Updated: Podcasts To Help Your Homeschooler Learn a Foreign Language (Spanish, French, Latin, and More!)
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This post was originally published in April 2019, and has now been updated with new podcasts in August 2021.
I’m not ashamed to admit it: we’re kind of podcast nerds here in our family. My husband and I first got hooked years ago, listening to Serial and StartUp, and over time we’ve discovered many new favorites (and I’ve even gotten to be a guest on some of my favorites, like the Read-Aloud Revival and Julie Bogart’s Brave Learner podcast!
Given that fact, then, it probably isn’t too surprising to hear that podcasts are also one of the many learning tools that we use in our homeschool. We listen to science podcasts. history podcasts, and literature podcasts with our kids and get to learn right alongside them. And of course, as a bilingual homeschooling family, we also listen to foreign language podcasts.
Podcasts: Do They Work for Foreign Language Learning?
If you’ve been wondering about whether or not podcasts could help your children learn a foreign language—and especially hone their listening skills—I’m here to tell you a resounding, “yes!” Podcasts are an excellent tool for many homeschooling families, offering a whole host of benefits that include (but aren’t limited to):
Foreign language podcasts can help to get your children the regular listening practice they need as language learners, in a way that fits their schedule and interests.
Listening regularly to foreign language podcasts is one way to build towards an immersion environment at home, which supports kids’ second language development on all levels.
It can be one way to outsource some of your foreign language instruction, or at the very least, support what you’re already doing with your homeschool foreign language curriculum.
While it’s easy to enumerate the benefits of podcasts for language learners, it’s not necessarily so easy to find the kind of high-quality podcasts that can actually offer these benefits—but don’t worry, that’s where I come in!
Today, I’m sharing my recommendations of the best podcasts for homeschool foreign language learners, with resources for those studying Spanish, French, Italian, German, Mandarin, and even Latin. I’ve listened extensively to each of these, so you can know that they come with my strong endorsement (and are safe for kids). Happy listening!
For Beginning and Intermediate Language Learners:
The Coffee Break Languages Series
Age: 12+
Level: Beginner
About: Available in French, Italian, Spanish, German, and Mandarin, this language learning podcast is designed to teach basic vocabulary and conversational phrases. Its short episodes (usually between 10-15 minutes) provide helpfully scaffolded listening practice for beginner and intermediate language learners, and since they are organized by theme, you can match the episode that you listen to whatever your children are currently studying in their homeschool language curriculum (i.e. food, greetings, seasons, etc). Due to the format, I’d recommend this podcast primarily for high schoolers; younger students might not find it as engaging.
Duolingo Spanish podcast
Age: 10+ (some episodes 14+)
Level: Intermediate
About: The new podcast helps children develop their listening skills by presenting short stories in Spanish with some English translation alongside. The Spanish narration is extra slow, so children who are at an intermediate level or above will be able to understand it. The content is clean (from the episodes I’ve heard), but some episodes deal with difficult issues, such as political violence and homelessness, so choose what you listen to based on the maturity of your kids. I would recommend this for middle schoolers and up, and urge parental oversight in selecting which episodes to download.
Eat Your Spanish
Age: 4-8
Level: Beginner
About: This is my top choice for young children learning Spanish—even my fully fluent kids love to listen to it! Eat Your Spanish is a relatively new, bilingual podcast that is designed to get kids speaking Spanish by helping them practice new vocabulary and phrases through music—a great idea! The hosts, Evan and Vanessa, are engaging and the content is incredibly family-friendly. I’d recommend this one for preschoolers and elementary school students.
News in Slow… Series
Age: 14+
Level: Intermediate
About: This weekly podcast, available in Spanish, French, German, and Italian, presents a summary of the week’s current events and is available in different formats for intermediate or advanced learners. For a small subscription fee, you also get access to tools to support your language learner’s listening comprehension—transcripts, vocabulary quizzes, and discussion questions (read: no extra planning for mom!). Due to the content, it’s most suitable for middle school-aged students or above, and it was always a hit with my undergraduate students, who raved about how helpful and engaging it was.
For Advanced Language Learners and Native Speakers:
Allegro Mágico
Age: 4-10
Level: Advanced/Native
About: My older boys and I can’t get enough of this Spanish-language podcast about classical music, written especially for young children. We look forward to a new episode every Friday and I’ve used the podcast as my spine for teaching music appreciation this year. This podcast is written for native speakers, so I’d only recommend it to advanced students and above, but as it is so well-produced, I wanted to be sure to include it here. It’s appropriate for all ages, but students in elementary and middle school would probably get the most out of it.
The AP Latin Podcast
Age: 14+
Level: Advanced
About: For the serious Latin student, this podcast offers readings of Virgil and Caesar in the original, along with English-language translations and discussion. If your child is reading either of these authors, he or she can follow along with the host of this podcast—an experienced Latin teacher—as he reads aloud. This can be especially helpful for Latin students wanting to hone their own pronunciation skills!
Aventuras en Odisea
Age: 4-10
Level: Advanced/Native
About: This is the Spanish-language version of Focus on the Family’s wildly popular radio show, Adventures in Odyssey. Though it doesn’t teach language skills per se, the series is educational in that it focuses on important moral and practical life lessons (from a Christian perspective). This is helpful for expanding the vocabulary of advanced Spanish learners and helping them follow the conversations of the characters in the series. The target age here is elementary school students.
Brains On en español
Age: 5-12
Level: Advanced/Native
About: We love listening to this long-form (30+ minutes) science podcast, which covers topics ranging from the science of dreams to insects to poop. I am thrilled that Brains On! is now translating some of its excellent content into Spanish—as of the writing of this post, six episodes are now available in Spanish. These episodes would be most appealing to students in elementary and middle school.
Cuentos encantados
Age: 4-8
Level: Advanced/Native
About: This podcast, hosted by two moms from Spain, presents 15-minute adaptations of classic fairy tales and folktales from the Spanish-speaking world. I think that fairy tales are pretty essential for the preschool and elementary set, and I love that we can listen to these in the car or over a meal as a family.
Cuentos increíbles
Age: 4-10
Level: Advanced/Native
About: My older two boys anxiously await the release of a new episode of Cuentos increíbles every Monday. These 7-10 minute stories are great for advanced Spanish speakers or native-speaking kids, and are very professionally produced, with sound effects and more. These are great for elementary-aged kids.
Radio ambulante for kids
Age: 14+
Level: Advanced/Native
About: Radio ambulante, produced by NPR, is one of my favorite Spanish-language podcasts for adults, and while not every episode is suitable for children, these particular ones are okay for teens. All of these are great discussion fodder, but some are heavy.
Sésamo en las comunidades
Age: 2-7
Level: Advanced/Native
About: This excellent podcast is produced by Sesame Workshop, and it has all of the educational and entertainment value that you would expect from that company! The content is perfect for the preschool-early elementary set, with episodes about personal care, learning new words, weather, and overcoming fears. My kids love hearing Elmo and all of their favorite Sesame Street characters voiced in Spanish, so that’s a big plus for us!
Tumble en español
Age: 5-10
Level: Advanced
About: For more science content in Spanish, Tumble en español is a great resource! This podcast is directed at young Spanish speakers and has episodes on topics such as: cheetahs, plants, and the limits of the solar system. We’ve enjoyed all of their episodes, although there are only a few currently available. Download the Himalaya app on your phone to listen to them for free.
Do you have any other language learning podcasts to recommend? Leave your suggestions in the comments!
