In this project, you will be researching a particular state, assigned randomly, and creating a webpage of your findings using Wikispaces. Now that you all have your coordinates, here is our schedule for the next week!
Monday: You will type your given coordinates into Google Earth to discover what state you will be researching. After that, use Google and other resources to find out 20 facts about your state. This information will make up the first page of your Wiki. See the rubric for what type of information you need. Next, you will meet with your regional groups (groups of students whose states are located in the same region of the US) to discuss any similarities or differences between your states. Save your facts in a Word document on your USB drive. In addition, you will need to find the official website of your state. It will probably end in ".gov" instead of ".com." Copy and paste the web address to the Word document too.
Tuesday: Today you will again use Google Earth to find a landmark in your state. Type in your coordinates to get to your state. Click on the little camera icons throughout the state to view photos, and choose your favorite landmark. This will be the basis of your second Wiki page, and you will write one paragraph about the landmark to go on that page. Do a Google image search to find some images of your landmark, which you will also use on your Wiki page. Place your landmark paragraph and your images into a Word document and save it to your USB drive.
Wednesday: Today you will plan a trip to your landmark. Use websites like Expedia.com or Travelocity.com to find all the information you need, listed in the rubric. In addition, you may need to find ticket prices for your landmarks. Again, save all the information to a Word document on your USB drive. At this point, you should have 3 Word documents on your USB drive: one for each page of your Wiki.
Thursday: You should still remember how to create a Wiki from our lesson last month, so today we will be creating our Wikis. Use the same Wikispaces accounts you used in our lesson last time, but create a new Wiki. Title it with the name of your state. Create the four pages you will need, and title them as I outlined in the rubric. Past the information from your Word documents into the proper pages and format it so it looks presentable. You will remember that to change the font and color, we click the letter "T" with a paint palette on the top of the "Edit" page. Add in any photos you wish to include, and create the links by using the buttons on the "Edit" toolbar. Finally, create your five questions on the "Quiz" page. See the rubric for details.
Friday: You will use this time to finish up your Wikis. If you are finished, have someone else from your regional group review your Wiki while you review his or hers. Tell each other if any changes need to be made, and make the changes. Everyone must review at least one Wiki and have their reviewed by one person. On Monday, you will present your Wikis to the class.
Important Links: The Weather Channel will help you find the temperatures and climate of your state. Travelocity will help you find plane tickets, hotels, and car rentals. Expedia is another resource for plane tickets, hotels, and car rentals. Wikispaces is where you will create your Wiki.
Rubric for Wikis: -Wiki must contain four pages: Basic Information, Landmark, Trip and Quiz
-Basic Information: This is where you will list the 20 facts about their state. Must include population size, year it became a state, state bird, flower, flag, etc., average temperature for this time of year, and any other points of interest. The information can be in either paragraph form, like a report, or in bullets. Page must contain at least 3 photos or images pertaining to the state, such as a map, a photo of a landmark, etc. Must also contain link to state government website and one other relevant link.
-Landmark: This page must contain one paragraph about the landmark and several photos of the landmark (at least 2.) If possible, you should include a link to an official website for the landmark. -Trip: Pretend you are planning a trip to the landmark of your state from June 3 to June 7. You have a $2500 budget. Find the least expensive airline ticket, or if your state borders our state, you may choose to drive there. List the roundtrip ticket price or the estimated cost of gas to get there. Next, decide if you will need to rent a car (if you are driving to the state, you obviously won't.) List the price of a car rental for the number of days you are visiting. Next, find a hotel to stay in. You may decide to book the least expensive hotel, but remember that you want a hotel that is near the landmark, so you may pay more for a closer hotel. You will have to decide what is more important. Finally, if your landmark requires a ticket to visit it, find out how to purchase one and list the price. Remember, you will have to eat for all of the days you are there, so set aside money for food! (Hint: perhaps you might choose a hotel that offers free breakfast!) In addition, you must make a list of items you would pack. For this part, you will have to know the climate of your state and what the weather will be like when you are there. Try to keep your list under 20 items.
-Quiz: This page will be shown to the class as a way of measuring their understanding of the presentation. Questions can be multiple choice or short answer, and students will answer them verbally by raising their hands. Questions must be about information that was clearly presented in the previous pages, but should still be challenging. The page must contain exactly 5 questions. Answers must be written in a very small yet readable font at the bottom of the page.
Tip: Make the pages visually pleasing! Use colors that are visible even to old eyes, and make sure the font is big enough for everyone to read from the projector.
In this project, you will be researching a particular state, assigned randomly, and creating a webpage of your findings using Wikispaces. Now that you all have your coordinates, here is our schedule for the next week!
Monday: You will type your given coordinates into Google Earth to discover what state you will be researching. After that, use Google and other resources to find out 20 facts about your state. This information will make up the first page of your Wiki. See the rubric for what type of information you need. Next, you will meet with your regional groups (groups of students whose states are located in the same region of the US) to discuss any similarities or differences between your states. Save your facts in a Word document on your USB drive. In addition, you will need to find the official website of your state. It will probably end in ".gov" instead of ".com." Copy and paste the web address to the Word document too.
Tuesday: Today you will again use Google Earth to find a landmark in your state. Type in your coordinates to get to your state. Click on the little camera icons throughout the state to view photos, and choose your favorite landmark. This will be the basis of your second Wiki page, and you will write one paragraph about the landmark to go on that page. Do a Google image search to find some images of your landmark, which you will also use on your Wiki page. Place your landmark paragraph and your images into a Word document and save it to your USB drive.
Wednesday: Today you will plan a trip to your landmark. Use websites like Expedia.com or Travelocity.com to find all the information you need, listed in the rubric. In addition, you may need to find ticket prices for your landmarks. Again, save all the information to a Word document on your USB drive. At this point, you should have 3 Word documents on your USB drive: one for each page of your Wiki.
Thursday: You should still remember how to create a Wiki from our lesson last month, so today we will be creating our Wikis. Use the same Wikispaces accounts you used in our lesson last time, but create a new Wiki. Title it with the name of your state. Create the four pages you will need, and title them as I outlined in the rubric. Past the information from your Word documents into the proper pages and format it so it looks presentable. You will remember that to change the font and color, we click the letter "T" with a paint palette on the top of the "Edit" page. Add in any photos you wish to include, and create the links by using the buttons on the "Edit" toolbar. Finally, create your five questions on the "Quiz" page. See the rubric for details.
Friday: You will use this time to finish up your Wikis. If you are finished, have someone else from your regional group review your Wiki while you review his or hers. Tell each other if any changes need to be made, and make the changes. Everyone must review at least one Wiki and have their reviewed by one person. On Monday, you will present your Wikis to the class.
Important Links:
The Weather Channel will help you find the temperatures and climate of your state.
Travelocity will help you find plane tickets, hotels, and car rentals.
Expedia is another resource for plane tickets, hotels, and car rentals.
Wikispaces is where you will create your Wiki.
Rubric for Wikis:
-Wiki must contain four pages: Basic Information, Landmark, Trip and Quiz
-Basic Information: This is where you will list the 20 facts about their state. Must include population size, year it became a state, state bird, flower, flag, etc., average temperature for this time of year, and any other points of interest. The information can be in either paragraph form, like a report, or in bullets. Page must contain at least 3 photos or images pertaining to the state, such as a map, a photo of a landmark, etc. Must also contain link to state government website and one other relevant link.
-Landmark: This page must contain one paragraph about the landmark and several photos of the landmark (at least 2.) If possible, you should include a link to an official website for the landmark.
-Trip: Pretend you are planning a trip to the landmark of your state from June 3 to June 7. You have a $2500 budget. Find the least expensive airline ticket, or if your state borders our state, you may choose to drive there. List the roundtrip ticket price or the estimated cost of gas to get there. Next, decide if you will need to rent a car (if you are driving to the state, you obviously won't.) List the price of a car rental for the number of days you are visiting. Next, find a hotel to stay in. You may decide to book the least expensive hotel, but remember that you want a hotel that is near the landmark, so you may pay more for a closer hotel. You will have to decide what is more important. Finally, if your landmark requires a ticket to visit it, find out how to purchase one and list the price. Remember, you will have to eat for all of the days you are there, so set aside money for food! (Hint: perhaps you might choose a hotel that offers free breakfast!) In addition, you must make a list of items you would pack. For this part, you will have to know the climate of your state and what the weather will be like when you are there. Try to keep your list under 20 items.
-Quiz: This page will be shown to the class as a way of measuring their understanding of the presentation. Questions can be multiple choice or short answer, and students will answer them verbally by raising their hands. Questions must be about information that was clearly presented in the previous pages, but should still be challenging. The page must contain exactly 5 questions. Answers must be written in a very small yet readable font at the bottom of the page.
Tip: Make the pages visually pleasing! Use colors that are visible even to old eyes, and make sure the font is big enough for everyone to read from the projector.