Introduction
After reading Night of the Twisters by Ivy Ruckman, students will complete the webquest to gain a better understanding of tornadoes and the destruction caused by them.  In addition, students will also develop a sense of team work while completing their projects.

    The students will need to have a basic understanding of how a computer works.  Skills such as scrolling and clicking on links are necessary for the completion of this project.

    This lesson was developed to help students become proficient in the following areas or the 4th Grade TEKS (Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills).
 

Chapter 112. Science (6)  Science concepts. The student knows that change can create recognizable patterns. The student is expected      to:           (A)  identify patterns of change such as in weather, metamorphosis, and objects in the sky; (10)  Science concepts. The student knows that certain past events affect present and future events. The student is      expected to:           (A)  identify and observe effects of events that require time for changes to be noticeable including           growth, erosion, dissolving, weathering, and flow;

Chapter 110. English Language Arts and Reading (2)  Listening/speaking/critical listening. The student listens critically to analyze and evaluate a speaker's      message(s). (8)  Reading/variety of texts. The student reads widely for different purposes in varied sources.  (9)  Reading/vocabulary development. The student acquires an extensive vocabulary through reading and      systematic word study. (15)  Writing/purposes. The student writes for a variety of audiences and purposes, and in a variety of forms.

    Students will also develop an understanding of collaboration because the project consists of team members combining scripts that were created during their research.  They will also develop an understanding of video techniques and editing.  When completing the filming the students will need to be directed on how to make their final presentation the best possible.

    Before students begin the process section, everyone needs to explore FEMA Kids to research background information on tornadoes.  This site is very kid friendly and will give all students a review as well as a knowledge of tornadoes.

    Students will need to be divided into groups of 6.  Each group of 6 will have three small groups of two students.  The students must decide who will be responsible for completing the research for each type of expert.  You might want to divide students yourself and let them draw experts out of a hat.  This will eliminate arguing.  It will also keep students from being "left out" of groups.

Meteorologists
Tornado Safety Engineers
Tornado Historian

    Each group of 6 students will create a news broadcast that will be video recorded.  Their final  presentation must be memorized from a script created by each team of experts.  Students will follow the steps below to complete their project.  These steps are located on the Student Page.

           STEP 1:  Read the descriptions for each expert by clicking on
             the links below and choose two people for each type of
             expert.

           STEP 2: You and your partners working as those types of
             experts will respond to the questions by researching the
             information given by the links that correspond with the
             questions.

           STEP 3:  When your pairs have completed their research, you
             will meet with the rest of the group to create the broadcast of
             the information to the community.  Be sure to write down the
             script that will be read on camera.

The following resources are needed for completion of this project.

• Class set of Night of the Twisters that needs to be read prior to completing this WebQuest.
• Some type of internet browser.  Any type will work.  Examples might include Netscape or Internet Explorer.
• There needs to be at least one personal computer for each group of two students.
• For completion of the presentation a VHS video recorder needs to be available along with appropriate recording tapes.
• Links for use during the quest. As the instructor you might want to view these sites to make sure they are available for use in your classroom.

Grades for each student will be base on the following rubric.  All students in each group will receive the same grade.
 
 

Scores
13 -16 =  90 - 100 = A
  9 -12 =  80 -  89  = B
  5 -  8 =  70 - 79   = C
   1-  4 =  60 - 69   = D
         0=       0      = F

    This lesson will teach the students how valuable the internet is, and how they may can use it in the future.  The internet hold a vast amount of information and this lesson will introduce the students to one area that they are able to find information about.

 http://emints.more.net/info/northeast/tornadoquest/

http://www.dickinson.edu/~elbert/

http://www.wisp.k12.wi.us/schools/jeff/ullman/twisters.htm

http://www.greenville.k12.sc.us/hughes/archives/nottwq.html