Choose the opening Music for Your Podcast

What can we use if we don't have a shaker or can't find a free recording app?

If you don't have a shaker, use a sealed plastic container filled with rice or beans or tap a mug with a spoon for the 'pick one or two sound sources' step, and use your phone's Voice Memos or a laptop's built-in recorder if a free app isn't available for the 'record three short takes' step.

My recording sounds noisy or my rhythm keeps changing—what should we do?

Move to a quieter room or closet and set up the instruments within reach as the instructions say, practice the 3–6 second melody five times to steady your tempo, then record the three short takes and trim the best one in the app to remove noisy or uneven parts.

How can we adapt this activity for different ages?

For younger kids simplify by choosing one mood and tempo, clapping a single short rhythm and recording one take, while older kids can write detailed mood/tempo on paper, craft a slightly longer melody or harmony, practice five times, record three takes, and lightly edit the chosen take.

How can we make the podcast opening more interesting or personal?

Try layering a soft background sound or second instrument from your chosen sound sources, experiment with different volume levels and sung versus spoken taglines over the melody, then trim and save the best edited take with your podcast title before sharing on DIY.org.