A WebQuest for 3 rd Grade Social Studies
Designed by
Jennifer Reier
Introduction Task Process Resources Evaluation Conclusion Credits

You are an international spy for the United States government! Your country needs you and your fellow field agent to go on a mission to solve a top secret case.

A criminal from Europe has stolen some top secret information from the United States so they can break into the United States Mint and steal a large amount of money.
The U.S. government wants you and your fellow agent to find the following information:
Which reference resources hold the information the
European spy stole to help him steal the money?

1.
You will be assigned a partner to help you solve the case. You are equals in the field and each person should share the work load.
2.
You will read about each type of reference book to gain as much knowledge as the criminal has. The criminal should not have more information than you do!
3.
You will follow the web links on each slide to find the information needed.
4.
You will record the information on your top secret note page (ONE page per group)
5.
Once you have listed all the information on your page, write a one paragraph summary report on the back for your boss that tells what information the criminal found. You and your partner may write the report together. Include where you think the criminal may strike next if we cannot find him/her.
6.
If you and your partner finish your mission early, you may follow the link on
the “Conclusion” slide to play a reference book game.
7.
You can click the
to get back to the home slide from any slide.

A dictionary is a reference book or web site that lists the words of the English language in alphabetical order. It provides the origin of the word, the
pronunciation of the word, part of speech of the word, and the definition
(meaning) of the word.
The criminal searched for the following words on http://www.learnersdictionary.com/definition/kid : mint, coin, and burglarize
MISSION: Follow the link and search for each word. Record the word, part(s) of speech, word origin, and definition(s). If the word has more than one definition, record TWO of them.

A thesaurus is a reference that lists synonyms for words. (Hint: A synonym is a word that means the same or almost the same). Not all words have a synonym.
The European spy used http://www.thesaurus.com/ to find synonyms for the words coin and spy.
MISSION: Follow the same link and search for the same words.
Record on your top secret page at least FOUR synonyms for the word.

An encyclopedia is a book, set of books, or web site that gives information on many subjects. They are usually arranged in alphabetical order.
The European spy looked up the United States Mint in the encyclopedia.
MISSION: Use http://www.britannica.com/ and search for
US Mint. Click on the word mint. Read the information about a mint and record on your spy page the four locations of the U.S. Mints.

An almanac is full of fun, useful
Information. It is a book or web site that is published yearly. It includes weather predictions for the year, astronomical events, tidal information, and other interesting information.
MISSION: The European spy looked up the weather for
March 1, 2005 for the zip code 37076. Go to http://www.almanac4kids.com/weather/index.php
Record the weather on your spy page.

An atlas is a collection of maps and/or charts.
MISSION: Go to http://www.mapsofworld.com/world
-maps/world-map-for-kids.html
. Find
Europe on the map. Record the animal that you see on Europe.
Then, click on Europe. Record five countries the European spy could be from.

• You will be graded on the following parts of the
WebQuest:
Notes: Rubric
Partner Work
Completion of Top
Secret Spy Page
Summary Report
1 point
Partners had difficulty sharing the work and did not collaborate together.
3 points
Partners worked fairly well together. Roles were slightly unequal, but the task was completed.
5 points
Partners worked very well together. Both did equal amounts of work and took ownership of the
WebQuest.
WebQuest was 100% completed.
Spy page was less than half completed.
Report was:
 not in paragraph form
 did not include a clear beginning and end
 had poor grammar and spelling
 did not use proper punctuation.

Summary may have been off topic.
Spy page was mostly complete and only lacked 2 or less items.
Report was:
 on topic
 in paragraph form
 included a clear

 beginning OR end had less than 5 grammar and spelling mistakes had less than 5 improper punctuation marks.
Report was:
 on topic
 in paragraph form
 had a clear

 beginning and end had less than 2 grammar and spelling mistakes had less than 2 improper punctuation marks.
Total Points
______/15 possible points

Congratulations! Your mission is now complete. You have found the information that the European spy found by using the main reference books found in the library: the dictionary, the thesaurus, the encyclopedia, the almanac, and the atlas. The United States government commends you for your excellent service to the nation!
If you are finished early, you and your partner may play a game at http://www.quia.com/cb/463422.html
to reward your speedy, accurate work.
You may also visit https://www.usmint.gov/kids/cartoons/ to watch videos about the U.S. Mint. Enjoy!

All clip art is courtesy of Microsoft Office PowerPoint.
Student Resource links:
Dictionaryhttp://www.learnersdictionary.com/definition/kid
Thesaurushttp://www.thesaurus.com
Encyclopediahttp://www.britannica.com/
Almanachttp://www.almanac4kids.com/weather/index.php
Atlashttp://www.mapsofworld.com/world-maps/world-map-forkids.html
Reference resource gamehttp://www.quia.com/cb/463422.html
U.S. Mint websitehttps://www.usmint.gov/kids/cartoons/
WebQuest Templatehttp://questgarden.com/98/39/0/100313000646/index.htm
Tennessee Department of Education for Curriculum Standardshttp://tn.gov/education/standards/ (English/Language Arts, Writing, and Technology)

After completing the WebQuest, the learner will be able to determine which reference resource to use when he/she needs to locate information.

Technology:
• 3.1.2. Students will exhibit a proficiency in the use of technology.
• 3.5.1 Students will use technology to locate, evaluate, and collect information from a variety of sources.
English/Language Arts:
• Conduct short as well as more sustained research projects based on focused questions, demonstrating understanding of the subject under investigation.
• Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.
Writing:
• Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and information clearly.
• Conduct short research projects that build knowledge about a topic.
• Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.