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Alberta Bound
Alberta Bound
A Multiage Webquest for Educational Support Grades 4-6
Designed by: Karen Stetski


Introduction| Task| Process| Evaluation| Conclusion| Teacher Page |Credits

Introduction:

Alberta is province with an abundance of natural beauty, big cities, small towns, and many interesting tourist attractions. Thousands of tourists visit Alberta each year and find it helpful to have their trip planned out for each day of the holiday to make the most of their time here. A group of 15 grade 4,5 and 6 students from Nova Scotia are coming to visit Alberta for the first time and you will responsible for planning the trip as well as being their tour guides.

Task:

You are going to research Alberta's tourist sites and then prepare a detailed itinerary for a tour of attractions in Alberta.
This will be for a group of students the same ages as you. These are the conditions to consider:

  • The tour will take place in February 2009.
  • They only have five days for the tour (they don’t want to miss too much school!)
  • They want to see at least four different attractions and want to see as much of Alberta as they can, but the students cannot travel further north than Edmonton on this trip.
  • They have a budget of $500 per student for attractions, entertainment and food.
  • Hotel and bus/air transportation is already budgeted and paid for.
You will prepare and present your itinerary for the students’ trip which should include:
  • A 2--3 paragraph written description of each attraction and why it will appeal to the students.
  • A map of Alberta showing the route the students will travel.
  • Where each group will be each day, including location and start and end times.
  • Colour photos, music, props, websites and anything else you think would be of interest to the students and would help prepare them for their trip.

Process: To help you with your planning, the students have given a list of some of their interests and activities they like:
  • Playing and watching sports of all kinds.
  • Amusement parks
  • Shopping
  • Movies, especially westerns and science fiction.

Their teacher also wanted to make sure the students kept up on their school work. They will be studying pre-historic life in Science and Canada’s early Aboriginal communities in Social Studies. When you are planning try to find one or two attractions which might incorporate their studies. Also, keep in mind that as their tour guide you will be expected to know about each tourist site you take them to. You will need to prepare a short written information sheet (2-3 paragraphs) for each attraction in case they have any questions.
Step 1: Individually, research possible attractions you may want to visit and record at least 5-6 on a list. Start with the following websites:

Step 2: In your assigned group of four go through your lists and as a group decide which four attractions you think would be best for your tour. Keep in mind what would be most appealing to the students.


Travel Alberta

Destination Canada

Discover Alberta

Step 3: Decide where your tour will start and end. Consider things like travel distance and convenience to other locations.

Step 4: Each student is responsible for researching one tourist site/attraction.
Record your information and make sure you save everything on your computer.

Step 5: In a MS Word document type up your 2-3 paragraph summary of your attraction. Use descriptive language to make sure each attraction sounds interesting and appealing. Remember to also check your spelling and grammar.

Step 6: As a group compile all your information to finalize and prepare your itinerary. Don't forget to include any costs, opening/closing times, and any other special information like what type of clothes/equipment will be needed (snowboard rentals, warm boots etc). Make sure you also show where your tour will visit and the route they will take on your map of Alberta.

Step 7: On your poster boards, display all your information and get ready to present your itinerary to the class.

Evaluation: You will receive constructive comments by your teacher through the whole project, from your fellow classmates and a self-assessment on your group work, effort, actual itinerary and on your presentation.

Areas of
Evaluation		 Excellent Accomplished Room for Improvement
Worked cooperatively and collaborated with group members. Followed directions.


Researched at least two sites
and made "jot" notes of research.


Completed the 2-3
paragraph summaries for
each attraction.Took into
account the students'
timelinestime lines and interests.


Prepared a chart of expenses
and kept within the
students' budget.


Created a visually interesting
presentation board
and included additional
information


Presented project as group
with each member
participating in the
presentation.



Conclusion:

By the end of this activity you will have learned more about the province you live in; the geography, historical sites, natural beauty, what some of the popular tourist attractions are in Alberta, and where to take visitors when they come to visit. You will also have researched and planned a trip in detail and created an interesting presentation of your work. Remember, these places are available to everyone, not just to visitors. If you haven’t been to some of these attractions maybe you should visit them yourself. Explore the province you live in and don't stop there; Canada has a wealth of wonderful places to visit!

Have Fun!!

Teacher Information: This Webquest focuses on numerous life and social skills like organization, pre-planning, cooperative group work and learning, in addition to the curricular areas of language arts, science, math and social studies. It can also be modified to suit the different grade levels of reading and writing in the Educational Support Program.

Credits: Thanks to www.webquest.org for their wonderful websites which has great samples, suggestions, and design templates for teachers to use. I highly recommend this site to help you get started with your WebQuest.
[Untitled]
Alberta clip art and photo found on Yahoo Images.

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