Webquest Wonder

I finished my web quest. I am calling this entry web quest wonder because it truly is a wonder that I made this. This was my first web quest. I have used other's web quests with my students, but I have never created my own. It was not to bad. I think I'll do a better job next time since I know what I'm doing. (Well a little anyway.)The assignment was not very complex. It was just time consuming. But since I'm not extremely tech savvy, it takes me longer to do things anyway. The Webquest I created is titled Go West! I was inspired to make this webquest because my students were reading a book about the western US and all the many tourist attractions there. They were so interested that we went to the computer lab just so they could find out more about these great places. I thought this would make a good webquest for my students to complete because they were so interested in finding out more. Web quest are great teaching tools to use with students because they love to find information on the Internet. Webquest lend themselves to cooperate learning and increase reading and comprehension skills. I think it sometimes can be difficult to find websites that are kid-friendly and easy to comprehend. That was the problem I ran into while making my webquest. Some of the sites I've posted were a little difficult for my second graders. But with a little help they were able to complete the assignment.
I use an animal webquest with my students each year right before we go on our zoo field trip. The students always enjoy learning about the animals and their habitats.

Digital Bookmaking Delight

I've completed my digital book. I'm very proud of how it turned out. My students enjoyed seeing themselves in the illustrations and they loved recording the text. My students are going to begin their own digital books tomorrow. They each chose a weather topic to write a book about. They made a trial hard copy to take with them when they make their digital book. I strongly recommend students having a paper copy before applying their work to PowerPoint. It helps them know the expectations for the assignment. My hope is that my students will be able to share their digital books with the kindergartners. I think they would all enjoy that. I can see how this would be so beneficial for students. Those that are struggling readers can use this as a tool to help them become better readers by practicing accuracy and fluency. This assignment strengthened my students farther because they had write the text to go along with their books. In this one lesson we were covering Science, Reading,writing,and technology objectives. I bet I could have incorporated math in there too if I had thought of it. It is great when an activity integrates so well with the entire curriculum. This project although somewhat time consuming was time well spent in my opinion. This is project I will use again and again. My students loved doing it and so did I. There's a link to my book on the left. Check it out! It's so cute.