twenty-two podcasts that I still haven't listened to in my itunes subscriptions

Oh beautiful, wonderful podcasts...

Of all the resources- I like podcast alley the best.  I have a really heard time looking at webpages where the text is crammed together (education podcast directory), I don't really know where to focus my eyes and I get overwhelmed at all the text.  I know that sounds really weird- I'm even worse when I click on webpages with tons of amateurish clip art and neon colors.  The other two where just very difficult for me to follow.  I can't explain it other than I have to have something that is aesthetically pleasing to me if I'm going to spend more than a few seconds at the page.  I clicked podcast alley and it worked for me as far as navigation.  But- I didn't look at all 800,000 podcasts they had- they four or five I did see weren't anything I was uber psyched about.

BUT- I lurve, lurve, lurve podcasts.  I subscribe to NPR's Fresh Air and Talk of the Nation podcasts.  Oh how I love them- and I can not tell you how often I am working on an English paper or a lesson plan or a project and 2 days later there is a podcast about my topic.  Oh that always makes me SO SO happy.

Here is one of my favorite podcasts from npr.org: Chicken Butt

no I never wrote a paper or did a presentation about Chicken Butts, this is simply hilarious and I love it.

I am not crazy about the sound of my voice, BUT I do know I will use podcasts for my students and their parents about assignments.  I think this is definitely helpful for disorganized students- they won't have to repeatedly ask me for a new copy of project requirements- the paper will be on the class website AND a detailed description of what I expect in a podcast on the class webpage.

I also am very frustrated about what is and IS NOT available for teaching students about literature and philosophy online.  I think that I'd like to spend my spare time (maybe this summer...?) making podcasts that are resources meant for students. Not lesson plans, or definitions, or an essay written way over their head- just  simple series of podcasts about poetic devices (like litotes, metonymy, synecdoche, etc.) that makes it relatable to students.