TITLE OF THE LEARNING EXPERIENCE: Internet Scavenger Hunt by Melissa Morris

1. LEARNING CONTEXT
MST Standard 2: Students will access, generate, process and transfer information using appropriate technologies. 1-Information technology is used to retrieve, process, and communicate information and as a tool to enhance learning. *Access needed information from printed media, electronic databases, and community resources. 2-Knowledge of the impacts and limits of information systems is essential to its effective and ethical use. *Demonstrate ability to evaluate information.

This learning experience will teach students the basics of maneuvering in cyberspace. This activity will be helpful in any research situation across all content areas. The scavenger hunt content can be modified to address a specific topic or it can remain general to focus simply on the computing goals.

Students need a basic working knowledge of the computer. They need to know how to use the keyboard and the mouse. Students will need basic reading skills to be able to read and comprehend to locate information on the Internet. (See Instructional Modifications)

2. PROCEDURE
1) Talk with students about the Internet. Complete a KWL chart about the Internet. Write things students know under the K and things they would like to find out about under L. 2) Explain that they are going to learn about the Internet by completing a scavenger hunt. 3) Model the scavenger hunt using different sites and information. Go to http://www.webgrrls.com/toronto/html/jr_scavenger.html or wysiwyg://19/http://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/webhound/hunt.html. 4) Explain that at these sites there are "hyperlinks" to clues and that the students will be able to do that kind of hunt after they complete the teacher provided scavenger hunt. Pass out hard copies of whichever site being used as a model. Model how to input each site and locate the necessary information. 5) Pass out the written directions for student scavenger hunt and explain that each student will have a turn on the Internet. When they get their turn the teacher will set them up on the opening page. The student will follow the written directions to locate the information and document the correct answers on a piece of paper and hand them in. 6) After the products are assessed offer students time to use the pre-designed scavenger hunts at the alternate sites, and finish the KWL chart by writing down what the students learned about the Internet by scavenging.

3. INSTRUCTIONAL/ENVIRONMENTAL MODIFICATIONS
Instructional-This Learning Experience can be done at any level, however, the teacher would need to make sure that lower level readers or higher level readers have appropriate prompts and items to scavenge. The prompts (written directions) can always be simple (for very low levels they could even be rebus based), but the sites and items to be scavenged should be developmentally appropriate and challenge the students at their own level. Another possibility is having students buddy up to complete the scavenger hunt. Environmental-Computers with Internet access can be hard to come by. If there is not a lab it is still very possible to utilize this experience. If there is only 1 Internet computer available (as was the case when this Learning Experience was done). Students simply rotate at the computer. If students have Internet access at home, they could do this at home, but this is not recommended.

4. TIME REQUIRED
Planning-Variable, if this Learning Experience is used as posted there will be little or no planning time involved. However, it is modified for a specific grade or subject then the planning could take 2-3 hours to search for appropriate sites and items plus revising the written directions for students. Implementation-This should take roughly 30-40 minutes to explain and model to children. It should take each child 15-20 minutes to complete the scavenger hunt. The time for each student will be dependent on proficiency and the number of items. Assessment-Assessing the products with the rubric should take 15-30 minutes.

5. RESOURCES
Students-A copy of the written directions, a computer with Internet access, paper and pencil. Teacher-A computer with a word processor and Internet access, an overhead presenter for the computer.

6. ASSESSMENT PLAN
Students will be assessed on the products they create by doing the Internet scavenger hunt. The rubric below will be used to assess the products. ITEM: means that the Website was found and the requested information was indicated on the student's paper. DOCUMENTATION: means that the student followed the directions and wrote all of the appropriate information and it was formatted correctly.

7. STUDENT WORK
Send three or four samples of student work:

• that reflect different levels of student performance; and
• include comments reflecting the basis for teacher's assessment.

8. REFLECTION
Listed below you will find 10 Website addresses and an assignment for each one. Your job is to find the answers!! Use your own piece of paper. Make sure you include everything that will correctly answer each questions.

http://www.brooklynfriends.org/studentwork/index.htmlWhen you get there click on the words Learn about Science. What did the seventh graders make vivid models of?

http://www.mamamedia.com/aol/so_laugh2_052199.html When you get there click on the box that says laugh attack. Tell me a joke! Don’t' forget the answer!!

http://freezone.com/coverstory/purrfectpet/index.html Take the Pet quiz and tell me your results!

http://www.smokeybear.com/cgi-bin/rbox/fr.cgi How many acres of forest are in the United States?

http://www.eduplace.com/tales/ Choose a title…complete all of the blanks with the correct part of speech and then click on "See Your Wacky Web Tale". Go to the file menu and click on Print. Print out your tale!!

http://forum.swarthmore.edu/k12/mathtips/multiplication.tips.html Tell me 2 math tricks.

http://www.2.northstar.k12.ak.us/schools/upk/upk.home.html What animal roams around University park Elementary's playground? What is his name and tell me 2 things about him.

http://netvet.wustl.edu/e-zoo.htm Click on animals and tell me 5 animals you can find out more about!

http://www.parkmaitland.org/sciencefair/experiments.html Look through the science fair projects these students have done…Tell me about one of them.

http://www.cybervillage.com/westmoreland Click on Faculty Pages and tell me what one teacher assigned for homework tonight!! Maybe even your teacher!