Multimedia Design Project

For my Multimedia Design Project, I am focusing on a fourth grade social studies standard.  The standard focuses on the main ideas of the abolitionist and suffrage movements.  Specifically, I want the students to choose one of the following historical figures to research: Harriet Tubman, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, or Sojourner Truth.  The storyline is as follows:


"An American Hero tragedy has occurred. The National Museum of American History has been robbed!  The diaries and belongings of three key American figures have gone missing: Harriet Tubman, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and Sojourner Truth.  These artifacts were very old and it isn’t believed that the diaries will be recovered.  How will the American people ever get the opportunity to truly know these significant figures from our history?"


I plan on introducing the storyline to the students through a newscast style video (as if the story was being presented on the evening news).  Ultimately, my students will complete the following task: creating a replica diary and an artifact that represents one of the historical figures to "donate" to the National Museum of American History.  Students will complete their own research using the links and information provided in the WebQuest.  For the final presentation, students will complete a museum walk through to showcase their work.


Overall, I am excited about the premise of my project.  I think my students will enjoy learning these social studies standards this way.  I chose to focus on social studies because it is generally the weakest area across all grade levels.  My biggest concerns right now are including the media in my WebQuest.  I have very basic knowledge about video editing and audio editing.  I really want my project to run smoothly as I'm hoping this is a WebQuest I can use in my classroom for years to come (as long as the information and standards are still relevant of course).


I'm sure questions and confusion will come along the way, but, right now, I feel pretty good about my pre-plan and where things are headed.