NPR Student Podcast Challenge Returns!

The NPR Student Podcast Challenge is back! The contest is for teachers with students between fifth and twelfth grade. Each podcast should be between three and twelve minutes long. 

We are inviting students around the country to create a podcast, then – with the help of a teacher – compete for a chance to win our grand prize and have your work appear on NPR.

Submissions are open now through March 31, 2019. Teachers and students may want to read the official rules before starting this project. One thing to keep in mind is that submitted podcasts may not include music.

The winners will be publicly announced on or about April 23, 2019. Winning podcast submissions will be featured in segments on Morning Edition or All Things Considered.

NPR has put together a curriculum guide for educators called Teaching Podcasting. The guide can be downloaded. Lessons are broken into stages and each has an estimated amount of time that it takes. 

NPR also has a starting guide for students who are new to podcasting. It includes answers to frequently asked questions about podcasting, information about things that should make up their toolbox, and more.

Judges will follow criteria to narrow down and choose the winners in two age groups – middle (fifth grade through eight grade) and high school (ninth grade through twelfth grade).