WhyPower Home

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WhyPower is a middle school program and supplemental curriculum that teaches the math and science of energy. The platform for instruction is Whyville, the learning-based virtual world for teens and tweens.

Promotional Package

Curriculum Sample

Professional Development Video Sample

Why WhyPower?

WhyPower teaches core academic math and science content, and also career content, all matched to standards.
WhyPower engages students. It helps them understand why math and science matter.
WhyPower focuses on the math middle school students struggle with: fractions, ratios and proportions. This is the same math essential to high school readiness and success.
WhyPower encourages middle school students to plan ahead and take rigorous STEM courses in their high school program.

What's in WhyPower?

The WhyPower activity in Whyville
Fourteen one-class-period directed inquiry lesson plans cross-matched to Texas standards and Common Core math
Embedded student profile and tracking of standards addressed for students and classes
8-16 hours of professional development
Eleven teacher training refresher videos
Access to the WhyPower community of practice
Email and phone support
Optional: Integration of local educational pathways into the WhyPower activities

WhyPower's Lesson Plans

WhyPower's theme is large scale sources of energy: coal, natural gas, nuclear, hydroelectric, wind and solar energy.

Careers are also a theme in WhyPower. Students earn five technician and five engineer career badges.

Introduction
Get acclimated in Whyville.

Green Build 1 and 2
Build green homes by selecting the right appliances and materials. Earn the Technician badge for staying under budget for one year; the Engineer badge for managing a 20-year budget.

Peak Power 1 and 2
Operate a simulation to manage power for a day, turning on and off energy plants, and managing an increasingly complex set of factors.

Electric Farm 1, 2 and 3
Buy the different kinds of power plants and place them all over Whyville to collect energy and feed that energy into the grid. Earn career badges and clams, increase daily salary, and buy face parts at Akbar's Face Mall.

Power Planner 1, 2 and 3
Analyze the historical Whyville power mix to determine which power plants, and in what numbers, will best meets Whyville's electric needs in the coming week while helping to set Whyville's social values.

Powerline 1 and 2
Run power lines from the power station into homes and businesses, while keeping Ohm's law on track.

Energy Careers
Review all the career badges earned in Whyille.

Introduction to Whyville
9 min

Project Example: Next Generation Learning Challenges
3 min

Math

WhyPower teaches math that middle schoolers find the most challenging, that in turn is found on most middle school standardized tests. Students learn about: fractions, ratios and proportions, unit conversions, graph reading and data interpretation, measurement, mental math, rate of return, and problem solving. See a sample of math standards addressed.
Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills Common Core

Science

WhyPower teaches the science of the energy industry. Students learn about: kilowatts, kilowatt-hours, R-Values and housing materials, Energy Star ratings and appliance selection, and sources of power including coal, natural gas, nuclear, hydroelectric, solar and wind energy. See a sample of the science standards addressed:
Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills

Careers

Students in WhyPower are in effect doing virtual jobs. In each lesson, students earn career badges for the jobs they accomplish! Students earn "Whyville clams" for completing jobs, and build up a "clam salary" tied to their demonstrated knowledge and accomplishment. See a sample of the career standards addressed:
Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills

WhyPower can integrate information about local education and career pathways. Imagine your students seeing the math and science classes they need to complete in your local high schools, and seeing the details of the local college programs they can enter!
Visit SooperMinds or contact us for details.

Research

Whyville has been the subject of academic studies in peer-reviewed journals, and the WhyPower project will be the topic of upcoming studies. Results suggest Whyville engages students, encourages critical thinking, encourages collaboration, and is especially effective at engaging girls in science. Early WhyPower results suggests it raises student interest in STEM careers, and moves students ambivalent about math to greater appreciation of math and of math's importance for future careers.
Research page