Everyone agrees we're living in the golden age of podcasts, with shows like "S-Town" and "Science Vs." scoring nearly as much water-cooler discussion as your average "Walking Dead" episode.
But where's the content for kids? Are there even age-appropriate podcasts out there? If so, where can parents find them?
Right here: Leela Kids is a free app that curates podcasts for kids. It's currently available for iOS; an Android version is just finishing up beta testing and should be available in a few days. Update: Leela Kids is now available for Android.
Like audiobook-specific Tales2Go before it, Leela Kids serves up podcasts based on age group and area of interest. The content is divided into ages 3-5, 5-8, 8-12 and 12-15; once you tap a group, you can select a subcategory: Stories, Music, Space, Dinosaurs, Curious and so on.
From there you'll get a list of episodes of various related shows, each with a clearly marked date, runtime and, when available, user rating.
Hit up the Space category for 8-12-year-olds, for example, and Leela Kids delivers 184 episodes from 17 different shows, including "The Past & the Curious," "Tumble Science Podcast for Kids" and NPR's "Wow in the World." Tap any episode to start it streaming.
The app has the usual playback controls, including 15-second skip/rewind and speed settings. It also lets you rate and share episodes, and even keeps a list of episodes you've listened so you can more easily avoid accidental reruns.
Alas, there's no download option, so you can't stock up on podcasts for any trips that might be connectivity-challenged. But that feature is coming soon, along with Alexa integration ("Alexa, ask Leela to play a story about dinosaurs") and content related to parenting.
File this under: "Yet Another App I Wish I'd Had When My Kids Were Little."