The Children's Hour
Parents say
Based on 1 review
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A Lot or a Little?
The parents' guide to what's in this podcast.
What Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that The Children's Hour, from a New Mexico nonprofit that's been on public radio for decades, is a sort of variety show. It covers a wide range of subjects, including STEM, civics, history, art, underrepresented ethnic groups, and a variety of music. The content is aimed at various ages (especially ages 5 to 12), but the content is appropriate for all. Children play a big part in the production of the show, and now that it's recorded over Zoom rather than live, you'll hear many of these kids' voices telling jokes, asking questions, and performing. Music makes up at least half of each episode's runtime and includes Indigenous music and lots of women artists; some hour-long episodes are made up entirely of songs (if you're more interested in talk, this musical production may not be the podcast for you). Several episodes are devoted to racism; others have touched on autism, bullying, the human brain, military kids, and much more.
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What’s It About?
In this weekly, one-hour public radio variety show out of New Mexico, each short segment focusing on topics like civics, STEM, culture, performance, and others, is punctuated by a full-length song. The songs introduce listeners to a wide variety of "kindie" music -- clean, with positive messages, good vibes, all-ages appropriate, and often from young artists. THE CHILDREN'S HOUR is music-heavy, with songs making up at least half of the content. Prior to 2020, the shows were recorded live; since then, the shows have been done over Zoom, so it's easy to hear lots of kid thoughts, questions, and jokes. Veteran host Katie Stone has a welcoming, assured, informed voice and chats easily and confidently with all sorts of people, like Divinity Roxx (who was Beyonce's bass player and now makes funky music for kids), Native American author Sherman Alexie, and New Mexico U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich.
Is It Any Good?
This long-running variety show does a great job exposing kids to many sorts of topics and especially to a diverse array of music. The tone of The Children's Hour is friendly, curious, and educational. Host/creator Stone wants the show to fill educational gaps, and it does that well -- bringing in a lot of the arts through performance, diverse guests and topics, and representation (for local Indigenous people of New Mexico, the nearby Mexican culture, women performers, the neuro-diverse, and more).
The format is relaxed, partly because each episode is an hour long and also because it's a show that began -- and still airs -- on the radio, many years before podcasts gained popularity and became so slick. So it's got a nice old-fashioned radio show feel to it, with high quality sound because it's mostly done in studio and by audio professionals. It's a bit of an odd duck, though, because it's so music heavy (typically more than half of the content of each episode). Many folks choose to listen to either music or words. But for Prairie Home Companion lovers, this might be a perfect family-friendly option.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about how The Children's Hour incorporates music. Does your family listen to music together? If so, what kind of music do you like? Or does everyone like something different? What was your favorite music in the show you listened to, and why?
When you listen to music, do you pay more attention to the words or the music? Or are you able to concentrate on both at the same time?
Kids volunteer to help make this podcast: They write and read the scripts, help choose jokes, show themes, music and guests, and assist in the live broadcast. What part of the production would you like to do on a podcast? Why?
Podcast Details
- Release date: November 6, 2015
- Genre: Kids & Family
- Average Run Time: 60 minutes
- Website: https://www.childrenshour.org/about/
- Host: Katie Stone
- Publisher: KUNM
- Pricing structure: Free
- Topics: STEM, Arts and Dance, History, Music and Sing-Along
- Last updated: May 13, 2022
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For kids who love music and learning
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