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WebQuest Topic: Homeless Bird by Gloria Whelan
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Goals for the WebQuest:
1.
To view aspects of another culture through literature.
2.
Students will gain insight into the lives of women in India.
3.
Students will research historical information on Varanasi.
4.
Students will be introduced to the religion of Hinduism.
5.
Students will use geographic resources to learn the location of India and
the places in the story, including the Ganges River.
6.
Students will explore the artistic technique and symbolism of embroidery
in traditional Indian Kanthas.
Resources:
Internet
Resources Listed in the Process Section
Graphic
Organizer*
Introduction:
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Like
many girls her age in India, thirteen-year-old Koly is getting married. When she
discovers that the husband her parents have chosen for her is sickly boy with
wicked parents, Koly wishes she could flee. According to tradition, though, she
has no choice. On her wedding day, Koly's fate is sealed.
In the wake of
her marriage, however, Koly's life takes an unexpected turn, and she finds
herself alone in a strange city of white-sari-clad widows. Her only choice seems
to be to shed her name and her future and join the hopeless hordes who chant for
food. Being abandoned in a distant
city turns out to be a mixed blessing as Koly learns to live for herself and
pour her feelings into the beautiful art of embroidery.
Even then, cast
out in a current of time-worn tradition, this rare young woman sets out to forge
her own exceptional future. And a life, like a beautiful tapestry, comes
together for Koly-- one stitch at a time.
What is life
like in India? What would it be like for me if I lived there?
| The Task: |
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The teacher and students will read and discuss the
book Homeless Bird. The
students will form discussion groups for each of the categories of research:
Life in India, Women’s Roles, Geography, Hinduism, and Textiles.
As the students are reading through the book they will be using the
Internet to find information about life in India from the above perspectives.
The will keep track of their discussions and research using a graphic
organizer provided by the teacher. Each
group will use the information they discovered to create a multimedia slide show
using either PowerPoint or HyperStudio to present to the class. Each slide show
will give personal insight into each topic based on the inquiries created and
the responses to those inquiries into that specific aspect of the culture of
India.
The Process:
1.
First you'll be assigned to a team of 4 students. There will be five
groups. Each of the five groups will be given a topic to research and explore
while reading the book.
2.
The five groups and their resources are:
Life in India
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Life in India |
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Varanasi |
Women’s Roles
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Women in India |
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India's
widows live out sentence of shame, poverty THE
GIRLS WHO BECOME INVISIBLE WIDOWS Chronic
Hunger and the Status of Women in India Women
in India – another site |
Geography
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Geography of India |
Hinduism
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Hinduism |
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Hinduism
- watch a film about this religion that believes in many gods, or simply
read the text version |
Textiles
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Indian Textile Embroidery |
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Tambour
Embroidery, India. Tree of Life Embroidery
and appliqué in India Overview
of Various Artistic Techniques – Textiles Article
about kanthas with photo |
3.
As you progress through the book your team will also be doing research on
the Internet about your specific topic.
4.
You will need to keep notes about your topic in your graphic organizer.
Your group will develop 4 thought-provoking questions that integrate your
research with the content of the story.
5.
Daily discussion will include information about your research and how it
relates to the story. Keep this
information in your graphic organizer as well.
6.
Each person in the group will be responsible for making one of the slides
in a multimedia presentation to present to the class.
Each person will illustrate, using multimedia, one of the questions your
group formulated. Your group will create the introductory slide together.
It must be representative of the topic your group researched.
7. You will be evaluated using the rubric below.
Evaluation:
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3 |
2 |
1 |
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Title Card |
Title
is creative and original. Name, class and date are in the correct
location. Appropriate
graphic. No errors. |
Slide
has title, name, class and date, and a graphic. There are no errors. |
Either
title, name, class, date or graphic is missing. Error. |
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Content/Quality |
Slide
show has 5 completed slides. Each
slide other than the title slide has a well thought out question related
to the topic and is answered or addressed completely. The slides include graphics appropriate to the topic.
All sources are cited. |
Slide
show has 5 completed slides. Each
slide other than the title slide has a question related to the topic and
is answered or addressed completely.
The slides include graphics. All
sources are cited. |
Less
than 5 completed slides. Each
slide other than the title slide has a question related to the topic and
is answered. The slides do
not include graphics. Some
sources are not cited. |
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Text Elements |
The
fonts are easy-to-read and size varies for headings and text.
Use of italics, bold, and indentions enhance readability.
Text is appropriate in length.
The background color and text color enhance the readability. |
Sometimes
the fonts are easy-to-read but in a few places the use of fonts, italics,
bold, long paragraphs, color or busy background distracts from the
readability. |
Overall
readability is difficult. Too
many different fonts, dark or busy backgrounds and overuse of styles or
inappropriate size distract from the readability. |
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Layout |
The
layout is aesthetically pleasing and contributes to the overall
presentation. Appropriate use
of headings and space. Background
is appropriate and consistent. |
The
layout uses space appropriately. There
is no crowding of information or overlap of objects.
Background is appropriate. |
The
layout shows some structure, but appears cluttered and busy and distracts
from the content. Background
is inappropriate. |
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Graphics |
Images
are the proper size with no distortion.
All images enhance the content |
Images
are the correct size with no distortion.
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Images
are too small or too large, fuzzy or distorted. |
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Mechanics/Spelling |
The
text is written with no errors in grammar, capitalization,
punctuation and spelling. |
The
text is clearly written with little or no editing required for grammar,
punctuation and spelling. (1-2
errors.) |
Spelling,
punctuation, and grammar errors distract or impair readability.
(3 or more errors.) |
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Technology Skills |
Required
no teacher assistance to construct the slide show. |
Required
some teacher assistance to construct the slideshow. |
Required
constant teacher assistance to construct the slideshow.
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Conclusion: During
this project the students will look at life in India through the literature and
the Internet. They will follow
Koly’s life in India and learn what it is like to be a woman in India.
It is my
hope that the students will leave this project with an understanding of another
culture, through its religion, land, traditions, and symbolism.
For further study you could explore the resources below.
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Other
Internet Resources |
*Graphic Organizer-Homeless Bird
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Koly-Homeless Bird |
Daily Life in India |
Women’s Role |
Geography |
Hinduism |
Textiles-Symbolism |
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Notes:
