Project Five -- LANGUAGE
ARTS WebQuest
WebQuest is an inquiry-oriented activity in which
most or all of the information used by learners is drawn from the Web.
WebQuest is a model developed and designed in early 1995 by Dr.
Bernie Dodge, Professor of Educational Technology at San Diego State
University, and Tom
March. WebQuests are designed to use learners' time well, to focus
on using information rather than looking for it, and to support learners'
thinking at the levels of analysis, synthesis and evaluation. The model
is outlined in Some
Thoughts About WebQuests. Using the available template
to guide the students/teachers through the process of creating a short-term,
single discipline WebQuest, the EDU506 graduate students designed webpages
that could be used immediately in their classrooms. These samples are available
for viewing and comment, as well as thorough instructions for creating
your own interactive webpages for students and parents. Instructions
for both Windows-PC
and Macintosh
operating systems are provided for Netscape Communicator's Composer. Many
of these Interactive WebQuests are featured below and others are featured
at the EDU
330 undergraduate site.
The 
icon indicates that this WebQuest was constructed using the new
1999 template, revised by Dr. Lewis. The (#-#) at the end of the description
gives the grades for which the webquest was designed. The 
icon indicates WebQuests from the Fall Semester 2001.
Language Arts activities:
Reading & Literature:
Costume Alphabet:
Hey Kids!!!! Billy Bear's preschoolers and kindergartners are learning
their A B C's by getting dressed in costumes that begin with a letter of
the alphabet. Each day in the month of September you will wear costumes
beginning with the letters of the alphabet. Mrs. LaShay Murden suggests
that you will need your parents' help on picking out costumes. Are You
Ready??? Let's Get Dressed!!!!!!! (P-K)
Mark Mathis' Alphabet Soup
WebQuest is designed to give young children a fun and interactive way to
learn letter recognition. Letter recognition is an important skill that
is a predecessor to reading. Parents and teachers, your child/student will
need your assistance with some of these activities. (K)
Color Me Kinder:
Have you ever seen a rainbow? What color was it? That's right!
It was many different colors. Can you name any of them? Mrs.
Cristi Greenway will help you learn to identify colors and their names.
(K)
Rhyme
Time with Mother Goose: Principal Lisa Howell has just announced
that on October 28th, we will be celebrating "Mother Goose Day".
You will need your parents to help you come up with a costume for you to
wear on this very exciting day!!! Be creative and pick your favorite
Mother Goose nursery rhyme character. (K)
Elementary teachers can use Patrick's
"Phunny" Phonics to teach children how to decode unfamiliar words
and strengthen spelling skills. Phoneme awareness is the strongest predictor
of independent reading success, according to Patrick Woods.
Parents and Teachers of K-2 students: Are
you looking for a way to show your child good steps to reading? Investigate
Tonya Joy Merriweather's Preschool
Play Pals site with your little tykes to enhance the reading
process at home. Explore with Clifford, Telly Monster, Dora the Explorer,
Kipper, Elmo, and Bear in the Big Blue House.
Get A Clue With
Blue: Learning colors, exploring emotions, and reading are
very important tools in learning and life. Practice recognizing your colors
by using different objects as they have been presented to you in Tivian
D. Thomas' webquest. You can also learn to recognize words by reading
along with Blue. The knowledge that you gain will help you with learning
in the classroom.
Fishy
Fun with Reading: Sometimes reading can be very difficult
for a young child to understand and to get interested in. Tiffany Gaines'
goal in creating this webquest is to make reading fun for young children
by allowing them to use the computer to read interactive books. (K-1)
See and Say Sight Words for Elementary
Kids: Marty Merriweather's project will provide students
with mastery and recognition of the basic sight words. They will
also build reading fluency and reading skills. (1-2)
Nursery
Rhymes to Live By: Designed by Cybill Harris for young children
in their formative years. These nursery rhymes aid in helping them produce
moral and ethical standards of life. Featured are "Georgie Porgie", "Little
Boy Blue", "Mary Had a Little Lamb", "Around the Mulberry Bush", and "Mockingbird."
Come to The
Thoughtful Spot. Here you can learn about Winnie the Pooh
and all of his friends. Take a stroll through the 100 Aker Woods
and sit on Pooh's thinkin' log. You will be surprised what you will
learn in this imaginative webpage by Barbara Ivey.
North Pole: Myth and Magic!
Brrr!!!!! Grab your coat and gloves and join Janet Hays for some fun activities
at the North Pole. Come join Frosty and Rudolph for a walk in the winter
wonderland. Let your class enjoy the cold, winter months while learning
about the mysterious North Pole. (1-2)
The Tractor Shed
is where farmers spend many rainy winter days, tweaking and making adjustments
to their tractors and equipment. Visit Brandy McDaniel's tractor shed to
see photos of antique tractors, then choose your favorite and paint it.
Read about Johnny Tractor and his friends, then till on over to create
a tractor tale of your own. For fun, sow farming terms in a crossword puzzle.
(3rd)
Wandering with Alice:
Welcome to the World of Wander! At Marjahna Hart's webquest, you
will take an adventure through Alice's World. As we hop down the
hole with rabbit, let us experience life through a dream. When traveling
through this puzzle-land, you will meet Alice and her many friends.
As you take this journey, visualize the setting and the characters to help
you create your own Wonderland. (3-5)
Aesop's
Fables -- This elementary language arts webquest by Toni Coger
and Janice Shaw features the famous "The Ant and the Grasshopper".
"Oh,
the places you'll go. . ." when you LEARN TO READ! is Glynda Terry's
webquest for parents and 1st graders. Parents are encouraged to read aloud
at least ten minutes daily to the child. Dr. Seuss books are used to teach
reading because if the child can read "at", then he can read "cat"; if
he can read "up", then he can read "pup".
Let's Play On
Charlotte's Web -- Vicky Carter combines E. B. White's classic
story with some great activities for you to continue enjoying Charlotte,
Wilbur, and all their barnyard friends! Return to this web page anytime
you want to remember this story of friendship between Wilbur, a runty pig,
and Charlotte, an heroic spider.
Hanging With Arthur:
Cynthia Brewer's "An author study of Arthur's author" helps you to understand
who created Arthur. Do you know all of Arthur's family and friends? Do
you know what a real aardvark looks like? Choose your own activities from
a wide range of selections as you interact with Authur.
Join Tina Simmons and visit The
Amazing Worlds of Roald Dahl! While you may not be familiar with
his name, I bet you have seen movies based on his books. He is the imaginative
author of "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory", "James and the Giant Peach",
and "Matilda".
Rainbow
Readers and Writers: Have fun with this informative assignment
designed by Renita Lewis to enhance and motivate younger readers. Her webquest
will help students show understanding of reading, writing, and language
arts skills, such as: sequencing, sentence structure, comprehension, creative
writing, parts of speech, and fluency.
Dreaming With the Grimm Brothers:
Have you ever dreamed you were a beautiful princess trapped in a high tower?
Or maybe you want to be the price who comes to the rescue. Have you
ever wanted to build your own castle or explore a new land? Follow
the DreamMaker, Lanice Real, and Snow White as we explore the world of
Grimm's Fairy Tales? (4-5)
Happily Ever After or Not!
-- Don't you hate how a story changes ever so slightly as it is passed
from one person to another? Will you ever know the real story?
Children all over the continents are relying on you to find the real Cinderella,
the real princess who lived happily ever after or not. Can you do
it? Will you help the real Cinderella find her happy ending?, asks
Master StoryTeller Tamie Rogers. (6th)
One,
Two, Three, And So On... is a mission for you designed by CIA Director
Belinda Smith. As your country's highest ranking special agent, your mission
is to pay particular attention to the order in which the events or activities
will happen. As you go on this mission, you will need to read carefully
and follow the directions that have been given. You will meet Theodore
The Tugboat, Clifford, Elizabeth and many others on your quest. Good luck!
(Resource Reading, 6-8)
Famous
Diaries in History: Have you ever wondered what someone was
thinking a long time ago? Kristina Luckett's website will give you
insight into the various diaries of men and women who appear in your textbooks.
You will be able to read different diaries, write in a web diary, and respond
to the diary comments of other people around the world who need advice
from someone just like you! (6-8)
Charles
Dickens' A Christmas Carol is very helpful in exposing young people
to good writing. The story is short and fast-moving which holds the student's
attention. It is rich in historical background and holds a wealth of illustrative
examples of good writing. (Written by Caroline Lyman.)
"Can't We All Just Get Along?", is
the question that nine year old, Cassie Logan is asking. The black
and white people in her hometown are divided socially, racially, and economically.
Journey with Cassie and her three brothers as they discover what it means
to be a black person living in Mississippi in the early 1930s. Created
for literature classes by Derrick M. Tennial. (7th)
Clueing into Agatha Christie Mysteries:
Dame Agatha Christie is a well-known mystery writer and one of the most
beloved authors in the world, according to Publisher Jill Gilmore. Known
as the "Queen of Crime," Agatha Christie's books are outsold only by the
Bible and Shakespeare. Christie captures her readers by creating detectives
that turn each page in greater suspicion or maybe fear. Agatha Christie
books involve critical thinking skills to collect each clue to solve the
case before it is too late. Will you solve the case and be the great detective
hero or become the next victim of her deadly and dangerous criminal characters?
(8-9)
A
Course in American Literature is a specialized course which must
be approached from an academic point of view. Although literature
always brings pleasure, there are other dimensions to the readings and
written work that eleventh graders will encounter in the course, as designed
by Cossatta Boga and Janet Haire.
Edgar
Allan Poe (1809-1849) is considered the 19th century Stephen King
of horror fiction. Join Christy Carmack in discovering the secrets of this
mysterious writer, who lived a short 40 years, but who has captured the
attention of readers for more than 150 years.
In Sharon Harris' WebQuest, you will be an explorer
in the Klondike. Retrace the steps of author Jack London's book, The
Call of the Wild. You will discover how Buck arrived in the Klondike
country and all the things he went through to survive amidst the different
types of owners and circumstances.
Use Amy Kerr's webquest to help guide you as you
discover the Journey
of Odysseus in Homer's Odyssey. You will overcome many trials as
you make your way from Troy to your home in Ithaca. Use your knowledge
of the Trojan War and the life of Odysseus to help you in your quest for
home.
Using villains and heroes, Shakespeare works his
characters into history, poetry, and comedy giving them a wide range of
emotions and sins such as adultery, revenge, assumed madness, multiple
deaths, and romance. This webquest by Carolyn Driskill helps students better
understand Shakespeare and his insight into human nature, particularly
through his tragedy, HAMLET,
which has been a part of the world's literature and history for hundreds
of years.
Tamala Boyd discusses the classic tragedy, Romeo
and Juliet and its author, William Shakespeare. By taking a look
at the lives of a young couple who share an undying, yet ill-fated love,
you will have explored options to solve your own "star-crossed attraction".
African-American
Authors, by Shawana Westbrooks-Neely, introduces students to famous
African-American authors and poets who have made contributions to the national
and international literary societies. You will become familiar with the
works of Langston Hughes, Nikki Giovanni, Maya Angelo, Rita Dove,
Fredrick Douglas, Alex Haley, Paul Lawerence-Dunbar, Toni Morrison, Alice
Walker, and many more.
Poets
and Writers of the Harlem Renaissance: The Harlem Renaissance
was a turning point in the lives of African Americans in the 1920s and
1930s. During this time, 16 writers published over 50 volumes of poetry
and fiction, including Langston Hughes, Claude McKay, Countee Cullen, Jean
Toomer and Zora Neale Hurston. Paulette Salfarlie will help you develop
some of the literary skills that these writers possessed. (7-12)
Robin Hood or Robbing Hood?
Was Robin Hood of the Middle Ages a good guy or just a "robbing hood"?
Decide for yourself as you immerse yourself in his life and times.
Read about him, travel with him, and discover how he has influenced us
throughout history. Take a walk with Sheriff Jean Myracle through
Nottingham and Sherwood Forest. (10-12)
Langston Hughes,
The Poet is Sebrina Patton's webquest that introduces Langston
Hughes and his many works. A vital part of the Harlem Renaissance, his
inspirational poems proved especially inspirational to African-Americans.
Come and learn why Langston Hughes was called "Harlem's Poet."
Traveling
"The Road Not Taken" with Robert Frost: By completing Beth
Anne Hepler's WebQuest, you will learn about the life of one of America's
most famous poets, Robert Frost. Hopefully, you will develop an appreciation
for his work and will continue to read more of his works in the future.
And remember, when two roads diverge in a wood, think about taking the
one less traveled, because that can make all the difference in your life!
Survivor: Conflict in "Lord of the
Flies" -- Summer vacation has finally arrived and you and twelve
of your closest friends have planned the perfect trip to a beautiful, tropical
island. Suddenly, the plane crashes in the middle of the ocean and
the only survivors of the crash are you and your peers. When you
look around, you see nothing but water and an unfamiliar island.
While stranded on the island, you must find the keys to survive.
In the novel, "Lord of the Flies", you will join Quoeda Alexander-Lewis
in identifying a variety of conflicts that might occur as young boys try
to survive alone on an island with limited supplies of food and clean water.
(12th)
Writing:
Is
a Lion a Cat? While on a field trip to the local zoo, your
group passes the lion exhibit and the lion gives a loud roar. One
of your classmates says, "That lion looks like the cat that I have at home."
You say, "That is not possible." Mrs. Christy Jones, your teacher,
hears both of you talking. The teacher states that lions and house
cats can look alike because they are both part of the cat family, however,
they are different. Your teacher asks you to prepare a presentation
for the class on how lions and house cats are similar and different. (P4-K)
Oh!!!
Look at the Ocean and Octopi!!! Let's take an adventure with
Mrs. Shannon Fawcett. We will be going under the sea to find octopi.
Do you know what octopi are? We will work together on the Internet
and computer to find out all kinds of things about an octopus. We
will have a great time learning about the ocean and ocean creatures, as
well as playing with octopi. (For children with special needs, learning
about places and things they have never experienced is very difficult.
Shannon's goal in creating this WebQuest is to help them find success by
allowing them to use the computer (appropriate switches, buttons and assistive
technology) to help them see and experience the ocean and learn about octopi.)
(P4-K)
My
Favorite Teddy is a multidisciplinary WebQuest for Kindergarten
students featuring "Co-Co". Co-Co belongs to Pat. Pat has other
toys, but Co-Co is special because Co-Co is the only teddy bear.
Julie Walton's lesson incorporates kindergarten language arts, social studies,
and math and the students will need assistance from parents and/or teachers
to complete these activities. (K)
Jocquell Mitchell welcomes students to the WWF:
World Writing Federation. Here you will meet a most worthy opponent,
the writing process. This Webquest also helps to prepare you for the TCAP
Writing Assessment. So, take out your fighting pen and "LET'S GET READY
TO RUMBLE!"
The
Road to Easy Writing -- Editing skills are a part of our everyday
lives, according to Tabitha D. Anderson. If you do not know the rules of
editing, punctuation, and capitalization and how to use them properly,
then your writing can look like a foreign language. When you have successfully
completed all of the activities on this WebQuest, you should feel confident
that you understand all of the rules of punctuation marks and capitalization.
Letter
Writing is important because letters are a means of communication.
After completing this Web journey, students will be able to compose a friendly
letter using all five parts: heading, greeting, body, closing, and
signature. Taquanya Bledsoe's exercises also allow students to participate
in their school's technology resources.
Writing
Letters: You have been hired as the new Cyberspace Postmaster.
Your job is to educate your neighborhood on electronic communications.
Your new boss, Angie Duncan, wants you to educate the neighborhood about
the different formats used in friendly and formal letters. It is up to
you to continue the lines of communication in your neighborhood. (5-7)
It's
A Dog's Life! You have been hired by Purina CEO Sonya Cross as
a salesperson for Puppy Chow. Your first assignment includes going
to the local elementary school in an attempt to raise consumer interests
of youth. This requires research on your part since you have never
dealt with young people before. How will you present information
to the students that will spark their interests in dogs and dog food?
(4-6)
Students will develop Poetry
Writing Skills as they use the Internet to access and post poetry.
Patricia Paige's exercise will also allow students to participate in school
technology resources and contribute to an actively involved classroom community
for writers by engaging in the process of researching, creating, critiquing,
and publishing poetry.
Newspapers have been enjoyed for decades. They
entertain, enlighten, and educate. You are invited to read Daniel Green's
latest publication of "The Sign
Times." Hopefully, this newspaper will entertain you with
exciting games and activities, which will also teach you the basic signing
skills needed to communicate with the deaf world. So, grab a seat, and
a mouse . . . and get with the Times.
Hippety,
Hoppety: Here Comes the Easter Bunny! It's spring and you
know what that means ... it's Easter Bunny time. To get you into
the bunny spirit, Darlene Williams has some great Easter activities for
you. Prepare yourself to have some wonderful springtime fun by exploring
the hotlinks to learn more about Easter and the Easter Bunny. So
you'd better get hippety, hopping along because before you know it, he'll
be here! (1-3)
Playing
Around with Pandas: Just hired by the Memphis City Zoo as
an endangered species consultant, you have been asked by Zoo Superintendent
Donna D. Maclin to find some giant pandas for a China Exhibit. Being
totally clueless on where to begin your search, you will use the power
of the Internet to enter the world of a panda for a day and learn more
about them through creative adventures and fun-filled activities that integrate
Language Arts, Math, and Science. (4-5)
Writing a paragraph, how boring! With Shanda Lewis' activities, you will
think writing is "write on." You will learn the basics of writing a paragraph
and put them to use in a fun way. You will use your knowledge for writing
paragraphs in stories. You can become part of stories and let your writing
skills run wild. So,
"Write On."
(5-8)
The Love Connection: Do
you want to know who the oldest living couples are? Well, I'll tell
you, they're sentences! These love birds take a lot of time and dedication
in staying together. Each day, they are challenged with trials of
run-ons, fragments, and other obstacles that try to keep them apart.
But, yet they stay together. In Tisha Stewart's webquest, you will
learn the secrets of their success. You will learn the "love story"
of combining sentences. (6th)
The
Elian Gonzalez Story was one that caused a rift in this nation,
as well as in Cuba. Many people in America felt strongly that Elian should
stay in Miami, Florida with his relatives. Others felt that his place
was with his father in Cuba, his only living parent at this time
Many Cubans were outraged at the determination of Americans to keep a young
child from his father. Amy Parson's WebQuest will assist in examining both
sides of this controversy and involves social studies, journalism and language
arts. (7-8)
Historically
Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) are those that were founded
before 1964 as postsecondary academic institutions whose educational mission
has historically been to educate Black Americans. Franchesca Tyler
will assist you in your decision as to what to do with your life. Will
you go to college? Where? (11-12)
Power
Punch: Persuasion -- The ability to persuade can be a valuable
skill in life. Children usually learn powers of persuasion at a very
early age. (Remember talking your mother into what you wanted instead of
what she wanted?) Adults also employ persuasive behaviors. Brenda
Hall's WebQuest will examine some famous speeches of the twentieth century.
(11-12)
Grammar:
Wacky
Webpage Adventures with Language:
This web page has been designed by LaRhonda Bufford and Tisha Ewing to
help you develop your language skills through the use of fun filled activities.
This webquest activity has been designed just for YOU, so have a great
time!
Taisha Ramey's WebQuest has been designed to help
you learn about The
Four Types of Sentences. Hint: the four different types of
sentences are declarative, imperative, interrogative, and exclamatory.
Make
Your Escape! You have been "sentenced" to prison for poor
sentence structure. Instead of withering away by watching the paint dry
in your cell, you decide to escape. For you to do that, you need to improve
your writing. Follow the advice from Warden Paul Kelsey and you can "Make
Your Escape!"
After completing Bobbie Turner's web journey,
students will be able to name and define the Eight
Parts of Speech, complete a crossword puzzle using nouns and prepositions,
search and find the Eight Parts of Speech in a poem, and identify the Eight
Parts of Speech in a paragraph.
The
Wonderful World of Prepositions: Prepositions are very important
because without them some sentences would be incomplete. They give information
about time, location, and movement. Created by Antoinette L. Rand.
When writing a story, we want to paint a word
picture in our readers' minds. One way that we can do this is by using
Absolutely
Awesome Adjectives to effectively describe the people, places,
and things that we are writing about, according to Tameka Lewis and Judith
Davis.
Say it Again in the Land of Synonyms!
Are you tired of using the same words everyday? If so, then Gretchen White's
webquest is just the place for you. This webquest will give you the
power to increase your vocabulary. Once you have explored the Land of Synonyms,
you are going to be able to add spice to you compositions. Get ready
to explore! (3rd)
The
Homonym Connection: Electrician Bertha Tipton has wired the circuits
for you, now you must flip the switch. In her lesson, you will learn to
identify words that sound alike, but have a different spelling and meaning:
homonyms or homophones.
Which is Which? Have
you ever heard of homophones? Have you ever wondered how two words
can sound the same, but have different meanings and be spelled differently?
Are you confused, yet? Well, take a journey with Amy Bobbitt for
a better understanding of homophones. (3-5)
Humming Homophones:
Sea & see, there & their, everywhere & every wear are homophones.
Homophones are words that sound alike, but have different meanings. To,
too, and two are often used in the wrong way. (I am two years old. I want
to go too! I don't get to come over to see you often.) Hear ye, Here ye!
Ms. Erica Kea is calling all fourth graders to tell others what homophones
are, list a few, and give examples of their usage. Which eye would I use
to see? Eye or I? (4th)
Creating and illustrating new Compound
Words is a fun activity written by Melinda Screws and Jackie Warren.
Join them in writing your own silly story using compound words and then,
develop a funny riddle with compound words.
The purpose of Patrice T. Richardson's webquest
is to improve your ability to identify verbs and various verb forms. Verbs
are words that show action. They are considered the most interesting
part of speech and can be an exciting way to bring the most dull sentences
to life.
WebQuest Projects
Additional Technology Projects in
EDU506:
Project
One -- Electronic Mail: Hotmail, 
,
the world's largest provider of free Web-based email, is the program selected
for EDU506's email projects. Hotmail provides email access that is easy
and possible from any computer connected to the World Wide Web.
Project
Two -- Finding Information on the World Wide Web: Because
the Web is not indexed in any standard manner, finding information can
seem difficult. Without a clear search strategy, using a search engine
is like wandering aimlessly in the stacks of a library trying to find a
particular book. A "Finding
It Online" Tutorial is available.
Project
Three -- Powerpoint Presentations: These PowerPoint Presentations
have been built by the EDU 506 graduate students to illustrate the capabilities
of Microsoft Office 2000's PowerPoint software program. A PowerPoint
97 Tutorial by ChalkSoft is available.
Project
Four -- SpreadSheet Exercises: These SpreadSheet Exercises
have been designed for the EDU 506 graduate students to illustrate the
capabilities of Microsoft Office 2000's Excel software program. An Excel
97 Tutorial by ChalkSoft is available.
Project
Five -- WebQuests: WebQuest is an
inquiry-oriented activity in which most or all of the information used
by learners is drawn from the Web. WebQuest is a model developed and designed
in early 1995 by Dr.
Bernie Dodge, Professor of Educational Technology at San Diego State
University, and Tom
March. WebQuests are designed to use learners' time well, to focus
on using information rather than looking for it, and to support learners'
thinking at the levels of analysis, synthesis and evaluation. The model
is outlined in Some
Thoughts About WebQuests. Using the available template
to guide the students/teachers through the process of creating a short-term,
single discipline WebQuest, the EDU506 graduate students designed webpages
that could be used immediately in their classrooms. Some samples
are available for viewing and comment, as well as thorough instructions
for creating your own interactive webpages for students and parents. Instructions
for both Windows-PC
and Macintosh
operating systems are provided for Netscape Communicator's Composer. An
HTML
Tutorial by ChalkSoft is available.
Contact Dr. R.
Bruce Lewis for further information or to make suggestions.
Last updated January 31, 2002, @ 11:25 AM (CST).
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