A Single Shard WebQuest

A Single Shard

Webquest

Blue, Purple, and Yellow Classes

Introduction:

A Single Shard, by Linda Sue Park, is based on a thirteen-year old orphan named Tree-ear. The setting is 12^th century Korea.  A man named Crane-man raises Tree-ear and together they live under a bridge in the small town of Ch’ulp’o.  Tree-ear dreams of becoming an accomplished Celadon potter and has hopes of being trained by master potter, Min. Throughout the novel, Tree-ear constantly struggles to live an honorable life by always questioning the morality of his own actions and decisions. His courage and integrity as well as his spirit are tested throughout his journey. As you know, A Single Shard is a Newbery Award winner, written by Linda Sue Park. When you finish the novel and this WebQuest you should be able to answer the following questions:

1.       What might it have been like to live in 12^th Century Korea?

2.     How do the culture and the history of Korea impact Tree-ear’s experiences?

3.     What is the significance of Celadon pottery in the village of Ch’ulp’o?

4.     What is Linda Sue Park’s message in the novel that she wants her readers to get?

The Quest:

You and your team of writers and illustrators have been hired by the world famous children’s publisher Young Adult Literary Magazine.  The publisher of this magazine has devoted entire issues to exploring the specifics of Newbery Award winning novels.  After examining various Newbery Award winning novels, the publisher has decided to dedicate an entire issue of the magazine to A Single Shard.  In an attempt to present the novel in a unique, age-appropriate format, they have decided to ask you and your team to create and publish this issue because you are 8^th graders who are currently reading the novel.  You will create this magazine issue of Young Adult Literary Magazine by following these steps:

Step 1:

In class, divide yourselves up into teams that include four people.

Step 2:

All teams must then divide up the required work EQUALLY.  All of this work must be included in your magazine. 

Step 3:

Create a plan for how your team will complete all of these activities.  Create some kind of an outline in order to hold others on the team accountable for meeting deadlines.  One team member should be the RECORDER and he or she should write down the agreed-upon timeline.  Another team member should be the FACILITATOR and he or she should help to divide the work equally among all members.  Designate someone else as the MANAGER of the group and he or she will be responsible for making sure group members adhere to all deadlines.  Lastly, decide which team member will be the LIAISON; he or she will communicate any issues that may arise in the group to Mrs. Osborne.  (However, this does not mean that you should not try every possible way to work out the issue among group members!  Please involve your teacher only if ABSOLUTELY necessary.) 

Step 4:

Exchange phone numbers and/or email addresses with each group member.  Make sure that each member of the team has access to this information for the duration of the project.  There are ALWAYS last minute complications that arise right before a project is due – be prepared!  Also, this project will require a SIGNIFICANT amount of time outside of class and meeting with all team members is ESSENTIAL for success with this project.    

Necessary Assignments to Complete:

1. Explain the Newbery Award.  Include in your explanation the history of the award, how it is decided which books win this award, what books have won in the last 5 years and what year A Single Shard won.  Your response to this topic should include 2 (two) C1 sentences and 1 (one) C2 sentence

2. Research the life of Linda Sue Park.  Include in her biography how many books she has written, what the names of these books are, and when they were published.  Also, write about what information you found interesting about her.  Relate her life to the books she has written. Also include a C1, a C2, and a C12.
3. Based on your research of Linda Sue Park’s life, create a fictional tale of what it might have been like for a family to travel to the United States from Korea.  Include a C12, C2, and C21.
4. Research and write about Korean Celadon pottery from the book and compare it to today’s Korean Celadon pottery. Include 2 (two) C1 sentences.
5. Summarize each chapter in A Single Shard.  For each chapter, include an original, colorful illustration of the main event of each chapter. Each summary should include a C1 and C2.
6. Write a review of the novel, A Single Shard, in which you include a brief summary of the novel, whether you like it or not (with a valid reason for your opinion), and whether or not you would recommend it to others.  Include a C121 in your response.
7. Finally, your last section should be written answers to the 4 questions asked at the start of this assignment.  
8. A member of your team must create a cover for the team’s version of Young Adult Literature Magazine.  Featured on this cover should be the title of the magazine, the name of the Newbery Award winning novel featured in your issue, the names of all team members, and an illustration depicting the theme of the novel.
9. Your magazine must contain all elements found in a real magazine.  Think about how magazines are organized; flip through the pages and observe how they are set up!  Organization counts!! 
10. Create at least 3 original, creative advertisements that deal with information from A Single Shard in some way.  These ads must be neat, creative, and colorful.
11. The last page of your magazine should include identification of all the REQUIRED Construct sentences used in this project. Although you will probably have many C1’s, C2’s, and combinations, only those required need be identified. Each construct should be labeled (C1, C2, etc.) along with the page number on which it is found. List them in the order in which they occur in your magazine. Failure to include this page will have a negative impact on your project’s overall success:

For example:

1. (C1) Linda Sue Park, the winner of the Newbery Award, is an established and successful contemporary writer. (page 3)

2. (C1)A Single Shard, a Newbery Award winning novel, has its setting based in 12^th century Korea.(page 4)

3. (C2)The Newbery Award honors those writers who _______, _____, and ______. (page 4)

Step 5:

After all of this work has been completed, your team should meet to assemble the magazine.  It must be assembled in a most professional manner and you SHOULD NOT use binder rings to hold together this information. For the best impact, visit Office Depot or Staples to have the magazine bound so that it looks professional!  There is a nominal cost for this service, which your group can share. The writing assignments in the magazine DO NOT need to be MLA formatted.  Please do not expect to assemble your magazine in class on the day that the assignment is due.  If the magazine is not FULLY assembled on the due date, the group will meet out of class to finish the assignment and 25 points will be deducted from the group’s grade. There are no exceptions.

Resources:

You must use ONLY the websites provided on Mrs. Osborne’s website.  You may click on any additional links provided to you on each website.  Do not “google” any new websites on your own – all the info you need is available on the sites provided.  Go to the page titled “Links” and use the following websites:

          Newbery Medal Award

American Library Association

12^th Century Korea

Korean National Folk Museum

                   Linda Sue Park

The Geography & People of Korea

Korean Arts

Evaluation: Please see the scoring rubric.  This will count as TWO TEST grades.  Everyone in your group will receive the same grade.

And a final note:

Working in teams is a wonderful learning experience….students learn valuable lessons about being team players. Team work challenges the student to do his best work and focus on personal responsibility. Solving problems as a group is a wonderful way for students to work better together.  Through teamwork, students learn the foundations of trust, the need for making clear agreements, and the importance of following through on those agreements. Pull your weight!  Be a team player. Be someone others can trust. Be someone others can depend on.

Teams that practice good teamwork will contribute to that teams overall success.

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