Download Qualities of Heroes

How have the qualities of heroes changed over time?
http://www.htc.net/~thehuels/heroes.htm This link is a great web quest where the students
research ancient heroes and contemporary heroes.
It uses the book Dateline: Troy which is amazing if you decide to purchase it from someplace like
Amazon. However, any version of Troy will work. Edhelper.com has a version as do several other
places on the web.
Make sure you check the links, you may need to find alternatives to broken links, but it’s worth –
this is a GREAT activity to teach how society, history, and culture influence literature, ideals, and
change over time. I’m pasting the information below in case this website eventually disappears. It
would be a shame for this to be lost, but already many of the links are broken.
Tweak the below, add or take away links and add it to your teacher webpage for the kids to explore.
How have the qualities of
heroes changed
over time?
Introduction
Welcome to the world of heroes, past and present. This WebQuest will take you back in
time to Ancient Greece where you will learn about the lives of Greek heroes. First, you will
read Dateline: Troy by Paul Fleischmann. Several Greek heroes can be found on its pages.
You must also select a twentieth century hero to investigate. Using what you learn, you will
choose a product to complete to demonstrate your answer to the question above.
The Task
After you have read Dateline:Troy, you should
need to decide what structure you will use to
demonstrate the answer to the above question.
Once you decide you decide you should complete
the proposal form. It is very important that you
describe the structure specifically. For example, if
you will write and perform a play, explain how
many scenes you will write and how many speaking parts each scene will have. If you will
write an original song, tell how many verses you will have. Collage or poster makers should
describe size, colors, how many pictures, etc. I will either accept or reject your proposal
depending on your heroes selected and the quality of your product description.
Resources
Characters of Greek Mythology: Heroes: Try this one first.
Mythweb: There is an encyclopedia page here.
Greek Mythology: Students created this site in a Think Quest competition.
Encyclopedia Mythica: This is a user-friendly site.
Greek Mythology: You will find several links on this page.
The Illustrated Greek Encyclopedia: This is a must see.
Greek Mythology: This site has a special hero section.
Greek Monsters: Have you ever heard of the Cyclops or the Sirens?
Use these sites to research your twentieth century hero:
A Million Lives
Biography at Homework Central
Biography Search
Biography.com: Be sure to look here for heroes of the nineties.
Encarta Online: This is an online encyclopedia.
Life Magazine: There is a search section here that is easy to use.
metacrawler.com: This search engine can greatly refine your hits if you click on the phrase
button.
The Process
Follow these instructions to help make the task simple:
1. You will research a Greek hero with a research group in class. Using the Internet and
reference books, you must find at least five Internet sites and two non-computer sources.
2. As you begin to take notes, be sure to use a research help sheet. The empty rectangle at
the top of this page should be used to collect research information. Numbers 1-6 will help
you collect information from each source.
3. Begin to gather ideas for your proposal. You may work with someone outside your
research group. You may work alone or in groups with a maximum of four people.
4. Your research for the twentieth century hero will be done in class independently. Like
the Greek hero, you need five Internet and two non-computer sources. You do not have to
pick the same person as someone in your project group. However, if you do, I will require
you to double the number of resources on your reference page for that hero.
5. When you have collected information on a Greek hero and a twentieth century hero, you
are ready to begin analyzing. Think about the qualities that the heroes have in common or
the qualities that greatly differ. Consider how you will demonstrate these ideas in your
product that has already been approved.
6. Begin creating your product. Think about the specific features that have been approved.
Following these features will improve your grade. In addition, create your reference page
using Microsoft Word.
Evaluation
Final Project: two triple grades
Reference Page: triple grade
Research Paperwork: double grade
Research Group Evaluation: single grade
Everyone will be evaluated using the same rubric. It is based on accomplishing your
purpose, recognizing your audience, researching the subject, and matching the features on
your proposal.
Conclusion
After completing this WebQuest, you should understand how the word hero has changed
over time. You should be an expert on the story of Dateline: Troy , and you are now
prepared to read Homer's Odyssey next year. Perhaps from this research on heroes, you
will use the word more carefully in the future.