Purpose
This webquest was designed for 4th grade students to learn about many different landforms and how erosion, weathering, and we as humans cause these surfaces to change over time. Through research and the sharing of information, each student will present their findings in a narrative writing piece that can be made into a digital story.
Standards: Science
Processes and Interactions of the Earth's Systems (Geosphere, Atmosphere, and Hydrosphere
2. Earth's systems (geosphere, atmosphere, and hydrosphere) interact with one another as they undergo change by common processes
-Identify the major landforms on earth
-Describe how weathering agents cause surface changes that create and/or change Earth's surface materials and/or landforms
-Describe how erosional processes cause surface changes that create and/or change Earth's surface materials and/or landforms
3. Human activity is dependent upon and affects Earth's resources and systems
-Identify the ways humans affect the erosion and deposition of Earth's materials
-Propose ways to solve simple environmental problems (e.g., recycling, composting, ways to decrease soil erosion) that result from human activity
Communications Arts-Writing
3. Write effectively in various forms and types of writing
Narrative and Descriptive Writing
-Write narrative text that moves through a logical sequence of events, includes details to develop the plot, characters and setting
NETS-S
1. Creativity and Innovation
b. Create original works as a means of personal or group expression
2. Communication and collaboration
a. interact, collaborate, and publish with peers, experts or others employing a variety of digital environments and media
b. communicate information and ideas effectively to multiple audiences using a variety of media and formats
d. contribute to project teams to produce original works or solve problems
3. Research and Information Fluency
b. locate, organize, analyze, evaluate, synthesize, and ethically use information from a variety of sources and media
Prior Knowledge
*Students need to know how to write a narrative piece.
*Students need to know how to informally give credit if books or sites are used in final paper.
*I introduced this topic to my students by reading some information in our science textbook first before beginning the webquest.
*Students will need to know how to use Moviemaker or some other type of moviemaking multimedia.
**The last step can be changed to make more movies if you so choose.
Implementation Instructions
When getting home teams set up, you may divide teams yourself, do random sorting, or let students choose. Once they or you have selected which process to research then you may again divide them into groups or let them choose, or do a random selection. I paired mine together to have better access to each computer since most of the research can be done online.
Next a minilesson on teaching to a group may be helpful before they go back to home teams to teach. We talked about once a piece of information is taught, then the student needs to paraphrase in their own words so they can show they understand what the "teacher" is saying before they write it on their notes. That way students are internalizing what they just heard so they can use it in their narrative piece.
I showed the Granny Smith video before students began to write narratives as a motivator and example of narrative storytelling.
Assessment Plan
Students will receive a grade for the the vocabulary sheet. I will be looking for accurate definitions of each word and a picture drawn that shows their understanding of each definition written. It is worth 24 points.
Students will receive a grade for the graphic organizer and poster. Students are expected to collect information on how the items in the graphic organizer change the earth' s surface and show their understanding of that information in the poster they create. The poster should have an example of each item that was researched. The graphic organizer is worth 20 points and the poster is worth 40 points for a combined score of 60 points.
Students will receive a grade for how well they worked together throughout the process of this webquest. The total for the teamwork rubric is 20 points (multiply each by 4).
Students will receive a grade for the notes they take from their peers. They should have information from the other two areas put into their own words to show their understanding of the information presented. This is worth 20 points.
Students will receive a grade for the narrative they write. The scoring guide will let them know what I am looking for. It is worth 100 points. I multiplied the content by 8, the order by 7, the creativity section by 4, the voice by 3, and the grammar and spelling section by 3.
Learner Diversity
If there are students who have trouble viewing articles written on the computer, you may want to print these off and highlight for these students and enlarge the print. The amount of items researched may be modified for students with learning disabilities as well as what is expected on the final paper.
Resources
Students may need library books to help with steps 3 and 5. Search your library for a variety of books on different types of landforms and books on weathering and erosion keeping in mind your students' reading levels.
This webquest was designed for 4th grade students to learn about many different landforms and how erosion, weathering, and we as humans cause these surfaces to change over time. Through research and the sharing of information, each student will present their findings in a narrative writing piece that can be made into a digital story.
Standards: Science
Processes and Interactions of the Earth's Systems (Geosphere, Atmosphere, and Hydrosphere
2. Earth's systems (geosphere, atmosphere, and hydrosphere) interact with one another as they undergo change by common processes
-Identify the major landforms on earth
-Describe how weathering agents cause surface changes that create and/or change Earth's surface materials and/or landforms
-Describe how erosional processes cause surface changes that create and/or change Earth's surface materials and/or landforms
3. Human activity is dependent upon and affects Earth's resources and systems
-Identify the ways humans affect the erosion and deposition of Earth's materials
-Propose ways to solve simple environmental problems (e.g., recycling, composting, ways to decrease soil erosion) that result from human activity
Communications Arts-Writing
3. Write effectively in various forms and types of writing
Narrative and Descriptive Writing
-Write narrative text that moves through a logical sequence of events, includes details to develop the plot, characters and setting
NETS-S
1. Creativity and Innovation
b. Create original works as a means of personal or group expression
2. Communication and collaboration
a. interact, collaborate, and publish with peers, experts or others employing a variety of digital environments and media
b. communicate information and ideas effectively to multiple audiences using a variety of media and formats
d. contribute to project teams to produce original works or solve problems
3. Research and Information Fluency
b. locate, organize, analyze, evaluate, synthesize, and ethically use information from a variety of sources and media
Prior Knowledge
*Students need to know how to write a narrative piece.
*Students need to know how to informally give credit if books or sites are used in final paper.
*I introduced this topic to my students by reading some information in our science textbook first before beginning the webquest.
*Students will need to know how to use Moviemaker or some other type of moviemaking multimedia.
**The last step can be changed to make more movies if you so choose.
Implementation Instructions
When getting home teams set up, you may divide teams yourself, do random sorting, or let students choose. Once they or you have selected which process to research then you may again divide them into groups or let them choose, or do a random selection. I paired mine together to have better access to each computer since most of the research can be done online.
Next a minilesson on teaching to a group may be helpful before they go back to home teams to teach. We talked about once a piece of information is taught, then the student needs to paraphrase in their own words so they can show they understand what the "teacher" is saying before they write it on their notes. That way students are internalizing what they just heard so they can use it in their narrative piece.
I showed the Granny Smith video before students began to write narratives as a motivator and example of narrative storytelling.
Assessment Plan
Students will receive a grade for the the vocabulary sheet. I will be looking for accurate definitions of each word and a picture drawn that shows their understanding of each definition written. It is worth 24 points.
Students will receive a grade for the graphic organizer and poster. Students are expected to collect information on how the items in the graphic organizer change the earth' s surface and show their understanding of that information in the poster they create. The poster should have an example of each item that was researched. The graphic organizer is worth 20 points and the poster is worth 40 points for a combined score of 60 points.
Students will receive a grade for how well they worked together throughout the process of this webquest. The total for the teamwork rubric is 20 points (multiply each by 4).
Students will receive a grade for the notes they take from their peers. They should have information from the other two areas put into their own words to show their understanding of the information presented. This is worth 20 points.
Students will receive a grade for the narrative they write. The scoring guide will let them know what I am looking for. It is worth 100 points. I multiplied the content by 8, the order by 7, the creativity section by 4, the voice by 3, and the grammar and spelling section by 3.
Learner Diversity
If there are students who have trouble viewing articles written on the computer, you may want to print these off and highlight for these students and enlarge the print. The amount of items researched may be modified for students with learning disabilities as well as what is expected on the final paper.
Resources
Students may need library books to help with steps 3 and 5. Search your library for a variety of books on different types of landforms and books on weathering and erosion keeping in mind your students' reading levels.
