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December 1, 2001
New Thinking with ThinkQuest
By Mark Ziemann
Preparing for Web Site Creation within a Classroom
Where do you start? I guess that was the first question that I had when I decided to do a ThinkQuest project with students. Now that I've successfully aided two groups of kids in creating informative Web sites, I'll give you some pointers that will help you with your first project.
Planning, Planning, Planning
Guess what? Finally, you do not have to do the planning yourself, even though the planning itself it is the most important part of the process! One of the best things about doing a ThinkQuest project is that your job is only to guide, not to do! Before we ever sat down at a computer, we "made the invisible dragon visible." I love that saying. How do you conquer something you don't see? Well, you make it visible. Here are some techniques on how we made a project out of nothing, which gave the kids the power and the focus needed throughout the project.
What Will the Site Be About?
We began with simple brainstorming techniques. With all of us sitting around a table, the students wrote down everything that interested them. If the site is to have a particular educational focus, then the students should brainstorm about a particular subject. This is easy if the site is to reinforce material already covered, but if you are introducing new material have books available for students to browse.
After about five minutes, students should verbally discuss their choices. Narrow down their ideas by interest, availability of materials, and appropriateness of the subject. Sometimes the most vocal people dominate the group. To minimize this, narrow the site down to three subjects. Everyone should write the subjects down on a slip of paper and then rate them, one through five. Collect the papers and tally the scores. If two subjects come up very close, have a runoff for those two subjects. After the final subject is selected, point out, for those not happy with the selection, that when Web developers create their sites, they often don't know anything about the product. They really don't get to choose between doing a site for, say, the new X-Box or baby food. The process of learning HOW to do a Web site should be exciting for students. Learning about the subject matter is just a great educational perk!
Size-wise, you have to be reasonable, too. For example, a Web site about the French Revolution would be impossible because it would be way too big! Pare down your subject to a more specific topic, such as "The Weapons of the French Revolution." How about: "The Military Ranks of the French Revolution" or "Trades and Occupations of the French Revolution." You would then address an overview of the French Revolution as a framework for the more intense collection of information, making your Web site unique.
The Storyboard - Sitemap - Flowchart
The storyboard/sitemap/flowchart is a visual representation of the group's ideas and how they all flow together. Remember, we haven't even been on a computer, yet! After some skim reading about the subject matter, students will have an overview of what they are going to need to cover on their Web pages. Brainstorm the subject matter, listing everything that students remember from their skim reading. Next, with their books open, students should add main ideas that they think are important but had forgotten to mention originally. Onto several blank pieces of paper, students should list their subheadings. Each student should have at least one page with a subheading. Then, the brainstormed ideas can be classified upon their appropriate subheadings. If an idea fits in more than one place, that's all right. Also, you may have to add new subheadings or just one for "other" material.
After you are done with all the informational material, students can brainstorm everything they want on their pages, such as games, puzzles, messageboards, etc. Don't forget to include biographies, links, and bibliography sections on the Web site. Each of these are subheadings and need to be assigned to students.
Now, let's get to that computer!
The Computer--Friend or Foe?
Just like the dragon, computer skills need to become visible. Which skills do the kids already have? Who has the strongest keyboarding skills? Students' typing skills can be tested. (Microsoft Explorer will need to be installed on the computers or invest in a shareware typing program.) Faster typing skills for students is a must.
Also, do any of the students have experience using graphic software? Those with graphic experience can cross-peer tutor. I have found that kids really want to experiment with a variety of computer programs, but they want to have fun, too. After you are done working on your Web site, introduce new computer skills at the end of the class to break up the academic part of the day.
We used the following programs: Dreamweaver ($89.95 ed. pricing) for Web site creation and management, Flash 5 ($104.00) for cool animations, Photoshop Essentials ($69.99) for graphic manipulation., Quicktime Pro ($29.95) or SoundEdit 16 ($169.00) for sound editing, and iMovie ($49.29) for video clips. Although it is beyond the scope of this article to explain how to use these programs, I can tell you some basic ways to help the kids be productive.
Create Your Pages
Create an index.html page, first; then, for each subcategory the kids brainstormed create an html page. (Nothing needs to be on these pages, yet--you'll be cutting and pasting stuff onto them in a minute.) For example, name your games page games.html. You must do this, because when you get to setting up your templates, you will be able to check out your links with the names of these pages.
Create Your Look
Next, the students need to create the look of their page. Two to three colors can be used throughout the site, as well as one or two fonts. These choices create continuity throughout the site. Also, a main graphic that is carried upon all the Web site's pages will offer continuity to any viewer of the site.
Create Your Template
After the look has been decided, students can create one page that includes the layout, the links to all their main areas, and their repeating graphic. Looking at other Web pages is helpful at this point. Once this page is completed, view the source in the template, copy it, and then open up each of the subcategory pages and paste over the source of that page. Now students are ready to enter page-specific information with each page linked by color, style, and links.
From Harry Potter Revealed
The rest is up to the students' creativity. Let the creative juices flow! The sites my students created include Harry Potter Revealed and Who's Got News; these are excellent examples of what kids are capable of doing. After all, I'm a music teacher; computers are my hobby, not my profession, and I relied on the students' artistic abilities because I have none.
Email: Mark Ziemann
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