http://www.weatherwizkids.com/
I have actually used this website to teach my 4th grade ELL students a unit on Forces of Nature: Hurricanes, Earthquakes, Tornadoes. I used a variety of text forms for this unit. A part of the plan was to expose the students to electronic text. I would need to arrange some time in the computer lab, so my students can have 30 minutes or so to read the identified selection and familiarize themselves with illustrations and animations.
This website contains texts that provide the main points that my students need to know about a weather phenomenon. The reading selections are succinct and straight to the point. The text is easy to navigate as it is broken down into sections, that pose a question. E.g. What is lightning? What causes lightning? Such organization really calls for forming expert groups and doign jigsaw activity.
I am fan of this website because it presents content in the manner accessible to ELLs - the terminology is not very complicated and definitions of the terms are provided in "Know The Lingo" section. There are plenty of visuals that, in my opinion, greatly aid comprehension. I particularly like the animated ones that show how the natural phenomenon occurs. E.g. How hurricanes develop. How lake-effect snow forms.
The website also provides lesson plans, suggestions for experiments, and a ton of resources that will help the student to understand the content.
Anya, what a cute website! This seems very appropriate for elementary and even sixth grade students. I really like how the information is chunked and broken down with bolded sub-headings. The visuals and animations are excellent. They will really help students visualize what is being described in the text. I thought it was also neat that there were sample lesson plans and experiments at the bottom of each section (Tornadoes, Hurricanes, Winter Storms, etc.). Finally, the games would be a fun way to review a unit on weather systems and the jokes would be a fun way to engage students at the beginning of a lesson. Awesome find!
ReplyDelete"How do hurricanes see?"
ReplyDelete"With one eye!"
I have to agree with Kristen, this website is super cute. I miss working with fun stuff like this but my high schoolers would roll their eyes at me if I asked them to use it.
I think the jokes page was especially fun for relating the information to the youngsters. The flash animations are especially engaging.