What the Fall?
10Oct,2024

What the Fall?

BY : Rhiannon Nevinczenko

A common question parents might hear from their young scientists during this time of year is, "Why do the leaves change color in the fall?" A quick online search might summarize the gist well enough - something about light and temperature. But does that truly answer the question? 
Many of our students are expected to meet the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). This means solving problems and explaining phenomena, which may require a more multidisciplinary approach, and ultimately result in deeper learning.
We often think of the sciences as being independent of one another - physics here, chemistry there, earth and space science over there, and life sciences on their own yet elsewhere. This is an inaccurate perception - all fields of scientific study are interdependent. Fall colors are a fantastic example of a phenomenon that cannot be sufficiently and completely explained by only one scientific field. A comprehensive understanding requires information from earth and space science, meteorology, physics, chemistry, and life science. This infographic provides a multidisciplinary explanation of why and how leaves change color in the fall. 

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