Colour Your English - 2008
Webquest
Discover the British Isles
Module 1 > People in my life > Webquest
Introduction
The British Isles is a group of islands that is formed by Great Britain, Ireland and many small islands. It is situated in north-western Europe. Great Britain, the biggest island, is home to three countries: England, Wales and Scotland. The island of Ireland is divided into Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
Bad memory? Click here to see the map: http://alt-usage-english.org/english_british_uk_et_al.shtml#britisles
LET'S DISCOVER what is behind all these names. Here you have the opportunity to discover the English-speaking part of Europe!
Task
You have to design a colourful poster of the British Isles. On the map of the islands, you have to locate the five capital cities.
Then, search the net for information about the countries and capitals: places of interest, famous buildings, historical facts, population, national floral emblems ...
Find nice pictures of the countries and cities to complete your poster. We will decorate the classroom walls and you will enjoy your masterpiece every day!
Process
You will work in groups of three students. Follow these steps:
- Print this map http://www.enchantedlearning.com/europe/britishisles/outlinemap/ of the British Isles. Colour each country in a different colour.
- Locate the five capital cities and write their names on the map.
- Look for information on the cities and countries visiting the links in Resources.
- Search the net for pictures.
- Glue everything on a cardboard (map, texts and pictures).
Resources
Englang http://www.lonelyplanet.com/worldguide/england/
Scotland http://www.scotland.org/about/index.html
Wales http://www.visitwales.co.uk/server.php?show=nav.6858
Northern Ireland http://www.discovernorthernireland.com/
Ireland http://www.discoverireland.ie/
Collect pictures here: http://www.images.google.com
(right click the picture, choose "Save picture as...", write the name and choose a folder to keep your pictures)
Evaluation
You will be evaluated as a group. All the students in the group will have the same mark. Help each other if you are having difficulties because you are all responsible for the final result! This chart evalchart.doc shows how the teacher will mark your project.
Conclusion
We hope that you liked the experience of visiting the British Isles. It's good to know different places, people and ways of living: you learn to be more open!
Now, it is time to relax with some games about these beautiful islands!
Game 1
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/barnabybear/games/where_in_britain.shtml
Game 2
http://www.playfreejigsaws.com/puzzle.php?i=452
Game 3
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/barnabybear/games/weather_report.shtml
Game 4
http://www.quia.com/hm/164946.html
Teacher's notes
This webquest is an activity designed for students to work in groups of three in the classroom. The timing is one week (four sessions). They will need to print pictures and texts, so probably this part of the work must be done at home. Students are supposed to choose the members of their group but you may want to help them or make heterogenous groupings so that there are students with different skills and levels working together. Make clear that the mark of their final work will be given to the whole group, so it's essential that everyone does their bit. At the end of the process, there is a time to relax playing some online games related to this topic.