Pop and Play

This April 9, another season of Pop and Play is about to roll into your podcast feeds! This season, Haeny and Nathan are exploring how play allows people to try on roles they might not otherwise experience in their lives. With another set of great guests, they learn about Drag, Cosplay, Young Adult fiction, Immersive Theater Design and more. They even travel to a far away galaxy (...Orlando). And...

Haeny and Nathan are here, technically still in the month of January, to talk about what's in, what's out, hopes for the New Year, and more! And they have what's in and what's out from some former Pop and Play guests to share as well! Pop and Play Season 4 is coming soon! But for all you poppernauts out there who can't wait, here's a special bonus episode! Our music is selections from Leafeaters b...

In the final episode of season 3, Early Childhood Researcher and Professor Tran Templeton and ten-year-old Sahana join Haeny and Nathan and everyone is “going bonkers” about intergenerational research. It’ll make sense when you listen. Sahana lets Professor Templeton know what it was like to be part of her study from the perspective of a young person involved in research. And they reflect on why a...

Oh don’t mind Haeny and Nathan, they just want to hang around in your podcast feed and ask a couple of questions, if it’s no trouble. Just one more thing… did you listen to this week’s episode of Pop and Play yet? Because we’re talking detectives and Columbo! Haeny and Nathan bring on guests Mark and Arlo Maynard who have a parent and child connection through this unassuming TV detective - and the...

Haeny and Nathan love to embrace the chaos of play, but can they also get into putting away their toys neatly? This week on Pop and Play it’s all about finding fun in order and curation: we’re talking about collecting with author, high school English teacher and collector Morgan Boyd. We talk about how Morgan’s daughter got him re-started on collecting, what M.U.S.C.L.E. stands for, what makes som...

Haeny and Nathan may think they know something about Star Wars, but Gabe and siblings Sam and Zia are here to teach these padawans a thing or two about which force powers are best, and themes of family in the Star Wars universe. They also share their stories of connecting across generations and with each other as their fathers tried to indoctrinate them into the ways of the Force.  Visit the episo...

Note: This episode contains some adult language and content. This week Haeny and Nathan visit UPPERWESTSKATES skate shop and talk with owner Chris Vidal about skateboarding! Did you know that Nathan once owned an extremely cool skateboard. And can you guess what sport Haeny is “pretty skilled” at? It turns out, visiting a skate shop is a great way to see how play and place can be at the heart of l...

Haeny and Nathan talk all about the BSC. Oh you didn’t know that stands for Baby-Sitters Club? Well now you do. And guess what? You’re going to hear a lot more about preferring Kristy or Stacey, how the show has translated both through time and across mediums , and why it makes Nathan misty-eyed.  Then Nathan’s partner and his daughter join to tease him, I mean teach him about BSC, and they and Ha...

Got a strong opinion about fashion? Don’t worry, Nathan will carry that for you in his cargo shorts! Haeny and Nathan put on their best outfits and walk onto a new pop cultural catwalk with an episode on fashion! Luckily they’re joined by some experts: mother and daughter fashion trend-setters Professor Yolanda Sealey-Ruiz and Olivia Ruiz.  They debate fashion trends and talk fashion icons, plead...

Our first episode of Pop and Play Season 3 is here! Professor John Jennings joins Haeny and Nathan to talk about comics across generations. A Hugo and Eisner Award winner, Professor Jennings is the writer and co-creator of the new Marvel series Silver Surfer: Ghost Light, which just released this February! (See the episode page to learn more about some of his impressive list of projects in the wid...

Introducing Season 3 of Pop and Play, coming February 28, 2023! Visit tc.edu/popandplay to learn more! Pop and Play is a podcast about play and pop culture with hosts Haeny Yoon and Nathan Holbert. This season explores "intergenerational play" and features a new set of great guests and topics (including kids!). Nathan and Haeny go to a skate shop, watch Babysitters Club, and possibly get Rick-roll...

The truth is, we care about our young people, dare we say, even worry about them. But staying connected to their world and all the complexity they navigate can be a challenge. Pop and Play hosts Haeny Yoon and Nathan Holbert introduce this new podcast created and hosted by Pop and Play Producer Joe Riina-Ferrie, and Media Producer Jen Lee. "How's School?" looks at education, health, and psychology...

Haeny and Nathan are joined by friend of the show and colleague Lalitha Vasudevan, as well as (Re)Search for Solutions host Sonali Rajan for a special crossover episode. This episode covers a more serious topic as it discusses the troubling implications of the "Block 19" - a gun made to be adorned with LEGOs, along with the complex intersection between play and violence.  Visit the episode page fo...

Nathan and Haeny read Choose Your Own Adventure books and discuss them with special guests: kids! (Books: Space and Beyond (Choose Your Own Adventure Series #3 ) and Choose Your Own Adventure Eighth Grade Witch .) They discuss what the kids thought about the CYOA book, the best reading strategies, and what's poppin' for their four guests. Visit the episode page for transcripts and to learn more ab...

Haeny and Nathan discuss Masters of the Universe: Revelation, a recent follow-up to the '80s cartoon He-Man and the Masters of the Universe. They're joined by University of Illinois-Urbana/Champaign Professor Anne Haas Dyson to talk children's play, pop culture and representation! How does Pop culture inform children's play, and what is the importance of representation to children? And why do show...

Haeny and Nathan talk with St. Cloud State University Professor Michael B. Dando about the Marvel series What If...? ! They talk about speculative fiction, what playing with remixing the pop culture we love can offer us as people and educators, comics, and how we can learn from Spiderman without translating it into the vocabulary of schooling. Visit the episode page for transcripts and to learn mo...

Haeny and Nathan talk with fellow Teachers College Professor Ioana Literat about reality TV! Haeny assigns Nathan homework: watching Keeping up with the Kardashians, and Ioana Literat guides us deep into the 90 Day Fiancé subreddit community. They discuss reality TV as a pedagogical resource, a center of community formation, and Haeny makes Nathan play "Kardashian quotes." Visit the episode page f...

Haeny and Nathan are back for another season of Pop and Play! They start it out by playing the role playing game "Lady Blackbird" with Matthew Berland from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Antero Garcia from Stanford University. They discuss how role playing games allow for play with identity, what possibilities different kinds of rules and constraints allow - and more! Visit the episode pa...

This Star Wars themed live episode (May the 4th be with you) was recorded with a LIVE Zoom audience. Haeny, Nathan, and Lalitha talk with Cassie Brownwell and Chris Moffett about the play during the pandemic, patterns in play, play with pop culture, and what this all might have to do with Star Wars.  Plus they play "Would you Bloop or Bleep?," quiz Cassie, and share "what's poppin." Visit the epis...

Haeny and Lalitha talk with Ebony Elizabeth Thomas and Oluwaseun (Olu) Animashaun about speculative fiction, Afrofuturism, African Futurism, and much more. They discuss the political dimensions of play in these and other genres, from children's literature to the big screen, and how these artifacts will stand in the 22nd century.  Plus they play "Would you Rather: Speculative Fiction Edition" and s...

Haeny and Nathan talk with Yasmin Kafai about everything from programming to biomaking. Yasmin Discusses what it means to play virtually in Whyville, program on Scratch, stitch E-textiles, and explore biomaterials.  Plus they play "Is this toy real or fake?" and share "What's Poppin'." Visit the episode page for transcripts and to learn more about what was discussed in this episode - and find out...

Haeny and Nathan talk with John Potter and Kate Cowan about their work in the UK on children's play from historical archives through the present day, how the pandemic has affected children's play, and some of their own memories of childhood play. Plus they play "Colleagues Quiz" and share "What's Poppin'." Visit tc.edu/popandplay to learn more and the episode page for links to Kate and John's rese...

Haeny and Nathan talk with John L. Jackson, Jr., an anthropologist, filmmaker, and the Dean of the Annenberg School of Communication at the University of Pennsylvania. In this episode John talks us through his days as the host of the radio show “Jackson Attraction” and multimodal scholarship. In their conversation, they learn that scholarship is itself an act of play; that at the intersection of p...

Professor Lalitha Vasudevan guest hosts and we learn about Haeny and Nathan’s research on play, why they think considering play is important and what they do to play. Then they all play “20-questions” and share… “vintage” …pop culture recommendations. Our music is selections from “Leafeaters” by Podington Bear, Licensed under CC (BY-NC) 3.0 . Visit tc.edu/popandplay or visit the episode page to le...

Introducing Pop and Play! A new podcast from Teachers College. Professors Haeny Yoon and Nathan Holbert talk to educators, parents and kids about how they play why play matters. Our music is selections from Leafeaters by Podington Bear, Licensed under CC (BY-NC) 3.0 .  The views expressed in this episode are solely those of the speaker to whom they are attributed. They do not necessarily reflect t...