"podcasting articles" seems like a wonderful resource for anybody throwing together a podcast. All your questions can be answered, fairly specifically, by one of the articles there.
The article "What Has Podcasting Done for You?: Great Things Often begin in Small Ways," tells how a school got the kids more involved with the school by playing their podcasts to the school over the P.A. system. This idea of having kids present things to their school or their class can be intimidating for some kids. Having them get comfortable playing podcasts that they produce may be a step in getting them more comfortable with presenting to others.