In The Eye of the Storm

Engaging, shows great pictures of before and after Hurricane Andrew hits a family home. Introduction draws the reader into the lesson and prepares the learner for what they are to do. It is designed for grades 6-8.  I think that it could be used by 4th and 5th graders with some modification. It utilizes cooperative groups with well developed roles.  Web resources were linked under the different roles. The tasks include developing a powerpoint presentation.  It uses the web efficiently and does an excellent job of engaging the students in higher levels of thinking. Evaluation was by a rubric that was very general..I thought this would be appealing to 4th graders.

http://www.spa3.k12.sc.us/WebQuests/weather/index.htm#Overview

The Very Hungry Caterpillar

The Very Hungry Caterpillar Web quest intended for grades 3-5, however the information and the task tends to be more primary than elementary.  You need to buy  live specimans so teachers  must plan ahead.  This webquest had good graphics and was pleasing tothe eye.

http://asterix.ednet.lsu.edu/~fraser/Webquest/caterpillar.htm

Creepy Crawlers Insects

This webquest had a poor evaluation of task.  This was intended for primary age children although it was not stated.  There were limited amount of possible insects to research. It could be improved by adding more insect choices.

http://www.memphis-schools.k12.tn.us/admin/tlapages/Insects.html

Blazing Trails With the Buffalo Soldiers

Only 4 out of 7 resources were good links.  Recommends a video that has to be purchased.  High interest themes for boys.  Could be edited to make it worthwhile

http://www.memphis-schools.k12.tn.us/admin/tlapages/buffalo.html

The Fate of the Rainforests

This rainforest WebQuest is designed for 5th graders and integrates math, social studies and science. It makes excellent use of graphics and is very nice to look at.  Choices of perspectives are offered to the students but cooperative groups are not required and roles are not specified.  The task/process is stated, but not very specific.  This WebQuest makes good use of web resources as well as offline resources.  It does not require use of technology for the student presentations, but it would lend itself to powerpoint presentations if desired.  A scoring guide is included for student feedback.

http://www.spa3.k12.sc.us/WebQuests/Rainforests/Index.htm

The Realm of Fairy Tales

This would be a good first webquest.  It is laid out well, and is easy to follow.  It has an engaging opening, a clear task, and compels attention.  Students read some fairy tales and then create one of their own.  They have to utilize at least three themes in the fairy tale.  A scoring guide is included.

Weaknesses are the fairy tales used are too common.  We feel it would be better with lesser known fairy tales.

http://204.170.128.4/schools/marvine/jhoke/jhwebquest/intro.htm

Body Tune

The name of this webquest is Body Tune.  It is a health web quest about the human body.  The kids play roles and gather info to help out "Bummer Body", a character in bad physical shape.  This is not a good beginning web quest because it is quite involved and has many links to investigate.  It does require higher level thinking skills.

Weaknesses are working in large groups.  That is only a problem if you have a class that does not work well together.

http://www.plainfield.k12.in.us/hschool/webq/webq49/bodytune.htm

Discover the Zoo (only works on Internet Explorer)

The children are asked to choose an animal and design its home in a zoo.
Discover the Zoo WebQuest is a fabulous choice for third grade.  This WebQuest is ideal for third grade for the following reasons:
        -clear and concise question
        -visually appealing without over stimulating
        -clear links
        -about animal
        -short
There are some downfalls.
        -I am unsure of what the designer expects as an outcome.
        -no rubric
These downfalls also give you some freedom to do with your class what is best for them.

http://www.spa3.k12.sc.us/WebQuests/zoo/zooquest.html
 

Choosing a Classroom Pet

This is a site that has students evalutate the best classroom pet to choose for their room.  They have to evalute the practicality of several pets, the reactions of different school personnel involved, and then make a display and presentation about their choice of the best classroom pet.  The graphics are cute and the task is authentic for students.

 http://www.plainfield.k12.in.us/hschool/webq/webq70/

Me?  Live in a Rainforest? 

It is for grades 3-6.  This is the website where it can be located:

http://www.memphis-schools.k12.tn.us/admin/tlapages/tropical_rain.htm

Why we like this webquest?

It has an interest level compelling to grade 3-6 children.  Real world concerns are examined in this WebQuest.. The sites to visit are interesting, colorful, and easy to access.  Higher level thinking is required in order for the student to write about how their life would be different living in the Rainforest  and reporting to their class.  The directions are easily understood.   The task is clearly stated.  The roles are well defined.  The rubric is clear and well designed.  This looks like a favorite quest for students and teachers!

Space-The Final Frontier

http://www.spa3.k12.sc.us/WebQuests/Solar%20System/Index.html

This Webquest would probably be interesting to elementary age students.  The directions for completing tasks were easy to follow.  Areas missing from the quest were roles, which could be given during explanation of the quest.  Higher level thinking of compare/contrast and predicting were used throughout the task process.  Students were required to write an essay.  Although there were many things missing in this quest that would make it better a teacher could use it to start all over and create their own quest on a similar idea.