Students'
page
Teacher's Page
Introduction
This WebQuest was developed
as part of my independent study project for the Masters of Teaching program
at the University of Calgary. Combined with this WebQuest, I have
examined the effects of using interactive technology in the classroom,
specifically the WebQuest format.
Through this WebQuest, the students
are given the challenge to investigate and gather information on the daily
lives of the ancient greeks. To simplify this task the students are
asked to only investigate one topic at a time. The topic the student
chooses is the topic he will report on and later write a newspaper article
about. For example, the entertainment reporter is lead to internet
links that only provide information regarding the Greeks favorite forms
of entertainment, and the sports reporter can view links pertaining to
popular sporting activities. I would encourage having the students
bookmark the pages or print sections of the material. They will need
this information later, when writing their newspaper articles. The
students need to read all of the information, but only pick some of the
items that interest them to highlight and discuss in their articles.
Content Area and
Grade Level
This lesson is intended for
grade six students, since ancient Greece is an area of study in the social
studies curriculum. However, it can be used with grade five students
and up, since the newspaper article can be evaluated on different levels
to suit the appropriate grade.
Curriculum Standards
Analytical Skills:
Improve critical thinking and
the ability to decipher large amounts of information.
Interpret and condense large
amounts of information into succinct articles.
Communication and Social Skills:
Increase teamwork and cooperation
through partnered Internet use; one student writing while the other student
navigates through the internet links.
Compromise skills are strengthened
through paired decision making, regarding what information to highlight
in the article.
Cooperation is developed through
class discussions and decisions regarding summaries of data found and layout
of student newspaper.
Social Studies Standards Addressed:
Ancient Greek customs, such
as clothing, sports, entertainment, food, and religion.
Understand the influence ancient
Greek culture has on present day life.
Develop an appreciation for
the cultural, political, and geographical differences between North America
and Greece.
Implementation
Overview
The length of this WebQuest
really depends upon the teacher and the students using it. Also the
depth in which the teacher plans on exploring the topic and newspaper writing
will greatly influence the time required.
For a grade six class I would
suggest the following:
-
One short period to introduce the
WebQuest to the students, and let the students decide what subject they
would like to report on.
-
At least one full periods where
students in pairs, can explore the links relating to their topic.
-
A third period to do any final recording
of data for the newspaper articles.
-
Forth and fifth periods devoted
to writing the articles.
-
Sixth period used to present articles
and Internet sites they found especially useful or interesting.
-
The seventh period devoted to newspaper
layout and final editing.
-
The last period for class discussion,
regarding the finished newspaper and what students have learned through
the exercise.
-
If time permits and students interest
is high, this exercise can be repeated with students taking on new subjects.
For older grades the writing component
can be more emphasized.
This WebQuest is multidisciplinary,
combining the students' Social Studies research along with their Language
Arts skills.
Resources Needed
Internet access for all students,
pairs is ideal but a group of three would also work.
An teacher e-mail account for
transfer of class questions and projects.
Depending upon the students'
internet skills, one to two classroom teachers or aides would be required
in the classroom.
Entry Level Skills and Knowledge
for the Students
Basic internet skills: how to
use the back button, download material, bookmark material, and how to print
material.
Ability to write an article
or paragraphs regarding daily events.
Entry Level Skills
and Knowledge for the Teachers
Basic internet skills: how to
load web site onto the server, how to download material off the Internet
etc.
This lesson is suitable for
the novice internet teacher!
Evaluations
Rubric Evaluation
Possible Variations
Use this WebQuest however you
as teacher, think will be the most beneficial to your students! If
you have any questions or concerns please feel free to e-mail me, I would
love to receive your feedback.
Conclusion
Through adopting a role, the
student is required to hunt and gather data that is specific to his subject
and create a schema to understand that information. He is is prompted
to internalize the information and in turn experiences the effectiveness
constructing a schema has on remembering and understanding the information.
The guided links and questions
provide the student with successful areas to hunt for data, thus modeling
advanced research techniques.
Once the computer portion of
the WebQuest is finished the student will have an accessible resource on
a particular part of ancient Greek life.
Through sharing the information
with the class, and especially compiling the newspaper, the student will
realize the quality of his research impacts the quality of the overall
class project.
The student will further construct
his schema regarding ancient Greek life through writing the newspaper article.
Once the newspaper is completed
the student will have:
-
Gained experience using the Internet
as a research tool
-
Learned how to hunt and gather information
appropriately
-
Experienced constructing a schema
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Learned the importance of collecting
data
-
Realized the influence his work
has on his classmates
-
Learned how to summarize large amounts
of information
-
Realized that his work can effect
the lives of our
Last updated on April 9, 1999.
Created and maintained by Michelle Housley
housley@telusplanet.net