Listen Your Way Through History: The Best Podcasts for Teens

Looking for history podcasts for teens? Look no further than this list of 10+ podcasts that are perfect for teens (& their parents!).

Podcasts have been in my ears for more than 15 years. But it’s only been in the last five years that they’ve become a regular part of our time in the car & our homeschool. (They’ve quickly overtaken audiobooks as the #1 thing we listen to on our way to appointments, sports & other kid activities!)

Why did I wait so long??

The short length makes podcasts ideal for the time between activities. The passion for a topic you hear in the pocaster leaves me more engaged. And the shear variety of topics — from those that line right up to your studies to topics that are a definite rabbit trail — means there are always more to choose from.

There are certainly more history podcasts out there than this list. But these are all chosen with teens & tweens in mind — engaging presentations, rabbit trails, oddities, etc.

How do you use podcasts?

If only I had a single answer to this question!

For astronomy this year, I created a playlist on Spotify with assorted episodes. I used Spotify’s share playlist link to send it to my son (via email) & he saved it to his own Spotify account. Once or twice weekly, he chose an episode. Sometimes he’d share something with me from it; other times, he didn’t. And that’s it. No written summary, no quiz, no project. It was as simple as that.

It’s a similar setup in the car. We don’t listen every time we’re in the car & we skip around between podcasts. It’s rare that we don’t end up in a discussion about some aspect…or a long rabbit trail!

Assessment isn’t my goal. When I focus on “testing” what they learned, I suck the joy right out of learning. For them & for me.

But the knowledge comes. It comes from exposure & discussion. It comes from building upon ideas & examination. Trust the process.

• The Bomb by BBC (stories related to the atomic bomb & WW2)
• 13 Minutes to the Moon by BBC (the story behind Apollo 11)
• White Lies (the story of a murder days before the famous Selma march)
• Blindspot: The Road to 9-11
• One Year (a look into major & minor stories from1942, 1977, 1986, 1995)
• Nazis: The Road to Power (a dramatic podcast)

Podcasts that are Distinctly American

From Food to Hope

The podcasts below are some of the best American history podcasts. From the unique (food!) to the unique (a guy who pretends to be Thomas Jefferson) to the lesser-known events, each of these will give you a new & better understanding of the United States.

• American Storytellers (deep-dives into various events)
• BackStory (no longer in production; the story behind the stories of America, some lesson plans available)
• The Food That Built America (builds on the TV series)
• The History of Americans
• Hope Through History (the stories of coming through major events)
• Ben Franklin’s World

• Infamous Americans
• Legends of the Old West
• The History of American Food
• Thomas Jefferson Hour
• This American President
• The People vs. J. Edgar Hoover

Pre-1900’s

• History of Persia (scripted podcast diving into the Persian empire)
• Gone Medieval
• Ancient History Fangirl (“it’s like if Hardcore History met up with My Favorite Murder in the ancient world”)
• The Ancients (interview/discussion-based podcast from the History Hit team)
• History of Persia (scripted podcast diving into the Persian empire)
• Killing Victoria (the attempted killings of Queen Victoria)

1900’s-today

• Evil Genius (examining historical & pop-culture heroes & villains)
• History of the World Wars
• The History of the 20th Century (a scripted deep-dive into the 20th century world)
• BBC’s The Bomb
• One Year (each season dives into the big & little stories of a particular year)
• BBC’s Witness History (“history as told by the people who were there”, episodes are just 10 minutes)

spans history

• History’s Greatest Cities
• It Was Said (examining history’s famous speeches)
• Real Dictators
• Revolutions (deep dives into political revolutions)
• The Rest is History

A Mish-Mash of History

A Little bit of everything

These history podcasts don’t have a particular focus. Rather, these podcasts tell the stories throughout time.

General history

• Stuff You Missed in History Class (easy-to-search website)
• Throughline (how we got to now, the history behind the headlines)
• Footnoting History (“because the best stories are in the footnotes”)
• The History Chicks

• Revisionist History
• Dan Snow’s History Hit
• Today in History (a story from history in just 10 minutes a day)
• Everything Everywhere Daily (another short, daily podcast on all sorts of historical & geographical topics)

specific topics

• Our Fake History (“Historical Myths Relished and Ruined!”)
• The Explorers Podcast (for those who love explorers & in-depth biographies)
• My History Can Beat Up Your Politics (scripted podcast of political figures & events)

• The Fantastic History of Food
• Gastropod (discussion-based podcast on the history & science of food & farm-related topics)
• The Curious History of Your Home (the history behind everyday objects in your home)
• Patented (history of inventions)

And a few bonus ideas

For littles, Families, & adults

• Forever Ago, by the creators of Brains On, is designed for the entire family.
• Homeschool History by the BBC (not in production anymore)
• You’re Dead to Me (from the team behind Horrible Histories)
• The Past & The Curious
• Bedtime History
• The Way the World Works

Is there a history podcast I missed? Leave it in the comments!

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