A student at the Smartboard with the Wonder of the Day.
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Wonderopolis: Nonfiction, Technology, and Web-Based Independent Learning
Andrea Smith
Wonder questions bring life and energy to learning. This school year, I started using a powerful digital website called Wonderopolis. Each day, my students and I visit this site during Morning Meeting and check out the "Wonder of the Day": a focused question, followed by a related video, and a short informational text. We never know what kind of questions, information, and extended learning opportunities will launch our day.
What is Wonderopolis?
Originally designed to be a place where parents and children could experience the power of discovery, Wonderopolis is a powerful resource for classrooms thanks to the clever people at the National Center for Family Literacy (NCFL). The daily question or wonder engages all kinds of learners, helping each visitor bring those "ah-ha" learning moments to everyday life. The daily questions are also archived as "Wonders," allowing readers to explore topics of interest for independent reading and learning. Thanks to the funding and forward thinking at the Verizon Foundation's Thinkfinity, Wonderopolis provides a dynamic, high quality digital resource for teachers, parents, and students to explore without charge.
In The Classroom
My students and I incorporated Wonderopolis into our Morning Meeting routine. We preview the page together, connecting our knowledge and experiences to the daily topic. Sometimes we read the selection together, sometimes we read it in pairs on our laptops, and sometimes we just consider the topic and leave it for independent reading during Reading Workshop.
According to my students' home learning journals, many visit the site as a digital reading resource at home. Creative teachers like Maria Caplin at Teaching In the 21st Century use the well-written and engaging texts for reading instruction. Visit Maria's website and see her recent posts for great instructional ideas.
Wonderopolis and Writing
I have found Wonderopolis to be a vital source of mentor texts for my writing workshop. My students love to pose their own wonder questions, conduct research, and share their research with others. Wonderopolis provides powerful informational texts for developing writers to study. When you examine any of the posted wonders you find so many supporting elements for young writers. You will discover:
Focused Questions and Powerful Images
The opening page of each daily wonder posts a focused, engaging question paired with an inviting photograph, creating interest about the day's topic. Even an entry about oatmeal had a question and photograph that created interest about a topic that could be overlooked by any reader. As writers, children discover the benefit of a focused, purposeful question as opposed to a broad, overwhelming question; we study these questions, learning how to pose our own focused questions during our writing time. Children examine the selected photographs on opening pages, and realize how the question and the photo hooked a reader's interest while building background knowledge.
Video
After agreeing to read more about the wonder question, the reader is linked to the video and text page. The video selections range from amateur home video shots provided by parents to professional footage; no matter the topic, the video selections support and engage our Eye-Generation kids and stimulate their background knowledge and connections to the topic. The children learn to be a critical audience of the website, trying to figure out why the writers decided to include certain videos. As children develop their own research projects or shorter wonder questions and responses, they learn the value of videos for their own audience. When is a video helpful? What kinds of videos would help your reader? Can you add too many videos? How do you select a quality video?
Accessible Text
Having studied the website's format, my students realized that each webpage has a predictable structure. The video is followed by an organized text. The opening paragraph grabs the reader's attention and then reframes the daily wonder with extra supporting questions in the "Have you ever wondered . . ." section. This section ignites great group and partner discussions, preparing learners to actively engage in the reading experience. Here is an example from the Wonder #108: What is a raven?
Have you ever wondered . . .
- What is a raven?
- What do ravens eat?
- How smart are ravens?
Students exploring Wonderopolis during literacy workshops.
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The "Did you know?" section follows the introduction and delivers information in a reader-friendly manner. The paragraph breaks offer wider white spaces, giving younger readers visual reminders to stop, think and wonder about the information presented in each paragraph. Unlike many dense, overwhelming websites, the formatted style of Wonderopolis provides a productive experience for developing readers. Staff writers scaffold the work of students, giving developing readers supportive and engaging reasons for reading informational texts.
Young writers learn to appreciate text introductions as they study these mentor texts, realizing how introductory paragraphs gain a reader's interest and set a purpose for the piece. After studying various posts, students see how important it is for paragraphs to have a focus with accurate and engaging details. The greatest benefit of this site as a source for mentor texts is that children develop a joyful approach to nonfiction. Readers learn best when they are excited about a topic; young writers benefit from this positive attitude, learning how excitement fuels productive writing.
Active Learning
The Try it out! Section encourages readers to be active learners. Hands-on experiences, crafts, and recipes . . . the active learning is as diverse as the topics. The active portions of the posts encourage writers to broaden their views of informational texts, reminding them that active reading and thinking kindle bigger ideas.
Vocabulary
The "Wonder words to know and use" section gives learners a chance to review and discuss interesting vocabulary related to the daily topic. Here is a list of words from the Wonder #108 reading about ravens:
compliment
raven
crow
flock
territory
omnivore
manipulating
carcass
stash
indigenous
The posted word list makes students consider how interesting and accurate vocabulary enhances a piece and brings a level of credibility to the nonfiction writer.
A Closing that Opens Other Possibilities
The final section of a wonder post is called, "Still wondering?" and it encourages readers to extend their learning. The staff writers present diverse opportunities for other reading materials, games, or projects to complete at home or in the classroom. My readers are often motivated to continue learning after they finish an article, and this section encourages independent learning. For developing writers, wrapping up a nonfiction piece can be tricky. Wonderopolis posts show writers how closing statements can celebrate the shared information, while summarizing the big ideas shared in the text.
Children are filled with life and energy. They deserve learning resources that bring joy and wonder to their quest for information. Take some time to explore Wonderopolis and celebrate the many wonders of our amazing world. I am not sure who will be more excited -- you or your students!
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About
Jennifer Allen
