Name:
Date:
Period:
The Panama Canal Webquest
Directions:
1. Go to website: http://mswillardwebquest.weebly.com/
2. Answer all questions on this worksheet.
3. Please stay on task and use only the sites contained within the
Webquest!
Website 1: Canal de Panama
1. Explore all of the links that interest you in this site. Click on the link
that says “What were the major obstacles in constructing the
waterway?” Read and summarize those 4 main obstacles in your own
words.
a. _______________________________________________
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b. _______________________________________________
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c. _______________________________________________
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d. _______________________________________________
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Website 2: Panama Canal Live Webcam
1. Click on each of the gray Webcam tabs and view each of the webcams.
Did you expect the Panama Canal to look and work the way it does?
Why or why not?
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Website 3: Panama Canal American Experience Video
1. Click on this tab, and follow the link to the time-elapsed YouTube
video. This video is a collection of live webcam shots that were put
together and played in fast motion. Watch and enjoy!
Website 4: Yellow Fever and Malaria in the Panama Canal
Yellow Fever and Malaria were a serious threat in the Canal Zone. Read
through the article in this link entitled: “General Article: Yellow Fever and
Malaria in the Canal,” and answer the following questions:
1. What caused people in the Canal Zone to become ill with Malaria and
Yellow Fever? How is it spread?
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Website 5: The Workers
There were workers from many countries who worked to create the Panama
Canal. Read through that article entitled, “General Article: The Workers,”
and answer the following questions:
1. Which countries or regions in the world were some of the workers in
Panama from? Name at least 5.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
2. How were most of the workers from countries other than the United
States housed? What were conditions like for them?
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Website 6: Photo Gallery: The Panama Canal
This tab will show you many pictures of the everyday life of Canal workers
taken during the construction of the Canal. Scroll through them, and read
each caption. Choose one of them, and complete the “Document Analysis
Worksheet.” Please complete all sections thoroughly!
Step 1. Observation
Study the photograph/piece of artwork for 2 minutes. Form an overall impression of the
photograph and then examine individual items.
.
Use the chart below to list people, objects, and activities that you observe.
People
Objects
Activities
Step 2. Inference
Based on what you have observed above, list three things you might infer from this
piece of art. Basically, what is the main idea?
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Can you make a connection to something learned/studied previously? (Prior
knowledge)
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Step 3. Questions
.
What questions does this photograph raise in your mind?
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Website 7: “Make the Dirt Fly!”
This link, created by the Smithsonian Institution, begins with an interactive
story. Click the link that says “~Enter~” Scroll through and read each page.
Choose one of the pages, and write a brief summary of it in your own words.
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Website 8: December 31, 1999
December 31st, 1999 was a very important day for Panamanians and
Americans alike. Read the History Channel article, Dec 31, 1999: Panama
Canal Turned over to Panama.
1. After reading the article, do you think it is important that Panama have
control over the Panama Canal? Explain your thinking, and support your
statement with evidence from the text.
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