Ben Franklin Project
Week of October 4-October 8
Objective/Learning Goals:
- to explore the life and work of a famous American statesman, inventor, and author
- to show a mastery of summary skills
- to read from a variety of sources
- to create a personal "Life's Little Instruction Book" based on personal philosophies, yet modeled after Franklin's famous proverbs
- to use technology to access information and demonstrate knowledge, comprehension, synthesis, and evaluation of information
*Please read and review all of the directions before you start the webquest.
Procedure:
* use Firefox or Safari for all internet based activities
* use tab browsing to toggle in between websites, directions, Google Docs, and your Edublog
1. Ben Franklin Webquest
- answers copied and pasted onto a blog post
- title blog post Ben Franklin Webquest answers
- answers should be in complete sentences
- Here's the link, but you will have to copy and paste several different websites in order to find the correct information:
2. Summary Paragraph
- use any of the following websites (or find your own reliable websites)
- write a well-developed paragraph that summarizes Franklin's personal life, accomplishments, contributions, and legacy
- insert a picture (or two) into the post; make sure to give credit to the website where you found the image
- use a topic sentence from your topic sentence packet; use a concluding sentence
3. Proverb Translation
- Create a blog post titled Franklin's Proverbs and My Translations
- Define the word proverb first (you have to understand what a proverb is in order to translate them correctly).
- List one of Franklin's proverbs. Then, define the proverb in your own words (complete sentence; you may use dictionary.com; do not copy and paste, put it into your own words).
- Use the following link to translate 14 proverbs; you must choose the 14 proverbs from the 14 different years represented; read through several of them and put 14 into your own words!
- The post should be structured so that it's clear what year the proverb comes from, the original words, and your translation; use bullets, bold lettering, and spacing to show this organization
Here's the link for Franklin's proverbs:
- scroll down to 1700s
- then use each year of "Franklin, Benjamin: Poor Richard" to look at the proverbs from the different years
- The 1733 link is a little harder to read because the proverbs are listed in a paragraph. You can do it!
3. Questions for Mr. Franklin
- Create a list of questions that you might ask Ben Franklin about his proverbs, his political viewpoints, and his outlook on the 21st century vs. his life during the 18th century.
- Title this blog post Questions for Mr. Franklin; you must have at least 10 questions that show a connection between his life and life now; questions should reflect his political accomplishments, current events, his proverbs, etc.
4. Life's Little Instruction Book
What advice would you give to elementary school kids about life, school, family, friends, sports, hobbies, good times, bad times, OR just any lessons that you've learned?
Here's a little information about the original Life's Little Instruction Book that was published years ago!
Jackson Brown originally wrote Life's Little Instruction book as a gift for his son who was leaving home to begin his freshman year in college. Brown says, "I read years ago that it was not the responsibility of parents to pave the road for their children but to provide a road map, and I wanted to provide him with what I had learned about living a happy and rewarding life." Life's Little Instruction Book is a guidebook that gently points the way to happiness and fulfillment. The observations are direct, simple, and as practical as an umbrella.
"Most of us already know how to live a successful and purposeful life," says Brown. "We know we should be more understanding and thoughtful, more responsible, courageous and appreciative. It's just that we sometimes need reminding." Life's Little Instruction Book is that reminder and the perfect gift for students, relatives, or a friend who needs encouragement at any time of the year. A New York Times #1 bestseller for 50 weeks, it is translated into 33 languages and continues to inspire readers throughout the world. This title is available in three separate volumes or in one book collection, The Complete Life's Little Instruction Book.
Read a few of the original "instructions." They're light-hearted and fun, yet they ring true with many people. Some of Life's Little Instructions...
Your Task:
- Create your own instruction book about life and living.
- Does your family have any sayings or beliefs that would be part of your list?
- Create at least 20 instructions. Title your blog post something unique that represents your instructions. List and number your 20 instructions. Use short explanations as necessary. Have fun with these instructions and be light-hearted.
