This WebQuest was designed for a 4th grade Ohio classroom.  This project was designed to:

• Help students to better understand Ohio’s place in history in terms of inventions that brought the nation into the 20^th century.
• Give students the opportunity to practice using typical classroom technology and internet resources to do research.
• Give students the opportunity to work individually and with a group.
• Allow the students to make connections to the past.
• Give the students practice public speaking in the form of a short presentation in front of their peers.
• Give students guidance on making a professional brochure on their topic.
• Give students a chance to practice doing biographical research, organizing notes and sysnthesizing these notes into summary format for others to review.
• Give students more practice reading and understanding a rubric.

Timeframe

Suggested timeframe for this unit is 6 weeks.  Weeks 1-3 are for gathering data.  During this time, students will work individually on classroom computers for 30 minutes, and in the school computer lab for 50 minutes.  Weeks 4-5 are for group work to make the brochure.  Students will be given 60 minutes each week to work as a group in the school computer lab.  Week 6 is for oral presentations.  

Assessment Strategy

A weekly checklist will be given to the students at the end of weeks 1 through 5 so that students may gauge their progress from the week and determine what needs to be accomplished for the following week.  All grading will be done based on the rubrics contained in this WebQuest.

Entry Skills

Entry skills for this unit are: a basic understanding of a written biography, the ability to differentiate between fact and opinion, 3rd grade reading skills and basic computer skills (turning it on, using a mouse and keyboard, printing).

Technology Requirements

Computers with sound capbility, internet access, word processing programs, printers

Videocamera

 Digital camera