10 Great Podcasts You Can Listen to with Your Teen

Back in 2005, my husband introduced me to podcasts.  He had discovered them during his deployment to Iraq and knew I would love them. He was right. But it’s only been in the past few years that podcasts have become a cultural phenomenon.

The number of podcasts targeted to kids have exploded.  Always looking for new ideas, I often browse blog lists.   And, inevitably, several that are listed as appealing to families are what I’d refer to as non-annoying kids’ shows.

But that’s not the kind of list I’m looking for.  I want shows that my kids will enjoy…and I will, too!  I want to share the podcast and the experience of listening with my kiddos.

(For reference, my kids are currently 9, 12, and 15.)

New to Podcasts?

WILL SOMEONE JUST EXPLAIN PODCASTS TO ME?!!

Think of podcasts like a YouTube video without the visuals.  Or a segment of a talk show or news show.  Or sitting around the table with a group of friends.  There are as many types of podcasts as there are TV shows!

Podcast hosts make their shows available to you (for free!) through services like Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or apps like PocketCasts and Stitcher.  Some will put out episodes once a month…some several times a week.

Love a podcast?  You can subscribe to it through your podcast app.  In the app, each show will be listed separately.  You can then click on it to open it and see all of the available episodes.  (Think of it like opening a book to the table of contents.)

You can listen to podcasts…

• on Alexa (or another smart home device) through skills like the Stitcher app
• via your computer through Apple Podcasts or the desktop app versions of Spotify, Pocket Casts, etc.
• through your phone using Stitcher or other podcast apps
• in your car by using Bluetooth or an auxiliary cord to connect your phone to your car’s speakers

Educational Podcasts

1. “What? I never learned that!” At least once a week, I mutter some variation of that as we learn history.  And I mutter it when we listen to Stuff You Missed in History Class! I have been listening to this podcast for a half-dozen years and learn something new every episode.

Tip:  They have one of the best podcast websites because each episode is organized into categories (time, theme, location), making it easy to find episodes that tie into your studies.

2. Alabama in the 1960s.  What comes to mind?  The podcast White Lies tells a story of a murder days before the famous Selma march.  Three men were tried in the murder of a minister but they were all acquited.  What really happened that fateful night? (This podcast isn’t graphic but it doesn’t spare details either.  If you have sensitive kiddos, I’d preview it.)

3. The next recommendation is probably not going to engage kids younger than high school. Through science & storytelling, Hidden Brain digs into the things that affect our behavior & influence our decisions.  Recent topics include the psychology behind what we eat (and don’t eat), the language of babies & young children, and how laughter affects us.

4. With more than a dozen segments per episode, the quick pace of A Way With Words keeps kids engaged. A podcast about the history of words may not sound interesting but the hosts do a fabulous job of bringing the historical & culture influences into our language.

5. In honor of the 50th anniversary of the moon landing, BBC brings us 13 Minutes to the Moon. From the efforts to get (and keep) it on the schedule to the people who worked on it earthside to the landing itself, you’ll hear the full story of this historical event.

6. A new science podcast from NPR, Short Wave, brings really engaging stories about science each day.  Each short episode covers stories like baking in outer space, does your cat really hate you, and the story of the most recent element to be added to the periodic table.  Both my science-loving younger kids AND my science-resisting teen enjoy this show.

7. 30 Animals That Made Us Smarter, from the BBC, doesn’t just teach about animals.  It does introduce you to each one…but then, it goes one step further.  Then we learn how scientists are using this for real-world applications!  This is the part I love about this podcast.  What can we learn about needles from mosquitos?  How can we engineer better wetsuits based on what we learn from octopi? 

Just for Fun Podcasts

If your family enjoys Disney World, you won’t find a better podcast than the WDW Radio Show. Lou’s passion for all things Disney will leave you dreaming of your last trip…and wishing you had another one in the works!

Get listening…with more than 500 episodes, you’ll have plenty to keep your ears occupied! Some of his shows can get rather long, so we usually listen over a handful of times.

Harry Potter & the Sacred Text is a phenomenal podcast for fans of the Harry Potter series (link to the ebook). Chapter by chapter, book by book, the hosts dissect the storyline, talk characters, dive into the meanings & lessons. The hosts have a real passion for the series and it shows in every episode.

Warning: If you haven’t listened to the entire series, you may encounter spoilers!  My boys have read the entire series, so if they sense a spoiler coming on, they yell up from the back row to warn us! We skip ahead and then continue on.

If you’re a family who loves The Office, the Office Ladies podcast is a MUST.  My teen recently finished the series and it’s been so much fun to share this podcast with her!  The hosts (the lovely Pam & Angela from the show) talk to producers, stage workers, fellow cast members as they take the show episode-by-episode to dig into the storyline, what was happening off-camera, etc.

All of these podcasts are available in iTunes or your favorite podcast app (Stitcher & PocketCasts are my favorites).

Shows that Deserve an Honorable Mention

Stuff You Should Know gets put down here because the episodes can be long and a bit rambly. My kids enjoy the topics…but not always the entire show!  They cover every topic you can imagine!

Stories about the economy? How can that be enticing? Planet Money originated in another podcast (This American Life) as they tried to tell the story of the 2008 financial crisis in a way that everyone could understand. They have spent the last decade telling the stories of the economy in a way that is creative & engaging. We especially enjoyed the make-a-T-shirt series where they followed the process from the field to the factory.

A History of the World in 100 Objects tells the stories of objects found in the British Museum and their place in history.  With a range of items like a Mexican codex map, the first global coin, and a pair of vases from Yuan dynasty in China, each story will add to your greater understanding of history.  Sounds cool…but why the ‘honorable mention’?  It’s an older podcast (2010) and isn’t as engaging as the modern style of podcasting. It’s a good listen…but may not be engaging to your kiddos.

I was tempted to include Betty in the Sky in my top 10 list BUT there is the occasional language or adult-situation mentioned (maybe once every few episodes).  Betty is a flight attendant and, each month brings you stories of her travels and adventures from high in the sky.  It’d be easy to skip past the stories that may not be something you want your kiddos to hear.  I usually listen to an episode on my own and then, if there are no issues, I listen again with the kiddos. (Her episodes are good enough to warrant a second listen!)