The Students' Podcast

Music can be a powerful tool in storytelling. It can set an emotional backdrop or give a sense of rhythm and tone to a story. Music can be that final piece of the puzzle, the piece that ties everything together. But too often, music isn't used at the right time or place in the story – or the music is all wrong for the moment. Composer and podcast host Ramtin Arablouei shows us when to use music in your podcast.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Banjo or drum? Keyboard or cowbell? Once you've figured out where you want to add music to your podcast, you've got to decide WHAT kind of music fits with your story. Since the Student Podcast Challenge only allows music that is written and performed by students, we invited composer Ramtin Arablouei back to show us how to make music without any fancy equipment.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Teachers across the country are ditching the traditional idea of assigning research papers or book reports, and asking their students to make podcasts instead. It turns out, students are having fun and learning new skills at the same time.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

What makes a good interview? For starters, asking good questions! But there's so much more to it than asking who, what, where, when and why. On this episode, the art of the interview. We'll cover how to prepare for an interview and give tips for asking good questions and telling good stories.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

If you've spent hours recording interviews your podcast but now you feel like you're drowning in sound, don't worry — you are not alone! We've got some science-based techniques for picking the very best bits of audio for your podcast. **Deadline Alert** The deadline for NPR's Student Podcast Challenge has been extended. Check our website, npr.org/studentpodcastchallenge for more information.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We know, the world feels pretty crazy right now. Think of this podcast as a little break from all of that. This week, we're featuring a bunch of student podcasts that delighted us, made us laugh, inspired us and made us all feel more connected as humans.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Despite a global pandemic and nation-wide school closures, we received more than 2,300 podcast submissions for the 2020 NPR Student Podcast Challenge. This episode, meet the students behind the winning podcasts. Plus, what to look forward to next year.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

What makes you want to keep listening to a podcast? Most often, a really good story. But even once you have a good story you have to make sure you tell it well. In podcasting, we're lucky enough to have a script to guide us. Last year's finalists from St. Helena, Calif. told us a really good story in their podcast "Popo the Clown," so we wanted to hear how they did it.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

If you want your podcast to be filled with amazing voices and emotional stories, you've got to nail your interviews! In this episode, the students of the CV19 Podcast explain how they leveled up to become expert interviewers.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

What makes a good interview? For starters, asking good questions! But there's so much more to it than asking who, what, where, when and why. On this episode, the art of the interview. We'll cover how to prepare for an interview and give tips for asking good questions and telling good stories.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Some people love emotional conversations, some people avoid them. But for journalists and podcasters, they're part of the job. Sometimes you have to interview people about their saddest moments. It's hard, but if you can tell the story well, it means a lot: to them, and to your audience.Every year some of our best entries in the Student Podcast Challenge are moving, emotional narratives. For this week's episode of The Students' Podcast, Elissa Nadworny talked with Samuel Meneses—one of last year's finalists— who told the story of a tragic kayaking accident in his podcast Life and Death in the Amazon. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Once you've finished the interview — there's still a lot of hard work ahead. Some questions work, some don't. Did the interview run too long? You'll have to cut it down. Remember, entries for the student podcast challenge must be eight minutes or less. So here are some great ideas for how to wade through ALL that audio. Today you'll learn how from Planet Money's Sarah Gonzalez how trim away all the extra stuff, and just leave the good parts in an episode from earlier this year.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Ever wonder if that local legend has some truth to it? At the Student Podcast Challenge we love to hear a good mystery, so pull out your magnifying glasses and start investigating! We talk with last year's finalist Daniel Wang about his 4 month investigation into a hometown history. He gives advice all about how he made his entry "How A Small Town Discovered The Universe."Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

You don't need a fancy studio to make a podcast. All you need are a few tricks — and a LOT of pillows — and no one will ever guess that you recorded in your bedroom.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Soundproofing and studios and microphones, oh my! When you listen to a professional podcast you can hear the difference. Unfortunately, not everyone has access to that kind of recording set up, but the thing is ... you don't need it. This week on The Students' Podcast we talked to Aaron and Alex Morgan about how they made their podcast sound so good. Their entry "Why Instagram Is Like A Cocaine-Laced Brownie" was one of our finalists last year and had some of the best production in the competition!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy