Super Smart Farms & Superpowered Feet: Growing Curious Kids

In this fun and wide-ranging episode of Reading With Your Kids, Jed welcomes two sets of guests who are all about helping kids see the world—and themselves—differently.

First, Jed chats with Candice Wierzbowski and Eric Hurlock, two of the creative voices behind The Super Smart Farm Show, a kids' podcast from Lancaster Farming newspaper. They talk about helping children understand where food really comes from and why farming matters to everyone, even city kids. Eric explains how the show answers playful questions like, "Does chocolate milk come from brown cows?" while sneaking in real science, nature, and STEAM learning. Candice shares how they use silly, talking animal characters, quizzes, and kid-submitted questions to keep young listeners actively engaged. Along the way, they explore topics like cow "myths," farm smells, cow farts' reputation in climate conversations, and the real challenges facing family farmers today.

In the second half, Jed welcomes Kiyoko Hairston, author of the self-published picture book Freeda's Fabnificent Feet. Kiyoko introduces Freeda, a girl with very large feet who's teased at her new school—until those same feet help her save an elderly woman in a runaway wheelchair. Freeda then teams up with other kids whose "big" features become their superpowers. Drawing from her own childhood experience of being teased, Kyoko talks about shame, confidence, and her mission to help kids see that what makes them different is exactly what makes them powerful—and that, truly, no one can fill your shoes.