Website review by Amy Lauren Botula, Common Sense Education | Updated July 2012
Wonderopolis
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Wonderopolis

Daily source of fascinating facts a solid lesson intro or supplement

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Learning rating
Editorial review by Common Sense Education
Community rating
Based on 7 reviews
Privacy rating
Not yet rated Expert evaluation by Common Sense
Grades
2–6 This grade range is based on learning appropriateness and doesn't take into account privacy. It's determined by Common Sense Education, not the product's publisher.
Subjects & Skills
Communication & Collaboration, Character & SEL, Critical Thinking
Great for
PBL, Evaluating Media
Price:  Free
Platforms:  Website
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Take a look inside

4 images
A new Wonder of the Day question (and answer) appears every day.
An extensive archive of questions and answers offers great curricular tie-in.
The Did You Get It? comprehension check consists mostly of literal-level questions.
Find extension activities in the Try It Out section.

Pros: Daily updates to questions and answers make it easy for kids to uncover new and interesting information about their world.

Cons: Better differentiation would help kids at varying ages and ability levels access just-right content.

Bottom Line: A place to find inspiration and quench curiosity, the site may work best for enrichment or as an intro to a curricular unit.

How Can I Teach with This Tool?

Despite some limitations in supporting struggling readers, Wonderopolis offers a solid benefit in its open-endedness. Teachers can make this site into whatever works best for their students. With a new question every day, teachers of early-elementary students could project the question, play the video, and then use the audio recording to go through the (sometimes) lengthy response. Early-elementary teachers may also want to paraphrase the article response, then use one or more of the suggested activities to reinforce the answer and encourage more exploration.

Teachers of more proficient readers -- likely fourth grade and above -- may want to connect the archive of questions to science and social studies units. The activities could lend themselves well to small-group work. However, given the site's inquiry-based focus, it's perfect for enrichment assignments for any student in search of more independent learning.

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Standards:

Wonderopolis is an informational site that helps kids ask and answer interesting questions about the world. Every day, a new "Wonder of the Day" question is posted -- each designed to get kids to think, talk, and find learning moments together in everyday life. Sponsored by the National Center for Family Literacy (NCFL) and supported by a number of philanthropic partners, the site provides hundreds of wonder-filled moments for adults and kids alike. 

The site's questions cover dozens of categories from animals (Why do skunks stink?) to cultures (What is zydeco?) to history (Who is Uncle Sam?) to science (What is space?). Click any Wonder question to find facts, information, suggestions for further exploration, useful links, and teaser videos.

Wonderopolis could be a useful tool for any inquiry-based elementary classroom. With a new question posed and answered every day, you'll have an engaging and relevant resource to spark students' curiosity. Just plan on scaffolding for your not-yet-proficient readers or for your kindergarten and first- and second-grade students, as the content is not differentiated. The Common Core search option mostly helps narrow the search of the 1000+ questions; the site might help teachers better by offering clearer connections to the standards and explanations. 

Each question and its response is accompanied by a variety of resources: video teasers, an audio option, comprehension checks (literal-level), vocabulary terms with linked definitions, and a word-match exercise. Also of note, there are some open-ended extension activities that are more experiential in nature, and bound to engage students.

Overall Rating
Engagement Would it motivate students and hold their interest? Is it visually appealing? Would it inspire teachers to try something new or change their instruction?

The website is smart in its simplicity: Kids click a question to discover all kinds of information. Thought-provoking ideas and activities encourage further contemplation, exploration, and discussion.

Pedagogy Does the tool help teachers promote a more student-centered experience? Will students gain conceptual understanding or think critically? Does it deepen teachers’ pedagogical thinking?

Engaging questions inspire kids to explore topics they may not have wondered about yet. Aside from teaser videos with each question, content is mostly static and requires substantial reading. Assessment questions are limited.

Support Can students and teachers get assistance when they need it? Is it created with people of different abilities and backgrounds in mind? Is learning reinforced and extended beyond the digital experience?

Struggling readers may find some articles to be inaccessible -- highlighted vocabulary words aren't defined in kid-friendly language. Videos serve as previews, but it would be better if they offered support.

Common Sense reviewer
Amy Lauren Botula Other
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Key Standards Supported

Reading Informational Text

  • RI.3.4

    Determine the meaning of general academic and domain-specific words and phrases in a text relevant to a grade 3 topic or subject area.

  • RI.3.5

    Use text features and search tools (e.g., key words, sidebars, hyperlinks) to locate information relevant to a given topic efficiently.

  • RI.3.7

    Use information gained from illustrations (e.g., maps, photographs) and the words in a text to demonstrate understanding of the text (e.g., where, when, why, and how key events occur).

  • RI.3.8

    Describe the logical connection between particular sentences and paragraphs in a text (e.g., comparison, cause/effect, first/second/third in a sequence).

  • RI.3.1

    Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.

  • RI.3.2

    Determine the main idea of a text; recount the key details and explain how they support the main idea.

  • RI.3.10

    By the end of the year, read and comprehend informational texts, including history/social studies, science, and technical texts, at the high end of the grades 2–3 text complexity band independently and proficiently.

  • RI.5.4

    Determine the meaning of general academic and domain-specific words and phrases in a text relevant to a grade 5 topic or subject area.

  • RI.5.5

    Compare and contrast the overall structure (e.g., chronology, comparison, cause/effect, problem/solution) of events, ideas, concepts, or information in two or more texts.

  • RI.5.7

    Draw on information from multiple print or digital sources, demonstrating the ability to locate an answer to a question quickly or to solve a problem efficiently.

  • RI.5.8

    Explain how an author uses reasons and evidence to support particular points in a text, identifying which reasons and evidence support which point(s).

  • RI.5.1

    Quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.

  • RI.5.2

    Determine two or more main ideas of a text and explain how they are supported by key details; summarize the text.

  • RI.5.10

    By the end of the year, read and comprehend informational texts, including history/social studies, science, and technical texts, at the high end of the grades 4–5 text complexity band independently and proficiently.

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Community Rating

(See all 7 reviews) (7 reviews) Write a review
Featured review by
Melissa Z. , Classroom teacher
Classroom teacher
Liberty
Springfield, United States
Wonderlicious articles!
I love using this site because of the accessibility features. It allows all types of learners to understand the text. The images are rich and the content is engaging. Since it identifies the vocabulary it helps the students better understand the content. If you want a great science article this is it. Along with the article there is a section called try it out. This section explains to the students how they could work with family or friends to dive into the topic more.
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