US History Webquests
| The Quest for Knowledge | The Nature of a WebQuest |
| The Internet, unlike any other medium before it, is interactive and accessible to a great deal of people at once. It has the ability to provide endless amounts of information that can be used to motivate students to conduct investigations on any given topic. As an interactive tool for learning, teachers can use the Internet to stimulate creative thought and guide students to develop critical thinking in their "quest" for knowledge. But, how does a teacher tame the nature of the Internet to provide his/her students with a beneficial learning environment? |
One model approach for this dilemma is called a WebQuest developed in 1995 by Bernie Dodge of San Diego State University. Simply put, a WebQuest is an inquiry-based activity where students are given a task and provided with access to on-line resources to help them complete the task. It is an ideal way to deliver a lesson over the web. WebQuests are discovery learning tools; they are usually used to either begin or finish a unit of study. |
| Six (6) Reasons Teachers To Use WebQuests |
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1. To begin a unit as an anticipatory set; 2. To conclude a unit as a summation; 3. As a collaborative activity in which students create a product which fosters cooperative learning; 4. To teach students how to be independent thinkers since most of the problems encountered in a WebQuest are real-world problems; 5. To increase competency in the use of technology; 6. As a motivational techniques to keep students on task. |
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| Webquest |
Description |
Time Period(s) |
Skills Assessed |
Individual Pair Small Group |
End Product(s) |
| Geography Webquest |
The Global History Geography Webquest explores physical and human geography basics. Topics: Continents, Oceans, Physical Features, 5 Themes of Geography, Asia, Africa, Europe, South America, Central America, North America, Caribbean, The Middle East, and the concept of Geographic Determinism. |
No Specific |
Basic Geography Skills, |
Individual Pair Small Group |
Workpacket with |
| Roman Times Webquest |
The Roman Times Webquest engages students in creating and publishing their own mythical newspaper called "The Roman Times" which would have been available in Ancient Rome during the Imperial years. Students will write five (5) newspaper articles. All the articles need to be written in the present tense, from the perspective of a contemporary (living at the same time) Roman citizen.Bring your subjects to life. Tell the stories in a way that not only informs your readers, but keeps their interest and their subscription to your newspaper. |
Ancient Rome |
Research, |
Individual Pair Small Group |
Roman Times Newspaper
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- Webquest - The Constitutional Convention (Under Construction)
- US History - The American Civil War InfoQuest (Under Construction)
- US History - The Progressive Era Webquest
- World Wars Webquest
- US History Review Webquest (Under Construction)
