Podcasting+101

=Podcasting - What is it?= toc Podcasting is creating audio or video files that are made available online for download or to listen ( or view ) online. Podcasting enables students and teachers to share information with anyone at anytime. If a student is absent, he or she can download the podcast of the recorded lesson. Teachers may also create podcasts to be used as a preparation tool for students. This would be pedagogically equivalent to having students read a text before a lesson. It can be a tool for teachers or administrators to communicate curriculum, assignments and other information with parents and the community. Teachers can record book talks, vocabulary or foreign language lessons, international pen pal letters (podcast pals!), interviews, debates. Podcasting can be a publishing tool for student oral presentations.

( Adapted from Wikipedia )

In this workshop, we will mainly focus on using an audio format for our podcasts.

__Why use an audio only format?__
 * Easy to record by yourself
 * Gives the listener flexibility ( don't have to watch the screen the whole time )
 * Smaller file size than video makes it easier to distribute.

=Sample Podcasts=

Experts in Education - November Learning

Elementary School - Radio Willow Web

media type="custom" key="6657231"



=Preparation before Recording= Make an outline or list of what you want to cover

Make a script for your introduction and conclusion

Test out the microphone and room setup

Schedule your recording times ( you can always digitally shuffle the order of your recordings within audacity )

=Recording the Audio with Audacity=

Screencast on Audacity



Remember to export the file as an MP3 for distibution.

Adding Music
It is a violation of copyright to add music to a podcast by another artist. If the music is something you bought, downloaded, or copied you can not place into a podcast that you will make available online. So what can you do?

Download music that artists have given permission for you to use in podcasts
 * CC Mixter.org - You will need to give credit to the artist ( " music by ... " )

Create your own music
 * Myna - free program where you can mix tracks to make themes, very fun to do.

Sample creations using Myna:

media type="file" key="King Arthur.mp3" width="240" height="20" media type="file" key="Wagons West.mp3" width="240" height="20" media type="file" key="Podcast Intro.mp3" width="240" height="20"

Inserting the music into an Audacity project:

=Making the Podcast Available Online=

Podbean - online hosting
 * 1) Sign up for a free account ( use your school email address )
 * 2) Fill in the info for the name of your Podcast show
 * 3) Upload your show to the page

My page : []

I can place this link onto an Edline page, wiki page, or Moodle site for students and parents to access.

Wikispaces - Upload the audio file like you would do to upload an image or document. Example