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PlayOwl

Explore · Wonder · Discover

How Things Work

Ever wondered how airplanes fly, why popcorn pops or how your heart pumps? Pick a question, then watch it, look inside, try it, solve a challenge and go deeper. Every topic changes for Preschool, Elementary and Middle school.

  1. 1Watch it
  2. 2Look inside
  3. 3Try it
  4. 4Solve a challenge
  5. 5Go deeper

500 topics to explore · showing 217–240

Every topic

#217 Animals How does hibernation help animals survive winter? Follow changes in activity, temperature, and energy use during a simulated winter. #218 Animals How do snails build their shells? Follow calcium into a growing shell using a simplified growth model. #219 Animals How does animal fur keep warmth in? Compare coats and explore how trapped air affects heat loss. #220 Animals How do cows digest grass? Follow grass through a ruminant digestive system, including cud-chewing and microbial fermentation. #221 Animals How do cows produce milk? Trace nutrients into milk-producing tissue and follow milk through a simplified udder. #222 Animals How do sheep grow wool? Explore follicles, fiber growth, and changes in fleece before and after shearing. #223 Animals How do chickens grind food without teeth? Follow feed through the crop and gizzard, observing storage and grinding. #224 Animals How do homing pigeons find their way back? Compare navigation cues such as landmarks and sunlight in a simplified journey. #225 Animals How do cats clean themselves with their tongues? Zoom into tongue structures and follow their role in grooming fur. #226 Plants & ecosystems How does flower pollination work? Move pollen between flower parts and compare insect and wind pollination. #227 Plants & ecosystems How does water travel from roots to leaves? Follow colored water through a transparent plant and explore evaporation from leaves. #228 Plants & ecosystems Why do leaves change color in autumn? Reveal different pigments as the amount of chlorophyll changes through a seasonal timeline. #229 Plants & ecosystems How do leaves control water loss? Open and close virtual stomata while balancing gas exchange and water loss. #230 Plants & ecosystems How do carnivorous plants catch insects? Compare snap, pitcher, and sticky traps and trace the nutrients obtained. #231 Plants & ecosystems How do climbing plants hold on? Guide tendrils, twining stems, and clinging roots around different supports. #232 Plants & ecosystems How do plants grow toward light? Move a light source and use a time slider to observe directional growth. #233 Plants & ecosystems How do mangroves survive in salty, muddy places? Explore specialized roots and adaptations for salt, unstable ground, and limited soil oxygen. #234 Plants & ecosystems How do tree rings record growth? Build successive rings under changing conditions and inspect a trunk cross-section. #235 Plants & ecosystems How do mushrooms and other fungi obtain food? Follow fungal threads and visualize external digestion followed by nutrient absorption. #236 Plants & ecosystems How do fungi reproduce using spores? Release spores, compare landing conditions, and follow suitable spores into new growth. #237 Plants & ecosystems How do lichens work as living partnerships? Explore their partners and trace the exchanges that support growth. #238 Plants & ecosystems How do root bacteria help plants obtain nitrogen? Look inside legume root nodules and follow exchanges between plants and bacteria. #239 Plants & ecosystems How do decomposers break down fallen leaves? Accelerate a forest-floor timeline and follow fungi, bacteria, and small animals at work. #240 Plants & ecosystems How do earthworms change the ground? Follow tunnels and compare their effects on air spaces and organic material.

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