Every year, when NPR opens up our Student Podcast Challenge, thousands of young people send us their stories. We get investigative journalism, heartfelt family interviews, and deeply personal stories.

Our judges hear podcasts about sports, and music, and life at school. And, inevitably, we get some absolute gems. Like this one:

"Monster Madness, it's the podcast that we need," 11-year-old Ryan Betts-Ng sings cheerfully in his entry this year, Monster Madness. "It tells tales of monsters and how they came to be."

Ryan is a sixth grader at Redwood Day School in Oakland, Calif. With the help of his younger brother, Marshall, he devoted his submission to their favorite monster, Bigfoot.

On top of his thorough research and creative writing, Ryan used original sound effects, and he and his brother brought a joyful, sometimes hilarious enthusiasm to their story.

Our judges found it charming.

Take a listen to Monster Madness by Ryan and Marshall Betts-Ng, middle school finalists in the 2025 NPR Student Podcast Challenge.

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