Project Idea: Around the World in 80 Podcasts

I’ve seen a lot of posts recently from teachers who are looking for meaningful assignments for their students post concert. The last few weeks of the school year is often a challenging time for ensemble directors as they try to fill the remaining weeks of the school year with meaningful learning activities for their students. Here’s a project idea from my podcasting curriculum that just might fill that need. This project, which focuses on cultural diversity and awareness, is perfect for a school-wide multicultural festival or celebration, world history unit, foreign language class, music class, or art class. Students will work in small groups to create a podcast about an assigned country that will provide the listener with information about the country, its history, its people, its culture, its language, its food, and any other interesting facts. The focus of the podcast can be adapted to fit the type of class this project is assigned in. Students will research their given country, write a script using the Draft>Edit>Revise process, include representative music (if available), and answer the questions included in the Project Requirements. The students will also find an image of the country’s flag to be used when distributing the podcast. Teachers can create a bulletin board that includes those flags and add a QR code next to each flag so that other members of the school community can easily listen to information about that country. There are many other creative ways to disseminate these podcasts, including adding them to the school or class website.

PROJECT: Around the World in 80 Podcasts

Suggested Grade Levels: Elementary/Middle School/High School

Suggested Length of Time: 3-5 class sessions (if done during class), 5-10 days if done outside of class time.

Materials:

Smithsonian Center for Folklife & Cultural Heritage: https://folklife.si.edu/expand-your-cultural-education/smithsonian

Smithsonian World Music Pedagogy Courses: https://folkways.si.edu/world-music-pedagogy-courses

Bradshaw Foundation: https://www.bradshawfoundation.com/

Field Museum: World Cultures: https://www.fieldmuseum.org/educators/learning-resources/world-cultures

Lonely Planet: https://www.lonelyplanet.com/places

PBS Learning Media – World Cultures Collection: https://thinktv.pbslearningmedia.org/collection/world-cultures-pbskids/

Around the World with Ayla – student-created podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/3lhK8EHdOXm9XjHEcIfPlW

Around the World with Mr. Clark podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/4eKIulCjxyHWRPMcm3h6Ro

Free QR code generator: https://www.qr-code-generator.com/

GENERIC PODCAST GRADING RUBRIC

STUDENT PROJECT GUIDE "Concert Program Notes"

Project Guidelines:

Around the World in 80 Podcasts

The world is an amazing place. With over 7.7 billion people living in 195 different countries, speaking over 7,000 different languages, the world is very diverse, and that diversity makes it a fascinating place to live. Have you ever visited a foreign country? Did anyone in your family immigrate to the United States? Does anyone in your family speak another language? Do you speak another language? What makes each country special? What makes them similar or different than where you live?

In this project you will work in small groups to produce a podcast about an assigned country. You will research that country using the resources provided to you by your teacher. Your podcast should inform the listener about various aspects of the country’s culture, history, and people. You can include traditional music in your podcast, as well as stories, myths, descriptions of the food, famous people, famous sites, and any interesting information that you think your listeners need to know about the country.

Have fun, be creative, and try to fulfill all the requirements listed below.

Project Requirements:

• Your podcast should be 5-10 minutes in length and should include the following information about your assigned country:

  • The name of the country

  • Population of the country

  • Geographic location

  • Language(s) spoken

  • Historical highlights

  • How did the country form?

  • Who is the political leader of the country?

  • What kind of government do they have?

  • What is the country known for?

  • Cultural highlights

  • What kind of foods do they eat there?

  • Traditional stories or myths

  • Interesting facts about the country

• You will write a script using the Draft>Edit>Revise process with your teacher.

• Once your script is approved, you will record your podcast in Soundtrap.

• Your podcast episode should include an image of the flag of the country.

• Your podcast may include audio clips of traditional music (if available).

When you have completed your podcast, submit it to your teacher for assessment and distribution.

If you decide to do this project with your students, send me a link so that I can hear what they come up with. I hope you find this project useful and fun!