Teaching Elementary Students to Use Audio and Graphic Design Tools

“I love Science class!” exclaims a third-grade student. Why? Because she’s getting to show her learning by creating a podcast. This year, our third-grade students were empowered to take ownership of their learning by developing graphics, writing scripts, and even creating songs to teach their audiences all about energy.

Empowering Students Through Creativity

As a digital learning coach, I’m always eager to help teachers integrate technology in the classroom. This was especially true when the third-grade teachers came to me with the idea of creating a podcast with their students—this project would bring creativity and critical thinking to life while providing students with an authentic experience to showcase their learning.

Creating a podcast has many benefits for students; it allows students to strengthen their writing skills as they craft engaging scripts with strong hooks, vivid details, and a clear voice to capture their listeners’ attention, while also allowing students to tap into their creativity as they design graphics. Additionally, creating a podcast gives students ownership over their learning as they brainstorm, outline content, record, and edit the final product. The skills that students develop throughout the process—planning, critical thinking, creativity—are the kinds of real-world skills students need both in and outside the classroom. That’s why I believe podcasting is an experience every classroom should explore.

Using Canva as a Podcasting Tool

The third-grade teachers and I were sold on podcasting as a worthwhile project, and now we just had to work together to figure out how to do it. We decided to use Canva as the podcasting tool and outlined what students would need to know about Canva in order to create their podcasts. We decided to introduce Canva ahead of the podcast project, allowing students to explore Canva without the pressure of producing a final product. During a group lesson, we walked them through key elements of Canva, how to record themselves, and basic video editing tools.

Additionally, to ensure that students felt prepared to create their own podcasts, I put together an online guide for students that walked them through the entire process. Their classroom teachers and I dedicated a lesson to reviewing the online guide: We began on the homepage, where students explored different types of podcasts, and discussed how episodes captured their attention through engaging hooks, visuals, and audio techniques. Next, we reviewed how to build their podcast: choosing a title, using their graphics effectively, and recording their scripts.

Over the next week, students independently explored Canva during lesson warm-ups. This early practice helped them feel confident and ready when it came time to record their podcasts and design their graphics.

supporting students as they create their podcasts

After spending time reviewing the online guide and the capabilities of Canva, students began writing their scripts. Students worked to align their scripts with the provided rubric, using the podcasting techniques for storytelling we had discussed from the guide. As students created their scripts, their classroom teachers offered guidance and feedback for improvement. Next, students worked on creating their visuals. Because students had already spent a lot of time on Canva, they were comfortable creating graphics on their own.

Once the scripts and visuals were done, it was time to start making their podcasts. During our review of the online guide, students learned how to choose a title, use their graphics, and record their scripts, but allowing students to continually reference the guide allowed them to work through challenges independently, fostering a sense of ownership over their learning.

To provide students with the best environment to record their podcasts, we scheduled times for students to individually use our recording equipment. We were able to get lighting and professional microphones for our recordings, but students can simply use their computer’s microphone and camera to record as well. To keep noise level and distractions to a minimum, we had students record in an empty classroom or office space with the support of myself or one of their teachers. This enabled us to give feedback on the spot as they were recording to make improvements.

After production, students uploaded their podcasts to Seesaw, where they could listen to each other’s work and leave comments. It is important to discuss the kinds of comments that students should leave for one another in this process—students should be kind and offer productive feedback. Beyond their classmates as an audience, Seesaw also allowed families to listen to their student’s work if those families were connected to the platform.

Recognizing Student Excitement and Success

Students were incredibly engaged throughout this process and were excited to not only show what they had learned about energy, but do it in a creative way. Their teachers and I were able to step back and observe as students collaborated, solved problems,and created with minimal support.

This wasn’t a perfect project where every podcast was flawlessly created, but it was meaningful, student-centered, and deeply engaging. We kept things simple by using a clear, student-friendly rubric that focused students’ attention on demonstrating their understanding of forms of energy and creating guiding tools to support students throughout the process. Podcasting with Canva is a powerful way to bring purposeful technology into the classroom so that students can create, express themselves, and proudly share their learning.