The Why Files
What it is: Colorado has had some extreme weather conditions in the past week. With tornadoes, rain, rainbows, and hail, The Why Files seemed like a fitting site to highlight today. The Why Files bring science to life virtually. Students can make rainbows, control a tornado, play with lightning, and build a snowflake. If only the real weather was this easy to control! The Why Files begin each interactive with a brief “why” of how the weather occurrence works, students can read all about the occurrence and even get a link where they can learn more. The fun starts when the students enter the interactive where they can control the weather.
How to integrate The Why Files into the classroom: The Why Files are amazing interactives that will help your students to better understand the science behind weather. This is a great site to use with an interactive whiteboard, invite students to take turns interacting with the weather. Read the paragraph before the interactive as a class. After the students have ‘controlled’ the weather, go back to the information page and follow the link to additional information. Your students will want to know more after playing with the interactive! The Why Files makes a great science center on classroom comupters while students are learning the science behind weather. Students can visit the center in teams and take notes in an observation journal recording their experiences about controlling the weather.
Tips: Check out some of the other goodies on the site: “The Why Files produces a new story each week, alternating longer features with shorter shorties. We also post a series of interactive science animations, the ever-popular “Cool Science Images,” and a series of Teacher Activity Pages linked to the national science teaching standards. Eager to explain the science behind the news, our home page reprises older stories that become relevant to the headlines.”
Leave a comment and tell us how you are using The Why Files in your classroom.
