WGBH Video Podcast

The WGPH section of iTunes gives many great resources for teachers. The WGPH was referred to as teacher’s domain. The teacher’s domain is a free digital library. On the WGPH section of iTunes it states that “the library, as well as, new professional development courses, help educators to enhance their students learning experiences and advance their own teaching skills”.

I watched three video podcast on the teacher’s domain section of iTunes. I watched Why Doesn’t the Moon Fall Down, A Night in the Coral Reef, and Cloud Observation. The three video podcast were kindergarten through fifth grade. The longest podcast lasted two minutes. The other two lasted one minute. These video podcast were short, but very informative. I thought that the podcast would be a great way to introduce ideas and information to the class.

The video podcast that I thought was most interesting was Why Doesn’t the Moon Fall Down. This podcast was based on a first and second grade level. This podcast used a tennis ball to describe to student’s how the moon stays in the sky. The tennis ball was thrown and fell to the ground. The podcaster said that throwing the tennis ball shows that gravity pulls on everything, even the moon. The podcaster says that the moon is falling, but it is falling around the Earth. Speed and gravity combined, force the moon and the Earth into an orbit. The orbit is what keeps the moon in the sky.

I think that podcasts are great technologies to incorporate into the classroom. I think that the video podcasting is more interesting than regular podcasting. Video podcasting not only gives the students the information on the subject, but also keeps the students attention by demonstration with verbal directions.

I plan to use video podcasting in my classroom. I think that podcasting will teach the students while keeping them interested in the subject. Podcasting is a great technology that can be used to keep the student from becoming bored. Podcasting allows teachers to incorporate learning into the classroom by other teaching methods. Video podcasting meets all students learning styles. Video podcasting is a great way to introduce students to new lessons they will be learning before the teacher begins instruction.