BookTalk Podcasts
Posted on: July 1, 2013
Today my schoolwork has been focused upon the uses of podcasts in schools. We talked briefly about them in one of my other master’s classes, so I already had some ideas of how a podcast could be used to reteach, or even instruct, specific skills. That doesn’t help me that much, however, being a school librarian who does not really do any formal teaching. So I, of course, start thinking about how podcasts can be used in the library.
When it comes to podcasts in the library, one thing comes to my mind immediately, and that is using them for booktalks. For those of you who may not know, booktalks are basically little commercials for books. A librarian, teacher, or student, talks about a book they have read. They may read short passages from the book, talk about the plot line, or what they liked or didn’t like about the story. The purpose of a booktalk is to give others a brief idea of what the book is like, and if the booktalker has liked it, to encourage others to read it as well. I have thought about using podcasts to booktalk a book after I have finished reading it, introducing
books that are new arrivals to our library, or even just talking up quality books that are on our shelves that don’t circulate much. To take that a step further, and make it
more interactive for the students and less of me just talking, I had the idea that I could also have students record their own booktalks. Either they could come to the library before or after school one day to record, or they could record one on their own time and send me me the file to upload to our library website. I got excited about that, because between work and grad school, I have not been reading many middle grade or young adult books lately. The ones I have read, it has taken me forever to get through them, so I would not be recording very much. However, having the students record talks would allow me to post a wider variety of talks in a shorter amount of time. And you know kids will listen to the recommendation of friends more than they will listen to what I have to say anyway! 🙂
Something I read today, let me know I was on the right track. The author of our book, Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms, Will Richardson (2010) suggested we listen to some educational podcasts on iTunes. Educational podcasts are all well and good, and I’m sure there is good information there I could use, but none of them were about school libraries or topics that were immediately beneficial to me. So I decided to do a search on booktalks. I hit the jackpot!
One of the first podcasts I discovered is called Mr. Streit’s Book Talk. The format he used is exactly what I could do in the library. Mr. Streit is a middle school teacher, who, every week or every other week, “interviewed” different students about books they have read. He also gave them the chance to read some short stories they wrote during the course of the school year. What really makes them interesting is how he moderates the discussion with 3 or 4 students rather than just having one student talking about a particular book. Each podcast lasted 2-10 minutes, which is perfect for middle school-aged children. He also included a couple sessions with other teachers booktalking a book they are reading in class with their students. I’ve only listened to a couple of his podcasts, but they were very informative and fun! While there will not be any new pocasts due to summer vacation, Mr. Streit does plan on continuing with them in the fall. I look forward to following his class’s progress next school year!
Another podcast I discovered was Mrs. Abernethy’s Cyber Chickens – Book Talks. Since her students are 5th graders, some of the books they talk about are a little on the young side for my general audience, but it’s a great example of how 1 or 2 students can create their own booktalk podcast without an adult being there is mediate discussion. You can definitely tell they had to write a script before they could record, which is one of the things I think adds to the charm of this series.
So after listening to these examples, doing my readings, and reflecting on what I have learned, I am seriously thinking about incorporating podcast booktalks in my library next school year. It may not be anything regular or consistent, but that’s what makes podcasts so great. It doesn’t have to be!
Richardson, Will. (2012). Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and Other Powerful Web Tooks for Classrooms. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.
Julie's Blog for Instructional Applications of the Internet 
July 1, 2013 at 5:12 pm
Julie, I love your posts. I can’t wait to check out the booktalk podcasts as that is something that I’ve been wanting to do on my library site.
July 1, 2013 at 11:41 pm
Aw, Cammie, you are so sweet. Thank you. I feel like I write WAY too much and ramble a lot. Once I get started, though, I can’t seem to stop!
I tried to set up booktalks with some of my teachers last year, where they would bring their classes to the library once a month or something, and I would share titles with the students, but I had great difficulty getting teachers to commit and follow-through. While not a substitute for that, and I will try to do that again this year, I am hoping maybe this will help fill that gap a little. *shrug* We’ll see!