Six WebQuests appropriate for

Third grade

Selected by

Alyssa Larson

Alarson@dysart.org

Fifty States WebQuest

Created By: Christine Hunt

Intended Audience: Grades 3-5 Social Studies

WebQuest Components Included:

• Introduction
• Task
• Process
• Resources
• Evaluation
• Conclusion

Aesthetically this WebQuest was not really appealing. The background is lined paper and there are no graphics that support the content. The WebQuest itself does not seem too difficult. Students choose a state to research and use the recommend sites to gather needed information. Once all state information has been found, students use Hyperstudio to create a multimedia presentation. All links on this WebQuest are intact.

Overall, it seems that this project is not to time consuming and the expectations, for the most part, are understandable. I feel that there are some areas that need to be clarified more and I think that it would be nice to allow the students choice when it comes to the multimedia project.

Planet WebQuest

Created By: Rhonda Gunning and Wendy Thomson

Intended Audience: 3^rd Grade-Language Arts and Science

WebQuest Components Included:

• Introduction
• Task
• Process
• Evaluation
• Conclusion
• Teacher Page-Provided books that dealt with space, other Websites, and suggestions to help get kids started.

Overall, I feel that this WebQuest is well done. The WebQuest is visually appealing, easy to navigate through, and all links are working properly. The task is clearly defined-researching a planet that you and your crew will be visiting. The process is a bit lengthy and may confuse the reader if they are not breaking the steps down one by one.

If I were to have my students complete this WebQuest I would break it down into several days. The process is lengthy and may be too much for a third grader to handle all at once. One thing I noticed is that there are no standards listed. Before beginning make sure that this WebQuest meets your state standards. Another thing that I find helpful is the teacher section. Here, the authors provided a list of books that would help with the research of this project, other websites that may be helpful, evaluation tools, and a suggestion to make a launch page for the WebQuest.

Mystery Animal

Created By: Heidi Ebersole

Intended Audience: 3^rd Grade Science

WebQuest Components Included:

• Introduction
• Task
• Process
• Resources
• Evaluation
• Conclusion
• Credits
• Teacher Page

The colors used for both the background and the font are not visually appealing. The explanation of the task and process are understandable for third graders. If I were to use this site I would make sure that students have the background knowledge on classification and PowerPoint. The resource page contains very few resources…I would have that there would need to be more. Another thing missing is a time line and state standards from the WebQuest.

Human Body WebQuest

Created By: Julie Graff

Intended Audience: 3^rd Grade Science

WebQuest Components Included:

• Introduction
• Task
• Process
• Evaluation
• Teacher Site
• Conclusion

I do not feel that this is a visually appealing WebQuest. I was too distracted to read the information provided because of the backgrounds used. The visuals did not flow-different backgrounds for each component. There are few resources; I counted eight, to help students with their task. Even then, a couple of the links did not work. In order to successfully use this WebQuest in class, one would need to gather more resources and provide students with samples. Still I feel that the process is a bit confusing for third graders to understand.

Breaking News…Reporting From the Edge of Disaster

Created By: Janelle Ringgenberg

Intended Audience: 3^rd Grade Science

WebQuest Components Included:

• Introduction
• Task
• Process
• Evaluation
• Conclusion
• Credits
• Teacher

This WebQuest is ready to use. The site is easy to navigate and the text is not too difficult for third graders. The site is not full of bells and whistles. It is visually appealing, a bit plain but it gets the point across. The author provided hyperlinks to words that students may not know the definitions of. It was a nice way to use pop-out windows. There are plenty of resources…however some of the links are not linked or not linked properly. I think that it would have been nice to use anchors on the more lengthy pages. Teacher pages provide needed information to successfully use the WebQuest.

Weather Warning!

Created By: Elizatbeth Torbit

Intended Grade Level: 3^rd Grade Social Science

WebQuest Components Included:

• Introduction
• Task
• Process
• Evaluation
• Conclusion
• Teachers
• Credits

Overall this WebQuest is ready to use. The site is easy to navigate, and is not too fluffy. Since the navigation terms are not the same as other WebQuests, it may be confusing for some. The appearance of the site is not overboard, but a bit simplistic. The graphics included relate to the topic of the WebQuest. The frame, with the WebQuest links, stays the same while the various pages are different colors. It would have been nice to have anchors on the longer pages. The information for teachers is great. Standards, objectives, and resources are provided.