Introduction
This webquest is designed to show students the importance of historical figures and events in their lives. Students will be encouraged to think critically about important events and people by writing short narrative describing the change to history caused by the altering of key events.
Task
Working individually, students will identify one event or person in history who has impacted their own life in some manner. For the ease of teaching the lesson, students should stay within the last century of history. Once the key event or person has been identified, students will determine what changes would take place to the timeline if that event never took place or that person had never been born. How would that change have affected their current life situation?
Process
1. Identify a historical event or person who had a direct impact on your life. How did that event or person affect your life?
- Consider events that affected a country, race, or social group.
- People who directly impacted the trajectory taken by a country, race, or social group.
2. Now imagine that key event never took place, or that person had not been born (you may not eliminate a direct ancestor). How would that change the timeline of events that took place subsequently? How would your own life be changed?
3. Write a short essay describing the new timeline of events and your life as it would now exist. Feel free to be as creative with the flow of history as possible, but remember any changes must stem from the original change made.
Evaluation
This is how your work will be evaluated.
| Beginning 1 |
Developing 2 |
Qualified 3 |
Exemplary 4 |
Score |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Content | Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting a beginning level of performance. | Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting development and movement toward mastery of performance. | Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting mastery of performance. | Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting the highest level of performance. | |
| Historical Accuracy/Proper Flow | Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting a beginning level of performance. | Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting development and movement toward mastery of performance. | Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting mastery of performance. | Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting the highest level of performance. | |
| Mechanics | Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting a beginning level of performance. | Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting development and movement toward mastery of performance. | Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting mastery of performance. | Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting the highest level of performance. | |
| Organization and Effectiveness | Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting a beginning level of performance. | Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting development and movement toward mastery of performance. | Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting mastery of performance. | Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting the highest level of performance. |
Conclusion
Now you must be fully aware of the impact that historical events and figures have on your own personal life. Consider now where we get the historical information we have? Might you someday be a source of historical data used to explain current circumstances? How do you chronicle the world around you to leave behind your voice for generations to come?
Credits
Webquest created using www.createwebquest.com
Permissions
We all benefit by being generous with our work. Permission is granted for others to use and modify this WebQuest for educational, non-commercial purposes as long as the original authorship is credited. The modified WebQuest may be shared only under the same conditions. See the Creative CommonsAttribution • Non-Commercial• Share-Alike license for details.