Thing 15- How to Use Podcasts in School

Podcasts in the classroom are useful to supplement the concepts being taught during the lesson. With an iPod and deck, I have played podcasts for my students of musical performances and interviews with professional musicians. Although I have previously found resources on NPR and music-based Web-sites, I look forward to searching for relevant podcasts in Podcast Alley and other sources mentioned.

Fortunately, administrators have been supportive of advancing technology. I enjoy using podcasts and have used them in other ways. For instance, I record and edit our band concerts in order to create a podcast of each song performed at the concert. At the subsequent band classes, we listen to the podcasts and critique our concert performance ending with a discussion about strengths, weaknesses, and future goals. The podcasts are then placed on the band website for future listening.

The video by Katie Grassel had some useful ideas. One of my future goals is to create a podcast for my students on how to practice a new piece of music. It would contain the information needed to be gathered at the first look at the piece, such as tempo, style, time/key signatures, etc. Then I would continue with the form of the piece and the best practice techniques for each phrase and or section of music.