Every Little Thing: My favorite random topic show
The Premise (from Apple Podcasts):
Who invented pants? How did ‘pink for girls’ and ‘blue for boys’ happen? What do dogs say when they bark? ELT is here to answer your burning questions. If you have a question that needs answering, call the ELT Help Line at 833-RING-ELT or send an audio message to elt@gimletmedia.com. Every Little Thing is produced by Gimlet Media and hosted by Flora Lichtman.
Series or standalone:
Series
Begin listening to:
Any episode
Format:
Call in question/answer
Host(s):
Flora Lichtman
Sound/production quality:
Very good
Rating/age suitability:
Usually suitable for all (but some episodes are labeled explicit for some language). It's not specifically made for kids, but I can think of a lot of kids around age 9-14 who would likely get a kick out of it.
Approximate length of episodes:
25 minutes
Curricular ties:
There are actually many episodes that could work in the classroom--many of the topics have to do with science, like the one about what sand is really made up, how squirrels keep track of their nuts, black holes, and many others. One really fascinating (and dark) episode talks about the history of the limbo stick. Just listen first to be sure there's no iffy language in any of these!
Podcast Librarian's Review:
ELT is the most delightful little podcast, and I recommend it to almost everyone. Each episode, Flora investigates a listener-submitted question about a mundane or silly question they have, such as “Public Toilets: To Sit or To Hover”; “Fruit Flies: Seriously, Where Do They Come From?”; and “Baseball and Organ Music: How’d That Happen?” Flora and the question-asker talk to an actual expert to discover all the secrets behind the questions you never knew you had. I love the tongue-in-cheek, lighthearted, and humorous approach this show takes; yeah, you’ll learn something, but you’ll mostly be entertained. Older episodes had a slightly different format and covered more than one topic—those episodes are good, but I like the more recent single topic-focused episodes better. This pod is generally safe for kids to hear, too, though it’s not quite designed for them. There are LOTS of episodes, but start with some of my faves: ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Don’t Underestimate the Flamingo [This one started a sports team mascot movement!]
...and one that reminds me of a perennial favorite, the #dearlydepodded Mystery Show by Starlee Kine:
Listen, learn, and be utterly delighted!
