How to Create a Web Quest

A Web Quest is a project or assignment where students use the Internet to do research and learn about a specific topic. They then take this knowledge and use it to perform a task, which is the heart of the project. There are many different types of tasks, and many different formats for Web Quests. It can be a short assignment meant to be completed during one class time, or a project that will take a week or more to complete.

• 1

  Pick a topic. The best topics for Web Quests give context and background to events or topics you are studying in class. The topic should be broad enough that it gives each student or group a chance to produce something different but narrow enough that you have some control over what is covered.

• 2

  Choose a format. You can write your Web Quest in a word processor and hand it out on paper, or you can create a document that students can view on the computer or the Internet. Your choice will depend on the availability of computers for each group of students and also your level of expertise with the technology. If you choose to do it on the computer, you can use a template (see Resources).

• 3

  Decide what you want the students to learn from the Web Quest. Keep this in mind when writing the text for your Web Quest.

• 4

  Write the Introduction. This section explains what the Web Quest is about, and should grab the students' attention.

• 5

  Write the task the students will perform. They may be designing or creating something, deciding between several alternatives, predicting an outcome or analyzing a situation or concept. Write an overview of the task, and then break it down into steps. If this is to be a Web Quest that the students will complete over the course of several days, a timeline of when they should finish each step will be helpful, especially for younger students.

• 6

  Write up a list of resources. Determine whether you will give them a list of specific websites and restrict their study to those websites alone, give a list of suggested websites but allow them to use others, or leave it open-ended and allow the students to find the information on whatever websites they choose. Also list materials they may use for the task, especially if it is to be a creative task involving making something.

• 7

  Write an evaluation rubric explaining how the grade will be determined. You may want to get specific, listing the number of points they will receive for each aspect of the project, or listing criteria that need to be met to get an A or a B grade.

• 8

  Proofread your Web Quest document. Use a spell checker, but also read it through to catch errors the spell checker won't catch. Check the web links to be sure they are accurate. Make sure the font is readable. If you are printing the document, to be handed out on paper, note where each page ends to be sure the document is not confusing (for example, make sure a subhead is not at the very bottom of a page, and, for younger students, keep each section separate on its own page. Try to see the document through the eyes of the students, and fix anything that will be confusing to them.

• 9

  Prepare the document to be distributed. For a printed document, this means printing it and making enough copies for the students, plus a few extras. If the students will access the document on computers, arrange for the file to be copied to the individual machines or uploaded so the students can access it on the web. If possible, preview the document on the same machines the students will use, especially if there is a difference in size of screen or other configuration between their computers and the one you used to compose the document.