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 What are
WebQuests and Web Hunts?
Search for the word "WebQuest" or "WebHunt" in any search engine, and you soon discover hundreds, if not thousands, of online lessons created by teachers around the world. What is a WebQuest? A WebHunt? A WebQuest is an inquiry-oriented online tool for learning -- a classroom-based lesson in which most or all of the information that students explore and evaluate comes from the World Wide Web. A WebHunt is the next generation of the age old classroom favorite -- a scavenger hunt, only this one is done on the Web. There is a proverb that says, "Tell me and I forget, show me and I remember, involve me and I understand." Inquiry implies involvement that leads to understanding. Furthermore, involvement in learning implies possessing skills and attitudes that permit you to seek resolutions to questions and issues while you construct new knowledge. "Inquiry" is defined as "a seeking for truth, information, or knowledge -- seeking information by questioning." Individuals carry on the process of inquiry from the time they are born until they die. This is true even though they might not reflect upon the process. Infants begin to make sense of the world by inquiring. From birth, babies observe faces that come near, they grasp objects, they put things in their mouths, and they turn toward voices. The process of inquiring begins with gathering information and data through applying the human senses -- seeing, hearing, touching, tasting, and smelling. Beyond that, WebQuests and WebHunts:
Activity 1: Identifying WebHunts WebHunts can be a fun way for teachers to encourage their students to experiment with different search techniques. Hunts basically involve information that can only be found by first searching for an appropriate online resource, and then searching within that resource for the answer. There are three primary ways to go about it, depending on your audience, the time you have to put into creating the questions, and the level of challenge you want to put into the hunt. 1.) Theme-based scavenger hunts: In this type of hunt, the list of questions revolves around a single topic or idea. Teachers may wish to create seasonal hunts for Halloween, Thanksgiving and Independence Day. A few visits to web sites that cover these themes will usually turn up a treasure trove of fun facts and information to base the scavenger hunt list on. Middle and High School students may want to create lists of photos that might be found online, like rare cars in a particular color, or a single photo that has several listed celebrities in it. The possibilities are endless, so long as you stick with a theme. 2.) Single Web site scavenger hunts: A popular primary grade teacher choice is the creation of an scavenger hunt where students look for clues or information within a single Web site page. Teachers that wish to create a scavenger hunt that won't have students running amok over an endless number of Web sites may wish to concentrate on one large, informational site and pull their questions for there. For instance, a visit to Smithsonian online can turn up an endless supply of historical facts, and interesting photographs. 3.) Free-for-all scavenger hunts: In this style of hunt, all bets are off. Questions can be easy enough to merit a quick search on Google, or they can be complicated enough to require a journey into the vastness of the World Wide Web. The About Web Search scavenger hunt was created in this style and although some answers can be easily found with a little bit of knowledge of basic search engines, others will require you to first locate a web site that might have the answer, and then search through their databases to locate it. This style of scavenger hunt has no theme, and no limits. It's ideal for high school students and with prior skills training possibly grades 6 through 8. Let's do one together to get a feel for what a WebHunt can do for your students. Follow this link to discover your place in history. Here are additional resources for creating your first WebHunt. Activity 2: Identifying WebQuests WebQuests all share the same basic elements. These include an Introduction, Task, Process, Evaluation, and Conclusion. Let's learn more about each element: Elements (Use these links along with your WebQuest Component Outline to learn each of these critical areas.) Start exploring the WebQuests that others have created. You may find a WebQuest that fits your needs. Look for the WebQuest elements in one of the following examples:
Activity 4: Evaluating WebQuests
Just because a WebQuest contains the essential elements, doesn't mean
that it's perfect for your classroom. Look beyond the structure and
examine the effectiveness, efficiency, and appeal of the project. Ask
yourself: Is it a quality project? Does it fit my needs? Is it a good
use of time? Is it a good use of technology?
Using the
Guidelines for Assessing WebQuests
rubric and these resource links, select a WebQuest to evaluate for
use in your classroom.
Activity 5: A WebQuest for you Now it's time for you and your team to complete your own WebQuest. Follow this link to work with your team to determine whether is a good QUESTion or not.
Activity 6: Integrating WebQuests Lastly, select a WebQuest you might integrate into your classroom, and consider the following questions:
Activity 6: One of Your Own Planning (Measure twice, cut once.)
Standards (An important part of any lesson planning.) WebQuest Templates Templates provide an easy way to get started creating your WebQuest. Linked below are templates for the Student and Teacher pages as simple, single-page documents. Templates with and without frames are available for download. The advantages that frames provide are that learners will have less scrolling to do and teachers will be able to concentrate on one small part of the design process at a time. The WebQuest Anatomy Page describes what each subpage is all about.
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