Portable Radio

Portable Radio P.O.V. Season 2 #6 CBC version [2:37]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 21:31:54 +0000

CBC Radio’s Ottawa Morning played this point of view at 7:25am, Thursday, June 11.

Good work everyone!

Authored by Nathan Toft. Hosted by Edublogs.

Portable Radio P.O.V. Season 2 #6 [2:15]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 20:46:22 +0000

Lisa Raitt, Minister for Natural Resources, has been in hot water lately. We have read the newspaper article and discussed her mistakes. Listen to our point of view about the issue.

Download

Authored by Jane Smith. Hosted by Edublogs.

Episode 7 Season 3 [6:41]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 01:23:14 +0000

You may have already listened to Adrianna, Chelsea and Sarah when they were interviewed by CBC radio, or when they interviewed Daniel Cook. In this episode, the girls share their thoughts as they prepare for both interviews. There is also an interview with Karla Hilton, the producer of Ottawa Morning.

Listen

Music used in this episode:

WW – Greenroom

Authored by Nathan Toft. Hosted by Edublogs.

Portable Radio Wins Award

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 12:56:46 +0000

Nathan and Jane,

Congratulations! Your podcast was selected for a Kidcast Award in the Editorial POV category! I apologize for how long this contest has drug on, but we’ve finally wrapped it all up. The judges were very impressed and complimentary of you and your students work. I, for one, enjoy holding up your podcast as an example for teachers and students everywhere. Thank you for engaging your students in this medium and helping them develop their sense of inquiry, argument, point of view, and communication. You are giving them gifts that will anchor them solidly in their future.

Your trophy is on its way and should arrive soon!

Thank you again for you participation! I wish you continued success with your show!

Dan Schmit
KidCast: Podcasting in the Classroom
http://www.intelligenic.com/blog

Authored by Nathan Toft. Hosted by Edublogs.

Portable Radio kids interview Daniel Cook [6:01]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 01:28:58 +0000

February 17, 2009

CBC’s Ottawa Morning aired the interview with Daniel Cook today. Congratulations, Sarah, Chelsea and Adrianna, on getting a quality interview on the air!

Listen

Authored by Nathan Toft. Hosted by Edublogs.

Portable Radio kids interviewed on CBC Radio! [5:39]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Sat, 14 Feb 2009 00:42:27 +0000

February 13, 2009

At about 8:20 this morning Portable Radio’s Adrianna, Sarah and Chelsea were interviewed by CBC Radio’s Ottawa Morning host Hallie Cotnam. Ottawa Morning has asked them to interview Daniel Cook tomorrow and Hallie brought them into the studios to find out how the preparations for the interview are going.

Mr. Toft and Mrs. Smith were very proud of how the girls handled their interview and wish them the best of luck for tomorrow!

Ottawa Morning will air the interview with Daniel Cook on Tuesday, February 17. We’ll let you know the exact time as soon as possible.

Listen

Authored by Nathan Toft. Hosted by Edublogs.

Episode 6 Season 3 [13:55]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Sat, 14 Feb 2009 00:24:23 +0000

What you will hear:

Candy and Why We Shouldn’t Have it – Grace, Brittany, Shelby
Why We Do or Don’t Need Libraries – Mark, Spencer, Mitchell K., Andrew F.
Valentine’s Day – Emily, Olivia
How to Speak Korean – Jamie
Do We Need School – Jessica, Mohamud, Eric
Hockey Fights – 19, Sarah, Nolan, Mitchell H.
Bullies – Chelsea, Karine, Olivia, Savannah, Emily
Are Parents Too Strict? – Andrew E., Katie, Elliot, Mitchell

Listen

Music used in this episode:

WW – Greenroom
Music from FTC Publishing’s SoundPak

Authored by Nathan Toft. Hosted by Edublogs.

Episode 5 Season 3 [9:50]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Sun, 28 Dec 2008 20:48:30 +0000

What you will hear….

Joke time with Stefan and Isaiah
Christmas traditions with Taylor and Haley
Sun or Snow with Taylor and Maggie
More Christmas traditions with Madison, Megan, Maggie and Jamie

Download

Music used in this episode:

WW - Greenroom

Authored by Jane Smith. Hosted by Edublogs.

Episode 4 Season 3 [16:33]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 03:43:04 +0000

Here’s what is in our fourth episode this season:

Another song composed by 5NT and 5/6JS
Would You Rather? by Grace and Brittany
Why Nature is Important by Karine and Chelsea
Turtles by Duncan
Teachers’ Favourite Subjects by Katie and Shelby
Sports by Mohamud and Spencer
I Am From Poetry by Nolan, Devyn, Emily, Mitchell K., Mark and Jessica
I Can’t Write a Poem poems by Savannah and Aiden
Sounds from the last few minutes of school before the start Christmas holidays

Download

Music used in this episode:

WW - Greenroom
My New Beatbox by SampleConstruct
Hopscotch (Mix-B) by Orb Gettar
Phat n Sazz by The Dejunair Project

And the following by Kevin MacLeod:

Laconic Granny
Just Nasty
On the Passing of Time
Enter the Party
Flutey Funk

Authored by Nathan Toft. Hosted by Edublogs.

Portable Radio to be aired on CBC January 2, 2009

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 20:26:06 +0000

Nicolle Arams, a producer with CBC Radio, sent me the following message about our Point of View Episode about second chances:

Brilliant!
thank you for doing this so well & so quickly.
It will fit into the show which will air between 6-8:30 on the morning of January 2.
I may break it into segments but am still in the editing process and not sure which way I’ll go with it.
But tell the kids to have a listen if they can on the 2nd of January, while their parents are probably still asleep!

Best to you and everyone at A. Lorne Cassidy Elementary School!!!!

Happy Holidays!

Authored by Nathan Toft. Hosted by Edublogs.

Portable Radio P.O.V. Season 2 #5 [3:24]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 21:44:40 +0000

With the new year almost here, the kids from Portable Radio have been thinking about second chances. Should we get them? Are they important?

Here are our opinions.

Download

Authored by Nathan Toft. Hosted by Edublogs.

Portable Radio P.O.V Season 2 #4: As heard on CBC radio [2:44]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 13:49:00 +0000

Four students in Grade 5NT worked very hard to pull this off. From 12:15 to 1:00 they worked together to write a script, rehearse and record their opinion on the jersey/sweater “debate”. Then, Mr. Toft mixed in the POV theme music and emailed Laurence Wall at CBC radio around 2:00. By 4:35 pm our voices made it on air!

Congratulations and well done everyone!

Thanks to Mr. Wall for sending us an audio file and giving us permission to share how we sounded on All in a Day.

Click to Listen or Download

Authored by Nathan Toft. Hosted by Edublogs.

Portable Radio P.O.V Season 2 #4: Is it hockey “jersey” or “sweater”? [1:20]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 18:55:26 +0000

Yesterday, on CBC’s All in a Day, news producer Laurence Wall commented about seeing a sign that read “New Jersey, Same Passion”. The sign was referring to a new logo from Hockey Canada. He speculated that Canadian kids didn’t refer to this piece of hockey clothing as a “jersey” but as a “sweater”. The students from Portable Radio put together this response.

Download

Authored by Nathan Toft. Hosted by Edublogs.

Episode 3 Season 3 [15:45]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Sat, 06 Dec 2008 17:24:01 +0000

In this episode you will hear:

Josh teach Max and the rest of us how to do some skateboarding tricks.
Taylor and Mackenzie review the books Twilight and the Bee Keeper’s Apprentice.
Haley and Adrianna interview Mrs. MacKay about cross country running.
Kyle interviews Mr. Rick Cathcart, a glazier who works for the Ottawa Carleton District School Board.
Megan and Jamie tell us about our autobiography oral presentations.
Stefan, Jackson and Carter talk about this year in the NHL.
Madison and Caitlin give us some tips on school survival.

Music used in this episode:

WW - Greenroom (Podsafe Music Network)

Listen or Download this episode

Congratulations to the students who did the editing of their podcast segments.

Authored by Jane Smith. Hosted by Edublogs.

Episode 2 Season 3 [10:50]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 01:11:12 +0000

Here’s another jam-packed episode! In this episode you will hear…

students from 5nt teaching you how to:

build a snowman
catch a fish
get grounded
speak Korean
make an all-dressed gourmet pizza

Would You Rather?

Results of the junior boys soccer tournament

Information about the Home Children

Video game tips

Comedy Corner

And the world premiere of the song, “How to Make a Peanut Butter Sandwich”, composed and performed by the students from 5NT and 5/6JS.

Music used in this episode:

WW - Greenroom (Podsafe Music Network)
Metal Futures - Acid XPress

Click to download

Authored by Nathan Toft. Hosted by Edublogs.

Portable Radio P.O.V Season 2 #3 - What Remembrance Day Means to Us[2:27]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 15:36:12 +0000

With November 11th just a few days away, 56js and 5nt began a discussion on their blogs about what Remembrance Day means to us. The students have some very thoughtful answers. This Portable Radio Point of View is just a sampling of their opinions. To read more please visit our class blogs 5/6js.ca and 5nt.ca.

The students who you will hear in this podcast are:

Bradley, Jeffrey, Megan, Gabriel, Sarah, Katie, Adrianna, Maggie and Callum

Download

Authored by Jane Smith. Hosted by Edublogs.

Episode 1 Season 3 [12:39]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 23:12:02 +0000

We are introducing a lot of new talent with this our first full length podcast of the 2008-09 school year.

In this episode you will hear:

Ben, Nick and Eric with the Recess Report
Matthew with a report about the Grade 6 field trip to Turtle Island
Katie with information about the Halifax explosion
Olivia, Shelby and Sarah give advice on what to wear and what not to wear in the Fashion Report
Callum and Remi challenge ALC’s new Vice Principal, Mr. Martin on Riddle Mania
Karine, Chelsea and Grace give us their opinions about zoos.

Listen for introductions by Dylan, station ids by Jackson D and Dean and outros by Jeffrey and Mitchell H

Music used in this episode:

WW - Greenroom (Podsafe Music Network)
Elegy - 192 (Podsafe Music Network)

Click to Download

Authored by Jane Smith. Hosted by Edublogs.

Portable Radio P.O.V Season 2 #2 - What makes a good prime minister? [2:59]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 12:10:11 +0000

Students in Mrs.Smith’s 5/6 give their opinions on what qualities make for a good prime minister.

CBC Radio’s Ottawa Morning aired our P.O.V. on Friday, October 10 just before 7 am. Great job guys!

Download

Authored by Nathan Toft. Hosted by Edublogs.

Portable Radio P.O.V Season 2 #1 - Should kids be allowed to vote? [1:48]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 20:43:19 +0000

Welcome to the 2008/09 season of Portable Radio. This is the first point of view for the year. Students in Mr. Toft’s Grade 5 class express their opinions on whether kids should be allowed to participate in federal elections.

Download

Authored by Nathan Toft. Hosted by Edublogs.

Portable Radio P.O.V #12 - How to spend the last day of school [1:34]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 01:27:23 +0000

The last day of school is very much on our minds right now. What would make the perfect last day of school for you?

The students behind Portable Radio hope you have a great last day of school and an even better summer!

Download

Authored by Nathan Toft. Hosted by Edublogs.

Episode 17 Season 2 [15:40]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 02:04:55 +0000

Portable Radio Live 2008

A concert of drumming, boomwhacker…ing and singing. Recorded Friday, June 13, 2008.

Download

Music used in this episode:

WW - Greenroom (Podsafe Music Network)

…and the following pieces by Kevin MacLeod:
Neolith - Kevin McLeod
Down Home Rockin’
Salsa2Long
discoA
Smash Sketch

Hi Nathan,

Thank you for your inquiry regarding the use of our materials for your Podcast. As always, we very much appreciate that you have made the effort to respect our copyrights and obtain legal permission. We also hope that you will let your students know of your efforts and our response.

Permission is granted to make an audio recording of your students at A. Lorne Cassidy Elementary School performing the Plank Road Publishing songs “Whacky Song,” “Whacky Do Re Mi,” “Whacky Cha Cha,” “Whomp Out Loud,” and “Whacky Sounds.” Permission is also granted to share the audio recording on the Internet via Podcast. The compulsory license fees are waived.

Thank you for using these Plank Road Publishing songs and for sending the link to the Podcast. We look forward to hearing your students’ version of the songs!

Sincerely,

Candy Olson, Communications Editor
Plank Road Publishing, Music K-8 magazine

Authored by Nathan Toft. Hosted by Edublogs.

Portable Radio P.O.V #11 - Should CBC Replace Their Hockey Theme? [1:38]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 22:30:23 +0000

The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) has decided not to renew their contract with composer Dolores Claman to use her song as their Hockey Night in Canada theme. While this music has been used as their theme for almost 40 years, CBC has decided it was too expensive. Instead, they plan to find a new piece of music to introduce their show next season.

Download

Authored by Nathan Toft. Hosted by Edublogs.

Episode 16 Season 2 [14:25]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Thu, 15 May 2008 00:52:26 +0000

Episode 16 is all about our drum project. Amanda, Robyn, Ruben, McKenna, and Charles talk about how the frame and tube drums were made. They also interview drum builder/musician Leo Brooks.

You will also hear Leo teaching everyone how to play their drums.

Download

Music used in this episode:

WW - Greenroom (Podsafe Music Network)

Authored by Mr. Toft and Mrs. Smith. Hosted by Edublogs.

Portable Radio P.O.V #10 - Should Stephen Harper Move So that 24 Sussex Can be Renovated [3:30]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Wed, 07 May 2008 20:21:49 +0000

On the front page of the May 7th Ottawa Citizen, there was a picture and story about 24 Sussex Drive. The NCC wants to do a major renovation of the building. This would take about 15 months and cost about 9.7 million dollars. Should Stephen Harper move out and let the NCC begin the renovations. Listen to our opinions.

Download

Authored by Mr. Toft and Mrs. Smith. Hosted by Edublogs.

Leo Brooks makes tube drums with students [1:13]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Wed, 07 May 2008 15:19:29 +0000

A few weeks ago, drum builder/musician Leo Brooks worked with the students to create tube drums similar to the African djembe. In this video, the students are learning how to attach the goat skin to their tube.

^{(If the video doesn’t play, chances are you need to update Flash Player.)}

Authored by Nathan Toft. Hosted by Edublogs.

Episode 15 Season 2 [12:05]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Tue, 06 May 2008 16:20:56 +0000

- Interview with Mauler from Hot 89.9 who came to judge our public speaking contest
- William and Tahmoor’s “Are You Smarter Than a Canadian Fifth Grader” with special guest contestant Mme Leeder
- Sport Tip: Bradley, Stefan and special guest Ryan share a hockey tip
- How to Play Soccer/Baseball

Download

Music used in this episode:

WW - Greenroom (Podsafe Music Network)
Allright (dub) - Plastique de Reve
Salsa2Long - Kevin McLeod
DiscoA - Kevin McLeod

Authored by Nathan Toft. Hosted by Edublogs.

Leo Brooks makes frame drums with students [2:14]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Mon, 05 May 2008 19:46:29 +0000

A few weeks ago, drum builder/musician Leo Brooks worked with the students to create frame drums similar to those used by the aboriginals. In this video, he demonstrates how to attach the goat skin to the frame.

^{(If the video doesn’t play, chances are you need to update Flash Player.)}

Authored by Nathan Toft. Hosted by Edublogs.

Portable Radio P.O.V. #9 [3:19]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Fri, 02 May 2008 18:27:07 +0000

Yesterday, police near Maniwaki, Quebec, captured a lion cub named Boomer who had escaped from his babysitter. Our classes had a discussion about whether or not people should be keeping lions or other exotic animals as pets. Listen to our opinions.

Download

Authored by Mr. Toft and Mrs. Smith. Hosted by Edublogs.

Episode 14 Season 2 [12:30]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 02:50:42 +0000

In this episode you will here about a real mystery that is happening in the grade 5/6 portable 1 classroom. An unknown, mystery student has been leaving clues to their identity on Mrs. Smith’s desk. Perhaps you can figure out who it is. Blair and Luka interview Dean about his opinions about sports. Fortunately Kayla and Leigh bring us a new show called the Fortune Show. Unfortunately you will be left wanting more after you hear it. Remi brings us a public service announcement about alcohol. Some of our girls, Amanda, Robyn, Allie and Lindsay give us lessons on how to become a Girlie Girl. The episode ends with the final installment of our serial radio play, Time Travelers. You won’t want to miss this one.

Download

Music used in this episode:

WW - Greenroom (Podsafe Music Network)
Bob - Quiet Man in a Loud Shirt (Podsafe Music Network)
if - Mysterious World (Podsafe Music Network)

Want to be on a podcast? Want to hear your message read? Get in touch with us. You can leave a comment here by clicking on the comment button. Or, if you prefer you can send an e mail to either:

jane.smith@ocdsb.ca or nathan.toft@ocdsb.ca

If you phone us and leave a message we might even play your voice on the podcast. Call Mr. Toft’s voice mail at:

613-831-8853 extension 358

We love to hear from our listeners. Don’t forget to tell us your first name and let us know where you are from.

Authored by Mr. Toft and Mrs. Smith. Hosted by Edublogs.

Portable Radio P.O.V. #8 Should Canada abolish the penny? [1:24]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 18:45:55 +0000

Recently, New Democratic Party MP Pat Martin raised the idea of abolishing the penny. Our students shared their opinions on this idea.

Download

Authored by Mr. Toft and Mrs. Smith. Hosted by Edublogs.

Episode 13 Season 2 [14:20]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 15:26:06 +0000

Are you superstitious? Well I am now that I have been working on episode 13. This episode gave me more computer problems than any other episode I have ever worked on! Even when it was finished and ready to post it didn’t want to upload. Despite the problems, it is a great episode.

You will hear an interview with the students from Adrienne Clarkson Elementary School who visited us to learn about podcasts. You will also learn about how to get started writing a speech. Tyrell and Alex debate whether acoustic or electric guitars are better. Adrianna tells us about a social studies assignment while Emma and Madison interview Mrs. Faulkner. You will also hear the Mystery Guys who bring you the first episode of their mystery project. We round the show off with some listener mail.

Enjoy Episode 13 - finally on the air!

Download

Music used in this episode:

WW - Greenroom (Podsafe Music Network)

Want to be on a podcast? Want to hear your message read? Get in touch with us. You can leave a comment here by clicking on the comment button. Or, if you prefer you can send an e mail to either:

jane.smith@ocdsb.ca or nathan.toft@ocdsb.ca

If you phone us and leave a message we might even play your voice on the podcast. Call Mr. Toft’s voice mail at:

613-831-8853 extension 358

We love to hear from our listeners. Don’t forget to tell us your first name and let us know where you are calling from.

Authored by Mr. Toft and Mrs. Smith. Hosted by Edublogs.

Episode 12 - Season 2 [15:10]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 14:46:57 +0000

In this episode you will hear some public service announcements about alcohol. Amanda and Robyn find out if grade 6s can figure out percent and while Remi and James challenge our vice principal Mrs. Johnson to answer some riddles. MacKenzie and Rachel are back with the “Talk Show”. On this episode they feature McKenna and Kayla playing recorder. You will also hear Connor, Jake, Kyle and Donny talk about a hockey brawl at a Bantam hockey tournament and what Ruben and Donny think about school uniforms.

A special treat for us was to hear from Portable Radio listeners, Emma, Martha and Thomas who give us their feedback and some suggestions for future shows. They have even prepared a piece about how to get along with siblings which will be played on a future show.

You can give us feedback too by leaving a comment here, or calling Mr. Toft’s voice mail at:

613-831-8853 extension 358

We love to hear from our listeners. Don’t forget to tell us your first name and let us know where you are calling from. Your message might end up in a future episode.

Download

Music used in this episode:

WW - Greenroom (Podsafe Music Network)
Turnstile - Eric Dietrich (Podsafe Music Network)
A2 - Tea With the Queen (Podsafe Music Network)
Brawler - Matrix II (Podsafe Music Network)
Liftoff - Tantrum (Podsafe Music Network)

Authored by Mr. Toft and Mrs. Smith. Hosted by Edublogs.

Portable Radio P.O.V. #7 - What is a good age for kids to get cell phones? [3:10]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 17:41:47 +0000

CBC’s Ottawa Morning aired this P.O.V. on March 19, 2008.

This week 5/6JS and 5/6NT read an article about a cell phone company in Europe that is marketing its phones to kids 5 years old. We read the article and watched several news stories about the issue of when are kids old enough to have their own cell phones. Listen to hear our opinions on the subject.

Download

Here are our sources:

article about a cell phone for 5 year olds by Susan Merkle, M.D.
CBS (KTVA11) video about cell phones being allowed in middle schools
Kevin Leman’s, PhD, video about what ages is appropriate for children to have cell phone

Authored by Mr. Toft and Mrs. Smith. Hosted by Edublogs.

Episode 11 Season 2 [14:50]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Sun, 16 Mar 2008 15:00:37 +0000

This episode has another Weird Zone by Kayla and Kaitlin, Madison and Adrianna tell us about some letters from Wales, Taylor and Isaiah share their predictions about who will make the playoffs in the National Hockey League and Haley talks our recorder program. Also, Dylan talks about his latest favourite book, “Diary of a Wimpy Kid”, Tristan, Amanda and Robyn discuss their plans for March Break, Isaiah and Stefan bring us a Public Service Announcement about the effects of alcohol, and students conduct an interview over Skype with Mr. Toft’s 5 year old son.

Download

Music used in this episode:

WW - Greenroom (Podsafe Music Network)
Life has Teeth - 169 East 71st Street (Podsafe Music Network)
Floor Dancing - Liquid Cow (Podsafe Music Network)
Chorale - Nathan Toft
Bump and Run - Derek Audette
Creepy Egypt - Derek Audette

Authored by Nathan Toft. Hosted by Edublogs.

Portable Radio P.O.V. #6 - As heard on CBC radio!

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 15:49:14 +0000

Our Point of View was played on CBC’s Ottawa Morning today. Here’s what it sounded like:

Download

Authored by Nathan Toft. Hosted by Edublogs.

Episode 10 Season 2 [14:15]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 19:21:22 +0000

Episode 10 was completed on yet another snow day. Buses were cancelled due to snow and freezing rain - so we only had a handful of students. Even Mr. Toft didn’t make it in this time.

In this episode we have a report from Charles about a volleyball tournament at our school. Lindsay and Allie bring us some sound about navigation from their Grade 6 field trip to the aviation museum We also have a couple of public service announcements about drugs and alcohol. Remi brings his second episode about rocks and minerals. Robin finds out what our classes think about the Ottawa Senators coach being fired. Listen for Tyrell playing Finger Eleven on electric guitar. Ryan and Taylor bring us a report about recess football. Finally, we have voicemail from a Carleton University journalism student who is hoping to film a documentary about how we make podcasts.

Download

All of the following music comes from the Podsafe Music Network:
WW - Greenroom
Spy Beats - Greenroom
Sizzle - Lee Brooks
Blues Garden - F11
Elegy 192
Screaming Chicken - Joboj

Authored by Mr. Toft and Mrs. Smith. Hosted by Edublogs.

Portable Radio Point of View #6 - Is it better to stay in Ottawa or go somewhere else on March break? [3:30]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 19:16:08 +0000

On these days when buses are cancelled, those of us hardy enough to come to school have been asking the question: Is it better to stay in town or go away during March break.

The students behind Portable Radio have some opinions about this question.

Download

Authored by Mr. Toft and Mrs. Smith. Hosted by Edublogs.

University Professors discuss Portable Radio P.O.V.!

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 02:37:06 +0000

One of our Portable Radio Point of View episodes was discussed by two university professors from the University of Nebraska. Talk about “point of view” coming full circle; listen to their point of views on our own point of view!

KidCast is a podcast for teachers about making podcasts. It is created by Dan Scmidt, a professor at the University of Nebraska. In Episode 50 he “features a guest, Dr. Michael Schueth from the University of Nebraska - Lincoln, Department of English. Dr. Shueth and [Dan] discuss the concept of argument and its role in developing more effective writing and podcasting.”

Authored by Mr. Toft. Hosted by Edublogs.

Episode 9 Season 2 [17:15]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 18:04:09 +0000

In this episode you will learn about How to Make a Podcast, the A. Lorne Cassidy Performance Group, and a tragic accident in the maritimes. We have the second installment of the Bit Bit and Burple Detective Radio Drama and an informative play about Durango the Kingsnake. “BAGE Blues” is performed on recorder by students in both 5/6JS and 5/6NT. You will also hear some of the comments and mail that we have received about previous episodes.

In health class we have been working on some Public Service Announcements about drug abuse. Over the next few episodes you will hear examples of this work.

Download

Music used in this episode:

WW - Greenroom (Podsafe Music Network)
Hotcake Syrup - Derek K. Miller
Business Jive - Derek K. Miller
Welcome to the Show - Kevin McLeod

As always we invite you to leave a comment here by clicking on the comment button. E mail addresses are not required.

You can also leave a voice mail. Call 613-831-8853 extension 358 (Mr. Toft’s voicemail)

We love to hear from our listeners. Don’t forget to tell us your first name and let us know where you are calling from. Your message might end up in a future episode.

Authored by Mr. Toft and Mrs. Smith. Hosted by Edublogs.

It’s been snowing lately…

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 02:03:48 +0000

Authored by Mr. Toft and Mrs. Smith. Hosted by Edublogs.

Portable Radio Point of View #5 - As heard on CBC radio! [3:03]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 01:32:08 +0000

We were played on CBC’s Ottawa Morning today. Here’s what it sounded like:

Download

You can hear what more about the Emery story and what other fans had to say at Ottawa Morning’s archive. Scroll down for January 31, 2008 and select “Fans react to Ray Emery’s antics”.

Authored by Mr. Toft and Mrs. Smith. Hosted by Edublogs.

The World is Listening!

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 02:20:03 +0000

Our audience truly is global.

Including last year’s first season, we have had visits from 44 countries around the world! Google Analytics tells me there have been visits from 430 different cities.

Kids definitely have a voice, and their opinions do matter.

Authored by Mr. Toft and Mrs. Smith. Hosted by Edublogs.

Portable Radio Point of View #5 - Should Ray Emery be Traded? [1:50]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 21:00:37 +0000

The story of Ray Emery’s being late for practices and other off-ice behaviour have been making the headlines this week. As a result, there has been talk about trying to trade the Ottawa Senators goalie.

The students behind Portable Radio have some opinions on this issue.

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Authored by Mr. Toft and Mrs. Smith. Hosted by Edublogs.

Portable Radio Point of View #4 - Are Odourless Cigarettes a Good Idea? [2:10]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 19:05:44 +0000

We have been learning about different drugs and their effects on the body. One of the drugs we have been studying is nicotene, the drug that is found in cigarettes.

Last week there was a story on the news about odourless cigarettes. We had a discussion in class about whether or not we thought this was a good idea. Click on download to listen to our opinions.

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Authored by Mr. Toft and Mrs. Smith. Hosted by Edublogs.

Episode 8 Season 2 [14:37]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Sun, 27 Jan 2008 18:45:28 +0000

In this first episode of 2008 we bring you a story about a mooing milk carton, a Rams’ hockey team update, some listener mail, and Ripley’s Amazing Facts. There’s also an interview with Tyrell, the Wacky Weird Zone and Time Travelers Part 2.

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Music used in this episode:

WW - Greenroom (Podsafe Music Network)

Quiet Man in a Loud Shirt - Bob Martin (Podsafe Music Network)
Smash Sketch - Kevin McLeod
Fenster’s Explanation - Kevin McLeod
Neolith - Kevin McLeod
AhDah - Kevin McLeod

As always we invite you to leave a comment here by clicking on the comment button. E mail addresses are not required.

You can also leave a voice mail. Call 613-831-8853 extension 358 (Mr. Toft’s voicemail)

We love to hear from our listeners. Don’t forget to tell us your first name and let us know where you are calling from. Your message might end up in a future episode.

Authored by Mr. Toft and Mrs. Smith. Hosted by Edublogs.

Portable Radio Point of View #3 - Should Winnipeg Get the Title for the World’s Longest Skating Rink? [3:08]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 21:03:43 +0000

We read in the Ottawa Citizen about how Winnipeg is trying to get the title of World’s Longest Skating Rink. Ottawa currently holds this title in the Guiness Book of World Records. In the winter, a portion of the Rideau Canal becomes a 7.5 kilometre skateway in downtown Ottawa. Winnipeg currently has 6 kilometres of skateway. They are hoping to have 8.5 kilometres by the end of January.

Our students have some opinions about this issue.

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Here is a portion of the article that we used:

Winnipeg wants to ice rink record

River trail would be longer than Rideau Canal’sDave Rogers, Canwest News Service

Published: Sunday, January 13, 2008

In a little more than a week, Winnipeg expects to have bragging rights to the world’s longest skating rink, beating Ottawa’s Rideau Canal Skateway by a kilometre.

Paul Jordan, manager of The Forks market in downtown Winnipeg, said eight university students with snow shovels have been working for three weeks, clearing a six-kilometre trail along the Red and Assiniboine rivers through the city core.

By Jan. 25, Winnipeg officials expect to have an 8.5-kilometre ice trail, bettering Ottawa’s 7.8-kilometre skateway.

In 2007, Winnipeg’s River Trail was only four kilometres, but Jordon figured it wouldn’t take much effort to make it longer than the Ottawa skateway. Winnipeg temperatures have been steady around -30 C this winter and there is about 25 centimetres of snow — ideal conditions for making ice. Jordan is so confident of success by Jan. 25 that he has called Guinness World Records to have Winnipeg’s rink registered as the world’s longest.

____________________________________

As always we invite you to leave a comment here by clicking on the comment button. E mail addresses are not required.

You can also leave a voice mail. Call 613-831-8853 extension 358 (Mr. Toft’s voicemail)

We love to hear from our listeners. Don’t forget to tell us your first name and let us know where you are calling from. Your message might end up in a future episode.

Email us!

Portable Radio is produced by:

Nathan Toft (nathan.toft@ocdsb.ca) and…

Jane Smith (jane.smith@ocdsb.ca)

Write to us!

Portable Radio
c/o A. Lorne Cassidy Elementary School
27 Hobin Street
Stittsville, Ontario K2S 1G8
CANADA

Authored by Mr. Toft and Mrs. Smith. Hosted by Edublogs.

Episode 7 Season 2 [16:15]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Sun, 23 Dec 2007 22:36:45 +0000

We would like to wish all our listeners a happy and safe holiday season.

Mr. Toft and Mrs. Smith

In this episode you will hear our first Portable Radio episode of Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader as produced by Tahmoor and William. Listen in and hear how Kyle, Isaiah and Jake celebrate Christmas. Taylor, Luka, and Connor share stories about their most embarrassing moments. You will also hear a Gibberish game that we play in drama.

When Mr. Toft had to stay home to take care of his son we experimented with Skype. As you will hear in this segment, it was almost as if he was in the classroom with us. We hope to use Skype in the future to interview other people around the world.

We received a voice mail from Benjamin which you will hear at the end of the show. As always we invite you to leave a comment here by clicking on the comment button. E mail addresses are not required.

You can also leave a voice mail. Call 613-831-8853 extension 358 (Mr. Toft’s voicemail)

We love to hear from our listeners. Don’t forget to tell us your first name and let us know where you are calling from. Your message might end up in a future episode.

Email us!

Portable Radio is produced by:

Nathan Toft (nathan.toft@ocdsb.ca) and…

Jane Smith (jane.smith@ocdsb.ca)

Write to us!

Portable Radio
c/o A. Lorne Cassidy Elementary School
27 Hobin Street
Stittsville, Ontario K2S 1G8
CANADA

Download

Music used on the show:

WW - by Greenroom (Podsafe Music Network)
Jingle Jangle - by Larry Sayer (Podsafe Music Network)

“The World at Your Call” is a movie clip from the Prelinger Archives

Authored by Mr. Toft and Mrs. Smith. Hosted by Edublogs.

Portable Radio Point of View #2 - Should the city pay for a new swan shelter? [3:28]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 20:31:46 +0000

Today we learned about Ottawa’s royal swans and an issue surrounding them. Queen Elizabeth II gave the swans to Ottawa as a present in 1967. It turns out that the swans’ winter shelter needs to be replaced and it would cost $430 000.

Take a listen to our Portable Radio Point of View. We are divided on this one!

CBC Radio’s Ottawa Morning (91.5FM) aired this segment on Tuesday, December 18, 2007. You hear CBC host Hallie Cotnam introducing us.

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Here are our sources:

Here’s an excerpt from the Ottawa Citizen:

Budget leaves swans out in the cold
Councillors say no to funding construction of new winter home

Patrick Dare, The Ottawa Citizen
Published: Friday, December 14, 2007

Ottawa’s famous Royal Swans could soon find themselves without a winter home because the City of Ottawa doesn’t want to build one.

At a Dec. 12 budget meeting, council decided not to pay for a new swan home, which would cost $430,000. Councillors said the city can’t afford to be building things for swans. Council’s budget for the coming year brought in increases in bus fares, recreation user fees and a 4.9-per-cent increase in taxes.

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As part of our research we watched a video of the swans from spring 2007. This let us see what their shelter looks like and learn a little bit about the royal swans.

http://www.achannel.ca/ottawa/news_44504.aspx

We also visted the Ottawa Humane Society website and found out more information and their opinion on the swan shelter that is being used now.

http://www.ottawahumane.ca/swan.html

Authored by Mr. Toft and Mrs. Smith. Hosted by Edublogs.

Episode 6 Season 2 [12:05]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 03:51:39 +0000

Episode 6 Season 2 includes Kayla and Fiona’s How To Show, Dylan and Luka’s instructions on how to play Fishy Fishy, Megan and Emma’s facts about bullying, Hadi and Robin’s holiday survey, and Amanda shares a poem called “Who Am I?” by Sean Covey.

Also, Amanda and Allie have a shout out to the kids at R. Tait McKenzie Public School, Charlie describes his amazing basketball world and Haley and Kaitlin encourages students to participate in an upcoming ski trip.

Our students are continuing to take over control of the sound editing. The station IDs created by Leigh, Charlie, Kirstin, Jessie, Isaiah and Tahmoor. Robin, Hadi and Amanda edited their own segments (”Holiday Survey” and “Who Am I?”).

Mr. Toft and Mrs. Smith

Music:

WW - Greenroom (Podsafe Network)

Riptide - Kevin MacLeod

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Authored by Mr. Toft and Mrs. Smith. Hosted by Edublogs.

Portable Radio Point of View #1 - 8 year olds in hockey brawl [02:47]

nathantoft@hotmail.com (Portable Radio) — Wed, 28 Nov 2007 15:43:00 +0000

This is our first Portable Radio Point of View. In this episode you will hear our response to a story that came out this week about a brawl involving two hockey teams in Guelph, Ontario. The kids involved were eight years old.Our challenge is to summarize the story and, as a class, record our opinion, all within a day or two of the story.

What do you think of this news story? Leave comments using the comment link below.

We hope to make more Portable Radio Point of View episodes on news stories that matter to us. Our next regular episode of Portable Radio should be ready in a week or two.

Guess What? CBC Radio’s Ottawa Morning (91.5FM) liked this segment so much they played it on their show on November 29. You hear CBC hosts Kathleen Petty and John Hancock comment on our work.

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Authored by Mr. Toft and Mrs. Smith. Hosted by Edublogs.