We are a big fan of podcasts in our family (A podcast is a video or audio show that you can download or listen/watch online).  Since we don’t have cable, we mainly rely on the podcasts to keep us informed about the latest news, tech stuff and more.

There are so many educational podcasts that are available for children of all ages.  My little guy is really into the ABC’s, dancing, and singing right now, so we found some podcasts for him to enjoy.  Podcasts are great because they are not that long at all and it’s just a good break from our normal schedule.

Some of our current favorites:

• Sesame Street – There are 50 episodes included in Sesame Street video podcasts and they keep adding more.  Our favorite are the letter episodes – which only went to “T”, I’m hoping that they add the rest of the alphabet!
• Hooked on Phonics – The Hooked on Phonics podcasts are really short, but they are awesome!  The songs have really helped our little guy learn his alphabet sounds.  There are also episodes that show how to write the letters – 68 episodes all together.  We watch these over and over again.
• Sprout Sharing Show – Sharing Show podcasts are fun because they include clips of preschool children sharing some fun activity.
• Mother Goose Club - The Mother Goose Club podcasts are a series of 1-minute  programs for preschoolers  filled with songs.  My toddler loves to dance along and it’s great because it helps him learn the nursery rhymes.

Not sure of how this whole podcast thing works? Let me walk you through the process:

1. Download iTunes for your computer (works with windows too)
2. Open the program
3. Click on “podcasts” (found on the left hand sidebar)
4. Go to the bottom and find “podcast directory” – click on the arrow
5. Choose a podcast that interest you or you can search for podcasts too
6. Click “Subscribe” – You can either get the recent episode only or you can download all the available episodes
7. Next time you are at your computer, just “refresh” and a new episode (if available) will be downloaded for you

There are hundreds of podcasts on iTunes and new ones get added almost daily.  Hope you find one that you will enjoy!