Sparks Creative Stories Podcast - cool stories for creative kids!

A lively Bilingual story teaching children the names of colors in English and in Spanish, illustrated with photos of beautiful fruits and vegetables growing in an organic garden. A Bilingual early learning story for preschoolers and kindergarten students, with each line spoken in both languages, and the names of basic colors displayed on the screen in English and in Spanish. A story to help kids g...

Surprising facts about how oysters build underwater cities, clean our water and help protect our shoreline! You can find an illustrated version of this story on the Sparks Creative Stories YouTube channel. Inspired by the work of marine scientist Olivia Blondheim of the University of South Florida College of Marine Science and creative summer campers at DeSoto Park Recreation Center in Tampa FL. A...

Astonishing, amazing algae! From microscopic plankton to 200' long seaweed, algae created oxygen on Earth and terraformed our planet by evolving into plants and trees. Everybody eats algae – or eats someone who does. . . A fun story of surprising algae facts and uses, from algae airplane fuel and sneakers to camouflaging tree sloths and keeping baby otters from drifting out to sea. Algae are v...

A girl who's struggling to learn the alphabet visits Paige the Literacy Bus and overcomes her fears as she explores words and letters through play. A celebration of Paige the Literacy Bus, the creative early learning project of Hillsborough County Public Schools in Tampa Bay and the amazing teacher Tara Tallon-Stone. A celebration of reading, the alphabet and public education – with creative i...

Balls bounce, so why not me? A short celebration of resilience, trying again and not giving up – an empowering reminder for kids trying something new, for when things don't go your way, and for all ages and abilities. For everyone struggling with these troubled times, and life's daily ups and downs. An inclusive audio adventure welcoming dyslexic and autistic kids, and everybody who loves...

Are you picturing a chicken in a car? A frog in a firetruck? The vivid voices of film and TV actors Eugenie Bondurant and Mary Rachel Quinn welcome you onto a train with a triceratops, as you wonder if an octopus can use a scooter. Wordplay and a vivid soundscape that invite you to imagine yourself paddling with a kangaroo in a canoe, and floating in a balloon with a baboon. Created by request for...

A naptime story for when you're not tired (yet)! Burn off your energy and use your imagination in an immersive soundscape created by the actors' voices – with whale lasers, dolphin rockets and your own homemade flying machine. Then relax knowing the universe is safe, thanks to you. An audio imagination adventure welcoming dyslexic and autistic kids who love stories! written and produced by...

A girl who's always ready for emergencies that never come faces a hurricane – and winds up helping her little brother feel safe as they evacuate (with his annoying pink bear Useless Joe), and when their home is damaged. You can use this story to talk with your children about their fears of big emergencies. With heart and humor, kids can experience her family's real-life experience of havin...

When you're feeling bad, call Chickens to the Rescue! A fun rhyming story to cheer you up when you're feeling sad, mad, bad or blue :) A cheery gift to everyone who needs a lift – and a showcase of fabulous voice acting! With expressive, emotional, hilarious chickens driving a firetruck and ambulance, and imaginative vocal sound effects created by amazing stage and screen actors. You can f...

A bilingual English + Spanish celebration of reading, imagination and libraries! Imagine reading on a spaceship, with a friendly dinosaur and in your very favorite place – as you listen to each line of this lively story in both languages. A story welcoming bilingual families, English Language Learners and people learning Spanish, dyslexic and autistic kids – and everybody who loves stories, books...

Wanda's huge imagination is driving her big sister crazy – until Wanda and Wombat figure out what Billie really cares about, and use their imagination to make her feel better. A story of empathy, caring and discovering the joy, humor and adventure in your every day. With vivid sound effects – and a plucky Wombat! You can find an illustrated version of this story on the Sparks Creative Stories...

Zo's frustrated that she's too young to go with her big sister to the Oceanography Camp Especially For Girls. So she tries to build her own boat at home – through trial and error and experiments, with her sister's math skills, their recycling bin and family teamwork – and she just keeps trying! Until Zo builds a boat that she and her rescue puppy, Captain Pelican, can float in, and get...

You can imagine anything, even what your socks are getting up to anytime that you can't find one! A lively bilingual English + Spanish adventure with a vivid soundscape that invites you to imagine your socks sailing with whales, flying with birds, throwing a wild sock party and singing silly sock songs. A story welcoming bilingual families, children learning Spanish and English Language Learne...

When things get you down, sometimes it helps to imagine you can just take off and fly. The story of a law-abiding citizen – except when it's the law of gravity! A sensory-friendly story of imagination, friends – and always picking up your dog's poo. You can find an illustrated version of this story on the Sparks Creative Stories YouTube channel, with gorgeous paintings by artists with phys...

Ana hates to admit that she still doesn't know which way is Left and which is Right – but she finds a fun visual way to remember when she takes a boat ride to see dolphins. A story celebrating all kinds of learners, STEAM education and marine science – with dolphins, turtles, libraries, dance lessons, little brothers, a cool young woman who's the real-life Captain of the Eco Tour Boat and...

A bilingual bedtime story of imagining the ocean, with each phrase in English and in Spanish. Feel the water inviting you to swim with whales and dolphins, explore microscopic plankton and learn about marine science. Take a deep, calming breath and discover that every time you take two breaths, one breath comes from the sea – because the ocean creates so much oxygen. Explore an ocean without walls...

Celebrating the beautiful diversity of families in our world, as a young girl tries to tell the story of her family in a class where creativity bursts beyond all Florida-mandated lesson plans. A bilingual story of creativity, imagination, rocket science, dance and resilience – a joyous story welcoming LGBTQIA+ families, blended families, step-families, single parent families, chosen families and f...

Noodle doesn't want to rest like the vet told him to – but his hurt leg won't get better until he discovers that using his imagination can make getting well a little easier. A gentle, funny story of a dog and learning to be patient while you're healing – welcoming children undergoing treatment, kids in hospitals, kids in doctor's offices or home sick, dyslexic and autistic kids, an...

A small dog barks at buses. . . until he gets to ride one! A funny story about being scared of new things until you try them – and finding out they're not so scary after all. An inclusive audio adventure welcoming dyslexic and autistic kids, and everybody who loves stories! Written by Sheila Cowley and performed by David Warner and Kate Young Feature image – Sunrunner Bus Stop public art insta...

When you can't fall sleep, call the Bedtime Bears and a rowdy bunch of bears will invite you to dance, play and imagine – and use up today's energy! – before everybody falls asleep. A funny bedtime story for insomniacs of all ages, to help you settle down when you're not tired (yet!). You can find an illustrated version of this story with beautiful photos of the Moon on the Sparks Crea...

A fun story for kids learning names of fruits and vegetables – and the many parts of you! A lively story for pre-K kids learning parts of the body and healthy eating. You can find an illustrated version of this story with photos of beautiful fruit and vegetables growing, on the Sparks Creative Stories YouTube channel. An inclusive audio adventure welcoming dyslexic and autistic kids, and everybody...

Celebrating what a cool person you are on the other 364 days of the year! A joyous, fun, empowering unbirthday story – because you're worth celebrating every day! You can find this story with Lego artist Jay Hoff's illustrations on the Sparks Creative Stories YouTube channel – and this story in Spanish and in ASL! An inclusive audio adventure welcoming dyslexic and autistic kids, and every...

A gentle story about how your dog will enjoy any book you read to them, because your dog knows that your voice sounds like home. A story for everyone who loves dogs and reading, with special love to rescue dogs who need a loving home. You can find an illustrated version of this story with beautiful photos of dogs reading books on the Sparks Creative Stories YouTube channel – and this story in Span...

A celebration of love and wordplay for all ages – and of how hard it is to hug somebody in a hammock, and to tell them how you really feel. With vocabulary-building wordplay, fun with phonics and flights of imagination – for everyone you want to say I love you to. You can find an illustrated version of this story with gorgeous artworks by Kirk Ke Wang on the Sparks Creative Stories YouTube channel...

When the paperclips show up, it's work. When space aliens show up, it's a riot. And when the Tuba shows up – it's time for a parade! A fun and lively story for moving, dancing and parading – celebrating friendship, family and music. You can find an illustrated version of this story with read-along text on the screen on the Sparks Creative Stories YouTube channel – and this story in Spa...