A Short Story Podcast Series
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Episodes run 30 seconds to 8 minutes.
Send us your episode ideas, we’ll work the topics into future recordings, and credit you.
Homeschooling parents, teachers, and lifelong learners get priority.
Many episodes include free curriculum materials aligned to global standards.
Legal Disclaimer
All episodes of Interesting Things with JC are provided free of charge for educational purposes under fair use, with the exception of Episode #509. The series, including its associated curriculum and materials, may not be copied, resold, redistributed, or used for commercial purposes without prior written agreement and consent from JimConnors LLC. Unauthorized commercial use, reproduction, or distribution is strictly prohibited. All rights reserved © JimConnors LLC.
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The podcast is currently in common carriage on the Podcast Radio Network.
In London, you can listen to the Podcast Radio Network over the air on DAB+ and access its variety of podcasts and audio content directly through your DAB+ radio.
In the USA, you can listen to Interesting Things with JC on Podcast Radio US in these cities:
Detroit – WCSX 94.7 HD2
Tampa – 1010 WJBR-AM
Charlotte – 94.7 FM and WSOC-HD3
Fort Myers / Naples – 96.5 FM, 101.5 FM, 105.1 FM, and WXKB-HD2
You can also stream it nationwide at PodcastRadioUS.com
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Kick off class with a quick boost. Play an episode of Interesting Things with JC to get your students interested right off the bat. The short stories are easy to follow, and the free curriculum gives you everything you need to turn that spark into a full lesson with questions, activities, and real learning.
Each episode includes a modular micro-lesson designed to support a 30 to 45 minute class. Curriculum content appears at the bottom of the episode page in easy-to-use expandable sections.
Each lesson includes:
Lesson overview (title, grade level, subject area, learning objectives)
Key vocabulary with phonetic spelling and plain-language definitions
Core story content based on the Precise Storytelling Framework
Full podcast transcript
Student worksheet with comprehension and writing prompts
Teacher guide with pacing, strategies, and discussion tools
Quiz and assessment rubric
Standards alignment across multiple global frameworks
We are currently piloting lesson alignment to:
Approved Standards – High-Level ListNGSS – Next Generation Science Standards
CCSS – Common Core State Standards (ELA and Math)
C3 Framework – College, Career & Civic Life (Social Studies)
ISTE Standards – Technology and Digital Literacy
NCAS – National Core Arts Standards
CTE Career Clusters – U.S. Career & Technical Education
ACRL Framework – Higher Ed Information Literacy
Bloom’s Taxonomy – Cognitive Learning Objectives
UDL – Universal Design for Learning (Accessibility Support)
International Academic Equivalents (Content-Only)
UK National Curriculum – Key Stages 3–5 (England)
AQA / OCR / Edexcel – UK Exam Board Specifications
IB (International Baccalaureate) – PYP, MYP, DP (academic subjects only)
Cambridge International – IGCSE, AS/A-Level (non-political content areas)
All lessons are open educational resources (OER) and designed with homeschool flexibility in mind.
Disclaimer:Interesting Things with JC and its companion curriculum are provided for educational purposes under fair use. They are free to access and share for teaching and learning, but not for resale or commercial distribution.
Examples: Browse any episode from #1235 to the present.
Format Update: Starting with Episode #1307, each MP3 page in the RSS includes open text at the bottom for easier access.
Feedback: Curriculum users, your input helps improve layout and usability. Your feedback is welcomed.
Older Episodes: If you find one without curriculum, drop me a line. I’ll prioritize building it out. The goal is for every episode to have full resources.
1465: "250 Years of the Marine Corps"
Interesting Things with JC #1465: "250 Years of the Marine Corps" – Forged in a tavern, tested in war. From Tripoli to Iwo Jima to Kabul, the U.S. Marines built 250 years of elite grit where precision meets chaos.
1461: "Inside the Black Hole We Call Home"
Interesting Things with JC #1461: "Inside the Black Hole We Call Home" – What if our universe isn’t floating in space… but folded inside it? A radical cosmology flips collapse into creation, and changes where we think we live.
1460: "Katharine Story: The Designer Who Trusted Her Eye Over Tradition"
Interesting Things with JC #1460: "Katharine Story: The Designer Who Trusted Her Eye Over Tradition" – She shaped her world by feel, not formula. From Camden to Laguna, Katharine's instinct carved a career that tradition would never have greenlit.
1454: "The Sordid History of Black Cats"
Interesting Things with JC #1454: "The Sordid History of Black Cats" – A vanished boy. A papal decree. A plague. For centuries, one animal took the blame. But what were people really afraid of?
1445: "Ace Frehley"
Interesting Things with JC #1445: "Ace Frehley" – From a Bronx basement to arenas blazing with smoke and sound, Ace Frehley turned guitar solos into starlight. The Spaceman’s story isn’t just rock history, it’s proof that identity can roar louder than fame.
1440: “Start of the Cuban Missile Crisis”
Interesting Things with JC #1440: “Start of the Cuban Missile Crisis” – A single flight over Cuba revealed the weapons that nearly ended the world. Thirteen days, two superpowers, one narrow escape from nuclear war. How reason and restraint kept humanity alive.
1439: "Shenzhou 5 – China’s First Human Spaceflight"
Interesting Things with JC #1439: "Shenzhou 5 – China’s First Human Spaceflight" – One man. One orbit. A nation’s arrival in space. Discover how a single rocket launched China into the spacefaring elite.
1438: "Diane Keaton"
Interesting Things with JC #1438: "Diane Keaton" – She turned down the spotlight, and still changed what it meant to be a leading lady. A life built on quiet defiance and stunning reinvention.
1436: "Quantum Entanglement – Spooky Action at a Distance"
Interesting Things with JC #1436: "Quantum Entanglement – Spooky Action at a Distance" – Einstein called it “spooky action at a distance.” Two particles, light-years apart, moving in perfect sync. Physics says it’s real. The universe says everything might be connected.
1431: "Viewing 3I/ATLAS from Mars"
Interesting Things with JC #1431: "Viewing 3I/ATLAS from Mars" – When an interstellar comet swept past Mars, our machines looked up. From the red soil to orbit’s edge, they captured a visitor from beyond the Sun, our first interplanetary glimpse of an interstellar traveler.
1429: "Alternate and Special Uniforms in the NFL"
Interesting Things with JC #1429: "Alternate and Special Uniforms in the NFL" – From leather helmets to chrome facemasks, football’s look has mirrored America’s own evolution. This episode traces how nostalgia, marketing, and meaning collide every time a team takes the field in something new, or something old.
1428: "Jane Goodall"
Interesting Things with JC #1428: "Jane Goodall" – She began as a girl with a dog and a dream, and left as the voice of a planet. At 91, Jane Goodall’s story is still unfinished, because it lives in us.
1418: "What is Leucovorin?"
Interesting Things with JC #1418: "What is Leucovorin?" – It’s not a cure. It’s a second chance. A small vial with no fame, leucovorin helps the body recover when medicine goes too far, and may help language return when words are lost.
1417: "Dr. Green’s Light"
Interesting Things with JC #1417: "Dr. Green’s Light" – What if curing cancer didn’t require cutting, poisoning, or burning? One physicist is turning light and gold into a revolution in care.
1416: "Water on Mars"
Interesting Things with JC #1416: "Water on Mars" – In 1999, light from a distant planet revealed something Earth-shaking: Mars once held oceans. The data was dry. The discovery was not.
1412: "Robert Redford"
Interesting Things with JC #1412: "Robert Redford" – He acted. He directed. He built a place where new stories could start. Robert Redford didn’t just leave a mark. He left something people could build on.
1411: "Acoustic Shadows"
Interesting Things with JC #1411: "Acoustic Shadows" – Sound can vanish into silence, bending away like a ghost. From battlefields to oceans to medical scans, what you don’t hear can matter most.
1410: "White Corn vs. Yellow Corn Chips"
Interesting Things with JC #1410: "White Corn vs. Yellow Corn Chips" – They look the same in the bowl. But one was built to blend in, the other to stand tall. Behind every tortilla chip is a story about land, taste, and time.
1407: "What is a Reddit Kid?"
Interesting Things with JC #1407: "What is a Reddit Kid?" – You’ve probably heard the name. Maybe even used it. But where did it come from, and what does it really say about how we talk now?
1406: "The British Lion"
Interesting Things with JC #1406: "The British Lion" – For nine centuries the lion has guarded Britain’s throne, its battlefields, and its imagination. From Richard the Lionheart to Trafalgar Square, this golden beast still roars as the nation’s symbol.