Parents' Guide to

StoryCorps

StoryCorps Poster Image

Common Sense Media Review

Amanda Bindel By Amanda Bindel , based on child development research. How do we rate?

age 13+

Capturing and sharing family stories couldn't be easier.

Parents Need to Know

Why Age 13+?

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Privacy Rating Warning

  • Unclear whether data are sold or rented to third parties.
  • Data are shared for third-party advertising and/or marketing.
  • Data are collected by third-party advertising or tracking services.
  • Data are used to track and target advertisements on other third-party websites or services.

What's It About?

The STORYCORPS project has been around for years, starting in physical recording booths set up for people to interview loved ones and share stories. Stories are archived in the Library of Congress, and some are featured weekly on NPR. The app gives anyone, anywhere the means to plan, prepare, and execute an interview and share it with the world (or keep it to themselves). Questions are organized by theme: warm-up, parents or grandparents, military service, school experiences, and more. Interviewers add questions to their queue and then scroll through them as they record. Then the interview can be saved and shared.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say: Not yet rated
Kids say: Not yet rated

Everything needed for a deep, thoughtful interview -- from themed questions to recording tips to an audience -- is available and easy to use in this impressive tool. The questions are thoughtful and discussion-provoking, and the StoryCorps interface is super-easy to use, allowing for a polished yet casual conversation. The feed displays featured stories, which are impressively inspirational. Users can also follow friends and family and share stories with them more privately. The technology is amazing, and the stories are priceless.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the importance of oral histories and sharing stories. How does an app like StoryCorps make the process easier?

  • Even if you choose not to record or share the interviews publicly or catalog them in the Library of Congress, encourage kids to interview grandparents or friends from other generations. Older family members can also interview younger ones.

App Details

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