WebQuest

Your Form of Government

A WebQuest for 6th Grade (Social Studies)

Introduction

Hey fellow crew members! You have just discovered an unhibited land which will be setttled by pioneers looking for a new home. Think about the homes to be built, crops to be planted, land to be cleared, trees to plant, etc! But wait! How will the new land be governed and who will help make the desicion? There cannot be a country without a system of government and there are so many to choose from. Can you think of some ways to help to make the new land a "real country"?

The Task

Finding a way to govern people in a new land is not an easy task but that is what members of your crew must accomplish. In order to choose from a variety of governments, the crew will be divided into five groups with 2 members in each group. The teams will research five forms of governments and present before a voting panel a brief description of the government and their advantages and disadvantages. The information that you present before the panel must be prepared using visuals such as, illustrations, charts and a slide show. Remember that your findings are important and may be the law of the land for the new country.

The Process

These are the steps that you and your team member will follow in order to complete your mission. Read over the steps carefully before beginning your task in order to understand what you will need to make your mission a success.

Each student will work on a team with 2 members. Select a partner for your team or ask the teacher for assistance. It may help to select someone who has special skills to work on certain parts of the project while your unique skills could be used for other parts.
You and your partner will be assigned a form of government to research. There are main points about your form of government you and team member will need to look for during your research. Before you get started, look at the websites below on graphic orgainzers and select one or more to help you organize your information during your research.

Now that you know how to organize your information, you and your team are ready to research your form of government. There are some points about the government that you will need tin order to help you on your task. The Points are listed below:

type of government power: limited or unlimited
identify the leader's title (president, king, queen, etc.)
advantages and disadvantages of the government
citizens participation in the government
key ideals of the government (how they are defined)
economic impact government has on its citizens
current countries lead by the government

You and your team member will use the Internet and printed sources to help you learn more about the government you are researching. A list of some web sites and books below. You and team mate may also use other sources that you think are helpful to use on your project

WEB SITE SOURCES

PRINTED SOURCES

World Book Encyclopedia
Information Please Alamanac
Our World (sixth grade social studies textbook)

You and your team member will now decide what portion or parts of the inforomation you have gathered will be used to present to the voting panel. Make sure the inforamtion that you decide to use focuses on those main points of the government.

After you and your team member have decided on the information to use, start preparing your method of presentation. Decide which of you will present the chart to the panel and who will work on the slide show.

The chart will need the include: the key ideals of the government, limited or unlimited power, and identify of leader's title. The slide show could be created using Kid Pix and must include the following: advantages and disadvantages of the government, citizens participation, and the goverment affect on the economics. Be sure to assist each other when needed or ask the teacher for assistance.

After you and your team member have finished your project be ready to present your information to the voting panel. GOOD LUCK.

Evaluation

You will be graded on your performance in two main ctaegories. The first grade that you receive will reflect how well the information was researched and presented. The second will be given based on how you were able to work with the other individual on your team. Read the scale below to find out the specifications of this assignment. If there are any questions do not hesitiate to ask your teacher.

Beginning
1
Developing
2
Accomplished
3
Exemplary
4
Score

Content

Information does not provide appropriate details
about topic

Provide minimal details about the topic; little elaoboration
Topic details are evident;some elaboration
Topic details are very clear; elaboration beyond requirements

Proper Grammatical and Spelling Usages

Grammatical and spelling errors are found in most of the information
Some evidence of correct grammatical and spelling throughout information
Grammatical and spelling errors are kept at minimal
Clear evidence of correct grammatical and spelling
usages

Oral Presentation
Presenters lack organization; knowledge of topic is minimal
Prior discussion of information is somewhat evident; organization is evident
Knowledge of topic is present but not beyond requirements
Information presented in an organized flow; knowledge of information is beyond requirements

Teamwork
Work mainly completed by one team member; lack of open communication between members
Some work completed by both team members; some evidence of communication

Most of the work completed by both members; communication between members is evident
Work equally shared by both team members; communcation is clearly evident based on work results

	Beginning 1	Developing 2	Accomplished 3	Exemplary 4
Content	Information does not provide appropriate details about topic	Provide minimal details about the topic; little elaoboration	Topic details are evident;some elaboration	Topic details are very clear; elaboration beyond requirements
Proper Grammatical and Spelling Usages	Grammatical and spelling errors are found in most of the information	Some evidence of correct grammatical and spelling throughout information	Grammatical and spelling errors are kept at minimal	Clear evidence of correct grammatical and spelling usages
Oral Presentation	Presenters lack organization; knowledge of topic is minimal	Prior discussion of information is somewhat evident; organization is evident	Knowledge of topic is present but not beyond requirements	Information presented in an organized flow; knowledge of information is beyond requirements
Teamwork	Work mainly completed by one team member; lack of open communication between members	Some work completed by both team members; some evidence of communication	Most of the work completed by both members; communication between members is evident	Work equally shared by both team members; communcation is clearly evident based on work results

Conclusion
What a task you had to complete but you did it. Upon completing your task you have also learned about the different kinds of government and the reasons that they are needed. Now that you are so knowledgeable about governments you might want to test your classmates. The game, I Have/Who Has, would be a fun way to test their understanding on the types of govenment. Here are some examples you could include creating your game: Who has: Kings or queens that held all the power in their nations's governments, able to rule by force. I have: Absolute Monarchs. Who has: Where the governmnet has total control over the lives of the people. I have: Totalitarian Government. Who has: The people of a nation rule directly or elect officials who will act for them. I have: Democracy. Who has: This type of government has one person or a small group holding all the power. Government rules by force. I have: Dictatorship. Who has: The entire system of authority, or power, that rules on behalf of a group od people. I have: Government. Feel free to add more statements to the game.

Credits & References

WEBSITE SOURCES

http://www.rcyberlearning-world.com/lessons/i_have.htm

Grahpics were obtained from Corel Draw clipart libra.ry.

Last updated on April 23, 2005
Based on a template from The WebQuest Page