Inquiry: Creating A Podcast
For your final project, you will be asked to share what you have learned during this inquiry by creating a podcast. I don't expect you to be an expert. In fact, it is likely that this is the first time you've done this. It will be a fun way to learn some new skills.
What is a podcast?
A podcast is an audio file: something people listen to. Some podcasts are long (over an hour), and others are less than ten minutes. Podcasts can inform, entertain, and educate. They can include interviews, narration, music, recorded sounds....
I have included an example for you that just happens to deal with our essential question: How has technology transformed how we see ourselves and relate to others?
The Early Edition - Matheson: Confiscated (Scroll down to find LISTEN.)
As you listen, think about the way the segment is structured. Is there a host? Is it an interview style — or is a narrator telling a story, with clips of interviews in between? Have sounds been included to make the podcast more interesting?
What is your topic?
As you have researched our essential question, some topics may have stood out for you more than others. Perhaps you are curious about how technology affects our communication skills. Or you may wonder about the connection between technology and mental health.
Once you have settled on an idea, you can start to think about the sounds you'll use. No matter how your project is structured, it helps to include a variety of sounds. Compile a list of relevant sounds.
Now that you know what your podcast is going to be about, and you've got an idea of the sounds you want to use, it's time to think about structure. Start with a question. For example, "How does technology affect our communication skills?" The process of answering that question focuses your reporting and allows your story to become a journey for the listener. Your double sided journal entries will likely contain some of the information needed to answer your question, but be prepared to do more research.
Beware: If you have multiple questions, you probably have multiple stories. Stick to one and answer it well.
What makes a good interview?
There's a good chance that you will be interviewing someone for your podcast. Maybe you will even talk to many people. It's important to make the most out of the time you take to record them.
Before you get there ...
Prepare your questions. Make sure that they are open-ended: requiring more than one word answers. However, just because you have some questions prepared, don't be afraid to go off script if the person says something you are interested in and want to learn more about. Before you start recording, ask the interviewee to introduce himself or herself.
Meet somewhere quiet (unless you want to record the noise). Just be aware that it can be difficult to edit around sound.
Test your equipment. Is your phone charged? Do you have enough storage?
Listen to your audio soon after you record it to make sure that there aren't any problems.
How do you start your story?
You should probably write out at least the beginning of your podcast. Make sure that you
tightly focus your idea.
make that focus clear to your listeners.
tell your audience what to expect. (You'll learn or discover xx.)
You can start with a question or a story.
After that, it's time to record the narration. It is the story that will weave all of the pieces you have collected together.
What tools will you need?
You don't need any fancy equipment. You can make a podcast with two tools: a smartphone and a computer.
Check out the YR media guide How to Record High-Quality Audio With Your Phone.
Once you've recorded your narration, interviews or the sounds you want to use, you'll need to put them all together into your podcast. To do this, you need to use a computer with sound editing software to "mix" the sound files together. Mixing is the process of editing and arranging audio clips in a way that sounds seamless and natural to the listener. There are lots of software options out there. Audacity and GarageBand are free and good for beginners.
Just like writers do before starting an essay, podcast producers typically make an outline or plan before they start recording and editing. They brainstorm how they want to turn their topic into an audio story. What components will they need: spoken stories, interviews, narration?
