Introduction
¡Bienvenidos!
In this webquest, you are going to explore the countries of Latin America. As one of the forerunners in the colonization of the New World, Spain had a great influence on the language and culture in Latin American countries. The study of these countries will not only give us more exposure to the language, but it will also help us learn about the idiosyncrasies of each country.
Task
After completing this webquest, you will have completed one of the following assignments:
1. A fictional short story or play-
To allow for creativity, this assignment is very open ended in terms of what kind of story you can tell, what its message is, and how you incorporate Spanish and various cultures of Latin America. However, material presented must be "PG-13." The short story must be at least four pages long, and the play must be at least six pages long.
2. A cultural board game-
Again, this project is open ended to foster your creativity. Material must be age appropriate ("PG13"). Also, this game cannot simply be a game of chance! That's no fun. Be creative. Involve strategies or trivia...or both into your game.
3. An analytical essay-
This cannot be a recitation of the materials you have read! You must consider all this information, form an argument regarding multiple countries and their cultures, and synthesize source material to support your argument. This assignment is not as open ended in terms of how the final product should look, however, your argument, the key point in this assignment, is only restricted in terms of age appropraite material. You will most likely need to do additional research for this essay.
These assignments can be completed on other programs such as Google Docs and Microsoft Word.
Process
This is an individual project. Please feel free, though, to discuss (at instructed times) your ideas with peers. This is a valuable tool in the creating process. Use the following steps to complete this webquest:
1. Visit the following websites to get a better understanding of Latin American countries and how they live:
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/mx.html
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/wfbExt/region_cam.html
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/wfbExt/region_soa.html
2. Find at least two additional online sources. Double check with me about the validity of these sources.
3. Choose one prompts described in the "Task" tab. These prompts are intended to help you synthesize, evaluate, and create a product using the new information you have learned about Latin American countries. You ARE NOT to recite the information you have found on the websites given. Please remember to put forth your best effort (which will involve some pretty high levels of critical and creative thinking) and have fun with these assignments.
4. Brainstorm ideas for your particular prompt. Write them down as you think about your project; this strategy will help insure that you do not forget any ideas you want to include or further develop.
5. Create a draft of your product.
6. Revise your product. This includes a peer review and a conference with me.
7. Submit a hard copy of your assignment to me to be graded.
Evaluation
Your final product will be evaluated using the following rubric.
|
Criteria |
Novice |
Apprentice |
Proficient |
Distinguish |
Points Possible |
|
Content: Countries
|
Student makes no reference to a Latin America country. |
Student makes reference to one to two Latin America countries. |
Student effectively addresses two to three Latin America countries. |
Student effectively and thoroughly addresses four or more different Latin America countries. |
15 |
|
Content: Cultures
|
Student does not incorporate any cultures of Latin American countries. |
Students incorporates one to two Latin American cultures. |
Student effectively incorporates two to three Latin American cultures. |
Student effectively and creatively incorporates four or more different Latin American cultures. |
40 |
|
Content: Language |
Student does not include Spanish in his or her final product. |
Student includes Spanish into his or her final product. |
Student incorporates Spanish into his or her final product in an effective manner. |
Student incorporates Spanish into his or her final product in an effective and creative manner. |
20 |
|
Structure/Organization |
Structure and organization is scattered and without purpose. |
Structure and organization is loose and takes away from the student's purpose. |
Structure and organization is effective. |
Structure and organization is effective and creative. |
15 |
|
Grammar and Punctuation |
Student makes ten or more errors in grammar and/or punctuation. |
Student makes seven to nine errors in grammar and/or punctuation. |
Student makes four to six errors in grammar and/or punctuation. |
Student makes zero to three errors in grammar and/or punctuation. |
10 |
Conclusion
Great job!
You now better understanding of the different cultures of Latin America. As you found, Latin American countries vary quite considerably from each other, having their own unique identity while sharing a linked history.
It is also my hope that this discovery process has sparked further interest in language and culture. Further study in this area can help improve your communication skills and overall global interaction.