My Favorite Podcasts for Kids!

Last night at a Parent Ed talk I was giving, a parent asked what I thought of Podcasts and asked if I could recommend some. I get asked this all the time. My answer? I LOVE podcasts! If there is one wonderful thing that our devices have given us it’s access to moving, funny and educational audio stories. Podcasts can inspire us, spark fascinating conversation and offer an entertaining alternative to staring at a screen. And guess what? It’s all FREE!

In my life, since I spend a lot of time in the car, Podcasts are part of my day to day and my kids love listening to them. We’ve listened to tons of podcasts for kids and occasionally, when I think it’s interesting and appropriate, they’ll listen to more adult podcasts along with me. 

If you’re new to Podcasts don’t be intimidated - it couldn’t be easier to get into. You can find podcasts on iTunes or the Apple Podcast app that comes with your phone, Google Play Music App, Spotify or if you want a premium user experience - Overcast.

Here is a list of podcast that I think are great for kids. I’ve divided them by age, but there is definitely crossover depending on what you think your child is ready for. I’ve listened to almost all of these though there are a couple of the fiction ones for tweens that I have yet to listen to. I put them on there because I’ve heard great things from other parents.

Enjoy and let me know if I’ve missed any of your favorites!

Ages 5-9:

Wow in the World

Hosts Mindy Thomas and Guy Raz guide curious kids and their grown-ups on a journey into the wonders of the world around them. We'll go inside our brains, out into space and deep into the coolest new stories in science and technology.

Brains On

an award-winning audio show for kids and families. Each week, a different kid co-host joins Molly Bloom to find answers to fascinating questions about the world.  Our mission is to encourage kids’ natural curiosity and wonder using science and history…

Story Pirates

A group of Comedians improvise hilarious sketches and songs based on stories submitted by kids. Silly and very entertaining.

Highlights Hangouts

Highlights Hangout is a monthly podcast that brings Highlights Magazine, an American icon, to life in a whole new way. This magazine-style show hosted by Tim Kubart and Juanita Andersen offers a unique audio spin on the stories, characters, puzzles, and jokes that millions of kids dive into each month in the pages of Highlights

Smash Boom Best

Smash Boom Best is a debate show for kids and families from the makers of the award-winning podcast, Brains On! Every episode takes two cool things, smashes them together and lets you decide which is best. Cats versus Dogs. Pizza versus Tacos. Super Speed versus Super Strength. Who will be crowned the Smash Boom Best? Our debaters use facts and passion to make their case... teaching listeners how to defend their own opinions along the way.

Tweens: (kids 9-13 will likely enjoy podcasts from younger and older lists as well!)

The Unexplainable Disappearance of Mars Patel

a scripted podcast for middle grade kids, performed by middle grade kids. It is a fun, high-quality, serial mystery that can be described as Goonies meets Spy Kids meets Stranger Things for 8-12 year olds.

Six Minutes

Eleven-year-old Holiday is pulled from the icy waters of Alaska with no memory of who she is or where she came from. Are her mom and dad really who they say they are? And when she begins to develop incredible abilities, she’ll soon discover she’s not alone in the world.

The Alien Adventures of Finn Caspian

He can’t sleep, he can’t shake the feeling that someone is following him, and he can’t stop the monsters who show up to smash his cake. In other words, it’s turning out to be more exciting than he expected. That’s all in the first few episodes of this award-winning, serialized podcast for kids. Finn, his friends and their pet robots aboard the Famous Marlowe 280 Interplanetary Exploratory Space Station discover uncharted planets, help aliens in far-off galaxies, and take tips from listeners back on Earth as they try to solve the universe’s great mysteries.

Eleanor Amplified

a radio adventure series for the whole family. Listen together as world-famous radio reporter Eleanor foils devious plots, outwits crafty villains, and goes after The Big Story. ... Eleanor will spark laughter and conversation the whole family will enjoy

Teens:

Hidden Brain

Shankar Vedantam uses science and storytelling to reveal the unconscious patterns that drive human behavior, shape our choices and direct our relationships.

Fresh Air

Radio talk show hosted by Terry Gross. The show is composed primarily of interviews with prominent figures in various fields, among them entertainment and the arts, culture, journalism, and global current affairs.

Invisibilia

Unseeable forces control human behavior and shape our ideas, beliefs, and assumptions. Invisibilia—Latin for invisible things—fuses narrative storytelling with science that will make you see your own life differently.

This American Life

This American Life is a weekly public radio program and podcast. Each week we choose a theme and put together different kinds of stories on that theme. Mostly we do journalism, but an entertaining kind of journalism that’s built around plot. In other words, stories! Our favorite sorts of stories have compelling people at the center of them, funny moments, big feelings, surprising plot twists, and interesting ideas. Like little movies for radio.

Heavyweight

Heavyweight is a Gimlet Media podcast created and produced by humorist Jonathan Goldstein where he helps people try to resolve a moment from their past that they wish they could change.

The Ted Radio Hour

Guy Raz explores the emotions, insights, and discoveries that make us human. The TED Radio Hour is a narrative journey through fascinating ideas, astonishing inventions, fresh approaches to old problems, and new ways to think and create.

The Moth

The Moth is a non-profit group based in New York City dedicated to the art and craft of storytelling. Founded in 1997, the organization presents a wide range of theme-based storytelling events across the United States and abroad, often featuring prominent literary and cultural personalities. The Moth Podcast features re-airs of all new episodes of The Moth Radio Hour, plus additional stories from our vast archive recorded over the past two decades.