In this episode of Ear Snacks we celebrate Juneteenth by sharing songs from "All One Tribe," a compilation celebrating the rich culture and diversity that Black voices bring to family music.

All One Tribe / Juneteenth Mixtape

Learn more about each of these 24 Black family music artists across the country and on social media via #allonetribe #1tribecollective. Support the project by buying the album and sharing the music!

Special thanks to Aaron Nigel Smith and Family Music Forward for facilitating this mixtape. 100% of ad revenue from this episode will go to supporting 1 Tribe Collective.

Thanks to Shopify for supporting Ear Snacks. Go to Shopify.com/earsnacks for a FREE fourteen-day trial and get full access to Shopify’s entire suite of features.

What is a hat!?!? Andrew & Polly are determined to find out.

Thanks for listening! Ear Snacks is centered around children’s voices & ideas. To support the work we’re doing or to be on the show, visit earsnacks.org or become a supporter on Patreon.

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H-E-L-L-O! What's a letter? How old is the invention of type? How does a ballpoint pen work? Andrew & Polly investigate. Ana Gomez-Bernaus explains the art of typography and designing your own letters, and The Pen Addict's Brad Dowdy muses on drawing miniature cities and writing letters to baseball players to get their autographs.

We first published this episode in 2017 with an incorrect mention that Gutenberg's printing press was the first development in moveable type in 1400. The episode you just heard is a revision as of 5/11/2022. We want to thank listener, typographer and mom Steph Rue for alerting us to the many many years of developments in typography in Asia that predate the printing press. Our previous release reinforced a western perspective, which is incorrect and as part of our ongoing work to dismantle racism we have decided to release a new version and our hope is to share that with you as transparently as possible. Thank you to Steph for noticing this, bringing it to us, educating us and allowing us a chance to do this work.

Parts of this episode were recorded live at the Strathmore Performing Arts Center in North Bethesda, MD. For more information, check out: Ana Gomez-Bernaus's lettering art, The Pen Addict and Strathmore Performing Arts Center.

Thanks to Shopify for supporting Ear Snacks. Go to Shopify.com/earsnacks for a FREE fourteen-day trial and get full access to Shopify’s entire suite of features.

We are so excited to be back on stage this weekend at the LA Times Festival of Books *and* the grand opening of CAMP West LA! But first we have to get ready. What do *you* do to get ready before you leave home? Hint hint - this episode, full of fun-facts all about teeth, will give you a clue!

Join us this weekend in LA! We'll be emceeing the kids stage at the LATimes Festival of Books on Saturday and Sunday 4/23 & 4/24, introducing some of your favorite authors, some friends and even some legends - and sharing wiggles and giggles and tunes, too. And Sunday before we head there we'll be singing from 10:30-11:30 at CAMP, a new family experience space in the Century City Mall. Can't wait to see some of you there!

To be on the show or to find out more, visit earsnacks.org.

• Thanks to NOVO for supporting Ear Snacks. Go to Novo.co/EARSNACKS and get your FREE business banking account

What does a seed need to grow? A kid? An idea? Andrew & Polly ask many different people about growing many different things.

How does bird poop bring the world together? With peppers, of course! Uncle Fred tells us about germination, the first World's Hottest Pepper (Bhut Jolokia), and... BIRD POOP. If you aren't a dragon and like spicy stuff, you can check out the Sparkling River Pepper Company's smoke dried peppers, sauces and spice blends at sparking-river.com

Our neighbor Miriam takes us to visit the Peace Garden, an urban garden space at Peace4Kids in South Central Los Angeles for youth in the foster care system. Zaid started the garden, Alex tends it, and a blue-bellied lizard named Tom visits it. Miriam, Alex, and Zaid talk about the garden, their work with youth in foster care through the non-profit Peace4Kids, what nature means to them, and what seeds - and ideas - need to grow. You can learn more and support their work at peace4kids.org and see Miriam's artwork at miriamcortez.com.

Many thanks to Fred Gray, Miriam Cortez, Alex Zalder, Zaid Gayle, and our friends Amelia, Bennett, Charlie, Sam and Kalinga for talking to us about growing all kinds of things. 

To be on the show or to find out more, visit earsnacks.org.

Thanks to Shopify for supporting Ear Snacks. Go to Shopify.com/earsnacks for a FREE fourteen-day trial and get full access to Shopify’s entire suite of features.

What's a prank? What makes a *good* prank? And how do you know when you're over The Line?

Andrew & his kids contemplate the nature of surprises, the intention behind jokes, and scheme up some wholesome pranks on their walk to school.

Thanks to musical guests Story Pirates for their song “Cat Sit on You” & New Zealand’s Captain Fectus McBoyle for his new single “Just Breathe” – and “Mom’s Name” by us and the hilarious and gregarious Mike Phirman (performing a rare live show in Colorado this weekend!) You can find more tomfoolery and improv storytelling opportunities at Story Pirates April Fools Camp! 

To learn more or to be on the show, visit earsnacks.org – and thanks for listening!

When we see someone new in our neighborhood, how can we make them feel safe and loved and important?

We visit again with Miry’s List founder Miry Whitehill and co-author Jennifer Jackson about their new book Our World is a Family. We learn new words of welcome, think about ways to talk to children about migration and refugees, and even inspire Louise Giraffe to undertake a creative welcoming project. With so much in the news about war and migration, this episode and amazing book can be a resource for families and educators who are taking a proactive approach to supporting children’s understanding of complicated events as well as a lifelong process of cultivation of empathy. Plus, easy activities that we can do to support children who have had to leave their homes.

Find Our World is a Family wherever you get your books. Find free resources and activities at miryslist.org/learn – and thank you.

(Also, here’s a WBUR interview about how Miry’s List is preparing to welcome families from Ukraine )

• Thanks to NOVO for supporting Ear Snacks. Go to Novo.co/EARSNACKS and get your FREE business banking account

Do you wish you could wake up on a bed of delicious toast? Do restaurants in your neighborhood sound like song lyrics? Our friend Katara from Brooklyn, NY, shares two ways our episode about Pajamas (with Wow in the World’s Mindy Thomas!) connects with her life. Let’s get cozy!

In Pajamas II, we explore:

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What's your kiddo's favorite episode of Ear Snacks? For a chance to be featured on the show, let us know at earsnacks.org!

Interview: Your Favorite Ear Snacks Moment!

Please record kids’ answers via voice memo, give them time to answer, skip/expand on these questions as needed, and don’t forget -- have fun! E-mail recordings to [email protected]

E-mail your voice memo to [email protected]

Our friend Monk from Oakland, CA loves when Andrew tries to scare Polly in our episode about Bad Guys! So we’re replaying it here – play along with us!

We explore:

So - what's your kiddo's favorite episode of Ear Snacks? We'd love them to introduce it - Here are the details of how to participate:

Interview: Your Favorite Ear Snacks Moment!

Please record kids’ answers via voice memo, give them time to answer, skip/expand on these questions as needed, and don’t forget -- have fun! E-mail recordings to [email protected]

E-mail your voice memo to [email protected]

If you haven’t heard the very first episode of Ear Snacks, our friend Maeve from Madison, WI super-duper loves it. So she's sharing about it here – AND we're talking about one of Polly’s favorite fruit books: Grapefruit by Yoko Ono.

In this episode, you'll hear Polly read:

So - what's your kiddo's favorite episode of Ear Snacks? We'd love them to introduce it - Here are the details of how to participate:

Interview: Your Favorite Ear Snacks Moment!

Please record kids’ answers via voice memo, give them time to answer, skip/expand on these questions as needed, and don’t forget -- have fun! E-mail recordings to [email protected]

E-mail your voice memo to [email protected]