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Step 1
Use the CD analogy. Say that just like CDs, records played music and spun around, but they were bigger and spun more slowly.
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Step 2
If you must go on, explain that they were made of vinyl and had a hole in the middle. In fact, there were two sizes: the 33 for albums and the 45 for singles. You had to turn them over to hear the other side. This was called "Side B" (as opposed to "Side A").
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Step 3
Detail how the "record player" operated with a needle on a long arm. You had to actually place the needle down on the edge of the record or at the beginning of a track by looking for a line. You couldn't just push a button to skip to the track you wanted. But you could place a stack of records in the record player or stereo, and the machine would play one side of each consecutively. So that was something.
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Step 4
Admit that songs sounded a bit scratchier, and yes, they could permanently scratch or skip or jump. Perhaps the kids have heard this effect on hip-hop records. Yet album covers could also look more artistic and classic with all that space on cardboard to use--plus, no permanent plastic over the picture. Artists could autograph an album cover.
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Step 5
Reveal to younger children that stories were also played on records as you turned the pages.
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Step 6
Lament that they will never understand the magic of records and that your experience is now a part of history. But appreciate those convenient CDs.
