The Librarian's Internet - World Wide WebQuests

Everyone's talking about WebQuests, but what exactly is a WebQuest anyway? Bernie Dodge, a professor at San Diego State University who coined the term, defines a WebQuest as 'an inquiry-oriented activity in which some or all of the information that learners interact with comes from resources on the Internet.'

If you think WebQuests are just for classroom teachers and homeschoolers, think again. Librarians can also turn many subjects into fun online lessons. How about a WebQuest on basic library research or how to cite a source? Let's get started. Questward ho!

Here's a brief and nontechnical online tutorial on WebQuests written from a teacher's perspective. You can create a Quest of your own or visit other sites for more in-depth information. Created by: Network for Instructional TV, Inc. Don't Miss: The browser and URL basics, accessible under tutorial 'Prerequisites.'

If you're a WebQuest newbie, check out this site for lots of detailed information about how to create Quests and display them successfully on the Web. Created by: San Diego city schools. Don't Miss: The well-organized charts and effective graphic explanations.

This cool site is designed to inform both teachers and middle/high school students about WebQuests. It covers the basics of planning, research, and design-using Quests, of course! Created by: David Young, senior instructor, University of Colorado at Denver. Don't Miss: The Flash-animated, sound-filled introductions-one for teachers, the other for students.

More than a thousand WebQuests devised by educators around the world are available here. Created by: Bernie Dodge, professor of educational technology at San Diego State University. Don't Miss: The vast, selective list of WebQuests-the social studies section alone contains more than 400-arranged by topic and grade level (K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, and adult). Particularly engaging are the K-2 lessons, including 'Arthur's Tooth,' based on Marc Brown's series. Detour: To experience a Web-Quest, visit 'A WebQuest About WebQuests' from the 'Training Materials' page.

Generate original WebQuest assignments with ease by filling out this simple Web-based form. Helpful descriptions walk you through each element of a WebQuest, and ready-to-

use graphics will make those assignments more attractive. Once you've finished, all you have to do is click on the 'Generate WebQuest' button, and print out the finished assignment. Created by: Teachnology, Inc.

This nifty rubric is one that you can customize and hand out to students. Simply add the name of your school/library, the WebQuest title and your name (or the teacher's), choose a graphic, and click on the 'Generate Web-Quest Rubric,' and print it. Created by: Teachnology, Inc. Detour: For another printable rubric geared for teachers, visit the WebQuest Page at edweb.sdsu.edu/webquest/webquestrubric.html.