FREE GOLD!

A WebQuest for 4th Grade/Social Studies

Designed by:
Lily Chen
Pamela King
Craig Wilsie

Introduction | Learners | Standards | Process | Resources | Evaluation | Credits | Student Page

Introduction

This WebQuest was developed as part of the requirements for EDTEC 570, Advanced Teaching with Technology.  Additionally, the WebQuest meets the California Content Standards for Grade 4.

The goals of this WebQuest are: 

1. To have students research some participants of the Gold Rush
2. To have students better understand the people of the Gold Rush by having them compose a diary that requires them to think of a Gold Rush character, the attitude of the character, and what life was like
3. To have students analyze the effects of the Gold Rush on their daily lives and the physical environments
4. To have students develop and perform their own Reader's Theater in groups

Learners

This WebQuest is designed for fourth grade students studying social science and involves reading and language arts to a certain extent.  It can also be used with other grade levels in accordance to the specific content standards.

This WebQuest is intended to be an extension activity for learning about the Gold Rush.  Prior to beginning this lesson, students will need to have basic knowledge of the Gold Rush (e.g., three routes to California, gold discovered in the American River in California).  Students should also have knowledge in basic computer skills, such as how to operate a keyboard and mouse and searching the internet. 

Curriculum Standards

This WebQuest covers the following California content standards for Grade 4 Social Science and Reading/Language Arts. 

Social Science Standards Addressed

Reading/Language Arts Standards Addressed

Reading
1.0 Word Analysis, Fluency, and Systematic Vocabulary Development: Students understand the basic features of reading.
2.0 Reading Comprehension: Students read and understand grade level appropriate material.

Writing
1.0 Students write clear, coherent sentences and paragraphs that develop a central idea.  Their writing shows they consider the audience and purpose.

Speaking
2.4 Recite dramatic dialogues using clear diction, tempo, volume, and phrasing.

Thinking Skills

Process

The following is the guidelines given to the students.  As the teacher and facilitator, you must assess whether students are understanding what is required and completing the tasks.

For this once in a lifetime experience, your job will be to create a diary using the information you learned on the Internet.  You will create a person to be in the year 1849.  Click on the pictures below to read about the people of 1849.  Use the information to help you decide what kind of person you want to be.

After reading about the things that happened to people during the Gold Rush, now you will pretend as if you are a person from back then.  You will invent this person, and you try to think like this person (e.g., How do they feel? What do they like? Who do they miss?), and you will write this person's diary. 

Your diary will have 5 entries from 5 different days.  You will use the diary provided by the teacher.  When writing in your diary, the date must be written on each day.  Keep in mind that this is 1849, so many of the things you have now were not invented yet (for example, radios, telephones, next-day mail).  Here are some questions that you must answer on each day.

Diary Entry 1: About you

1. Who are you?
2. Where are you from?
3. What is your job or role in your town?
4. Tell us about your family.
5. How are you traveling to California? (describe the route you will take)
6. What did you bring with you?
7. What do you see on the way?

Diary Entries 2-3: Your travels

1. Where are you?
2. Who have you met?
3. How do you feel?
4. Note any surprises. 

Diary Entry 4-5: You have made it to California

1. What do you see?
2. Who have you met? (e.g., Mark Twain, Levi Strauss, James Marshall)
3. How do you feel? (e.g., overwhelmed, tired, excited, afraid)
4. Was it what you expected? Note any surprises. 
5. What do you need to get started mining?
6. How are the prices of things? 

Click here for an example of a diary someone else created (your entries should be longer than this example's, and may contain a few day's worth of events). 

After you have completed your 5-day diary, you will be assigned to a group with 3 other students who have different characters.  Your job is to tell about your character and listen to your group members tell about their characters.  After reading about the Gold Rush, you will work with your group members to write your own Gold Rush play.  You will be the "Gold Rush Players!".  Use the information from your diaries to help you write your script.  Your group will read the 5-7 minute script in front of the class.

Teacher Considerations:

For a quick assessment to ensure that the students are completing their diaries daily, conduct a think-pair-share activity.  In this activity, the students will share three things that they've written in their diary for that day with each other.  The teacher will monitor by walking around and listening to the think-pair-shares.  Volunteers will be selected to share with the class.

Students will work on this WebQuest for one period a day and completed in approximately seven days.  A diary entry should be completed each day, building up to having enough background information for a group of students to create a Reader's Theater script.

Once the students complete individual research, the teacher will group the students based on the students' choice of people and routes to California to ensure a good variety. 

Expect to make modifications based on the students' abilities, including number of diary entries, etc.  Language supports may be needed for English language learners and may be done by previewing required vocabulary using visuals and/or realia.

The teacher should have clear expectations of what the students will learn.  Be prepared to ask guiding questions for students who may be stuck.  The teacher should conduct his/her own research in order to be able to troubleshoot problems the students may encounter.

Variations

Depending on computer availability, the teacher may need to think of alternatives for computer access. The project could be set up as centers, where the centers will be as follows:

• Teacher center (e.g., guided reading and/or progress)
• Writing center
• Computer center
• Art center (e.g., drawing the routes and technology used)

Resources Needed

One teacher should be able to implement this lesson.

The following resources will be required to implement this lesson:

• Class sets of books
• Computers with internet access
• Books on the Gold Rush, focusing specifically on people
• Encarta Encyclopedia (optional)
• Realia (e.g., old newspapers)

The following websites are helpful in obtaining background knowledge about the Gold Rush: 

Gold Rush Women
Gold Rush
Gold Fever
The California Gold Rush
Museum of the City of San Francisco (Timeline)
The Gold Rush
Museum of the City of San Francisco
Gold Rush History Links
California Gold History

Evaluation

The following rubric will be used to assess student performance. 

Credits & References

The photographs and paintings were from the above-mentioned references and links.

The WebQuest Page - information/training materials
Design Patterns - template for WebQuest

We all benefit by being generous with our work. Permission is hereby granted for other educators to copy this WebQuest, update or otherwise modify it, and post it elsewhere provided that the original author's name is retained along with a link back to the original URL of this WebQuest. On the line after the original author's name, you may add Modified by (your name) on (date). If you do modify it, please let me know and provide the new URL.