Podcasts
Overview and Featured Projects
Youth interested in creating compelling audio stories wrote and recorded podcasts. For this medium–one that is increasingly popular and known to young audiences through social media–youth listened to example podcasts from a variety of genres, from scientific inquiry and news reports, to fiction stories and narrative personal experiences. Podcasts provide us with the unique opportunity to raise up youths’ literal, recorded voices as they speak about what is meaningful to them. In previous work, podcasting has been shown to be an effective tool for learning and reflection, often in the undergraduate classroom (e.g., Alpay & Gulati, 2010; Kelp et al., 2026). Here, we show its power and promise with younger children.
At T-ReCS, campers met with several professional podcasters and audio engineers. They learned to use tools like portable microphones and GarageBand while writing scripts inspired by their own experiences and learning at camp. In a recording studio on a university campus, youth recorded their audio in groups and then edited it into their final podcasts, including additional sound bites taken in the field. Youth were asked to focus on the overall message structure of their podcast, considering the ways that they might convey their own unique perspective and inspire emotion in their audiences through sound.
Best For:
Expressing voice and emotion
Interviews and dialogue with STEM professionals
Amplifying community voices
Including soundscapes and ambiance of environment
ABScience
This episode of ABScience celebrates Mill Creek's natural beauty and biodiversity while examining the pollution threats it faces—from litter and microplastics to E. coli. Mixing curiosity with education, it offers listeners simple, memorable ways to help protect local waterways, like reducing plastic waste. Created by Amelia and Beatrice during the 2024 pilot of the program.
Creek Investigations
This episode explores grounding—the practice of connecting with the Earth—through insights from nurse practitioner Carol Ziegler. It covers the science behind grounding, its potential to boost immunity and well-being, and why it works best as a complement to (not a replacement for) traditional medical treatment, especially for serious conditions like cancer. Created by Carlos and Michael in the summer of 2025 as part of the T-ReCS Program.
