Gary Paulsen’s Hatchet

Teacher Page

Introduction

This webquest was created for sixth grade students, to be used after they have completed reading Gary Paulsen’s Hatchet.  To deepen students’ understanding of this book, this webquest will require them to use advanced levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy including Application, Analysis, and Synthesis.

Task

Students will have an understanding of the importance of survival gear in a situation such as the one Brian experienced in the book.  Therefore, through some careful problem-solving, students will create their own survival kits.  This webquest could be completed individually, or in small groups.  A class could even elect to create the survival kit together and then rewrite the key scenes individually.  Because it addresses standards in a variety of curricular areas, time for in-class work could come from a variety of subject areas.  However, the primary focus is in the language arts class because of the required writing tasks and the tie-in to the literature.

The student process does not provide a lock-step schedule.  Instead, it provides stages of the process to be completed.  This stage progression allows for differentiation of instruction to meet student needs. For example, some students may move more quickly through the investigation phase, but need longer with the writing while another might take several days in class to investigate, choosing to journal at home.

Standards

The following Indiana Academic Standards for Sixth Grade are addressed through this webquest:

Language Arts-

6.4.6     Use organizational features of electronic text (on computers), such as bulletin boards, databases, keyword searches, and e-mail addresses, to locate information.

6.5.7     Write for different purposes (information, persuasion, description) and to a specific audience or person, adjusting tone and style as necessary.

Science -

6.4.8     Explain that in all environments, such as freshwater, marine, forest, desert, grassland, mountain, and others, organisms with similar needs may compete with one another for resources, including food, space, water, air, and shelter. Note that in any environment, the growth and survival of organisms depend on the physical conditions.

Health-

6.1.3     Examine how one’s surroundings impact health and wellness.

6.1.5     List ways to reduce or prevent injuries.

Math –

6.5.1     Select and apply appropriate standard units and tools to measure length, area, volume, weight, time, temperature, and the size of angles.

Information Literacy –

Information Literacy

The student who is information literate

ILS 1: accesses information efficiently and effectively.

ILS 2: evaluates information critically and competently.

ILS 3:  uses information accurately and creatively.

Independent Learning

The student who is an independent learner is information literate and

ILS 5:  appreciates literature and other creative expressions of information.

ILS 6:  strives for excellence in information seeking and knowledge generation (generates knowledge).

Social Responsibility

The student who contributes positively to the learning community and to society is information literate and

ILS 8:  practices ethical behavior in regard to information and information technology.

ILS 9:  participates effectively in groups to pursue and generate information (shares and collaborates).

Resources Needed

In addition to the Pathfinder and Rubric (links below), students would need:

·         access to computers with internet access - preferably one per student over at least 4 class periods

·         a class set of Hatchet

·         your own class blog (or other means of completing the journals)

·         Access to spreadsheet (such as Microsoft Excel – see example)

Optional:

·         Teachers may also wish to provide a suitcase or backpack that meets the size and weight requirements, so students have a sense of the task before beginning. 

·         For the additional activity, students will need access to a digital camera.

Pathfinder

The Hatchet Pathfinder includes student resources for this webquest.   There are suggestions for books, DVDs, internet resources, as well as suggested search terms and recommended search engines.

Rubric

The rubric is meant to address all aspects of the webquest, but may be modified as needed by the individual teacher.

Conclusion

The focus of this project is to enhance students’ learning.  Beyond reading a wonderful story, this webquest is designed to push students to higher levels of learning, and to apply that learning in real-world situations.  The content of this webquest is flexible and should be modified to meet the needs of individual classrooms or students.