,4,2) with different interests, all of whom would probably want to each listen to something different so not sure what would be the best way to do that unless I just make them take turns all the time.
Hey Terry, you can totally play them in the car. If your stereo has an audio in (aux) jack (looks like a headphone jack) it’s as simple as buying a $3 cable to fit in your headphone jack.
If not there’s a device that you can buy that will connect to your phone via Bluetooth and then broadcast it over your radio. – not ideal, but it does work!
The cord idea is genius! I’ve been using a portable bluetooth speaker and playing them off my phone. Thanks Brennen!
Hi Terry, I use a small portable bluetooth speaker to broadcast through my minivan. Not a perfect solution, but it works. I like Brennen’s suggestion of a cord, I plan on trying that myself. For the age of your kids, I would try a lot of the story options like Circle Round, Stories, Little Stories Tiny People – they should engage all of your little ones. I’d then download a few just for your six-year-old child per their interests (science? history?) and you can play it for them in the car when the other two children sleep (or maybe it’ll even put them to sleep). My four kids are ages 4, 7, 8 and 10 and sometimes we take turns choosing the podcast to appease everyone. Good luck!
I like Cozy Corner Podcast. There is a relaxing time for meditation before the story. It’s great for getting my son relaxed before naps or bedtime – he’s 4. He asks me if I’ll play one. I still read to him often but this is quiet time we do together and he can do on his own. http://www.cozycornerpodcast.com
Cozy Corner sounds awesome, thanks Diane! I have a four-year-old that would love this!
Thank you so much for this post!! I’ve just recently been thinking about how I’d love to find some podcasts for my kiddos. Can’t wait to dive in to some of these with them.
Yay! So glad you liked the list, good luck Monika! Hope you find some good podcasts you all enjoy.
Thanks for including But Why on this list! We love making our show and especially love hearing the voices of all the kids who send us questions. This is such a great list; our own kids listen to lots of these other podcasts too! –Jane at But Why
Hi Jane! We love But Why – the Olympic medals episode is one of our favorites! Thanks!
One category you missed: literature! Check out Book Club for Kids, Buttons & Figs, The Book Meese…
Hi Tad, I tried to include literature in the Stories category (for example, Storynory has a lot of literature, audio books, etc.). I hadn’t heard of any of the ones you mentioned and I’m eager to check them out! I think my daughters would especially love Book Club for Kids, thanks for commenting!
How To Do Everything is no longer in production, but there are a lot of old episodes and my kids LOVED it. Probably ages 7-8 and up. It wasn’t produced explicitly for kids, though, so heads up for people who might want kid-specific content only. Some episodes of RadioLab, 99 Percent Invisible, The Kitchen Sisters Present, and This Is Love (episode #2!) are also great for older elementary school kids.
Hi MG! I love your comment and agree – so many adult podcasts can be appropriate and shared with kids. I love RadioLab and 99 Percent Invisible but I’ve never listened to the other ones you had mentioned – I’m eager to look them up. I have a big road trip ahead for spring break and could use some new podcasts. Thanks for your comment!
Thank you for this great list! I love podcasts and recently introduced my 3.5 year old son to Circle Round. I was so happy when he liked it. I am excited to check out some of these others because we’ve listened to most of the shorter Circle Round episodes now.
Hi Jenn – yay! Another fan of the amazing Circle Round. Hope you have some luck with the other podcasts we listed. Thanks for commenting!
I totally need to check some of these out!
Paige
http://thehappyflammily.com
Me too! One of the perks of compiling this list is finding so many new-to-me podcasts. Thanks Paige!
I totally need to check some of these out!
Paige
http://thehappyflammily.com
A lot of these are available on the Kids Listen app. My son and I put it on for our 25 min commute!
I need to check this app out, thanks for the recommendation Kate!
Sounds like a wide variety of really fun podcasts! 🙂
Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog
http://charmainenyw.com
Thanks Charmaine!