Australia's Animal Webquest

Introduction

Australia has a variety of animals that are not seen on any other continent of the world. Why Australia has such unique animals is not that much of a mystery, it happened because when the main continent of Pangaea broke apart many thousands of years ago, Australia became isolated from other continentss. The animals on that remained in Australia survived and evolved independently of other animals found on the mainland.

In this quest, you are going to pick an animal that is native to Australia. Native means it was always there and not introduced by humans later. The Dingo, which is a wild dog of Australia, is not actually a native animal. It was introduced to the continent by humans, and later became a regular resident of Australia.

Task

You will choose and research a particular animal that is native to Australia and write a children's book about that animal. The book should be geared toward a kindergarten to first grade audience and should have pictures and other creative elements that would appeal to a child.

Process

1. Read a variety of children's animal books. Decide what you like and don't like about them.

2. Choose an animal to do your book about. The animal must be an animal that is native to Australia.

3. Now you are ready to begin the research process. Using the resources listed in the resource section, find information in the following categories:

• Physical Features
• Where they live , include habitat
• What they eat
• Lifecycle
• Predators
• Interesting facts
• Pictures, either printed or drawn yourself

4. Write a summary for each category. Make sure that a first grader will understand your summary.

5. Design and Construct your book.

(does not have to be created on the computer, can be made by hand with pictures drawn or glued in)

• Title/Cover Page
• Pictures and Content
• Creativity and Color
• Binding (brads, string, ribbon....see classroom box for materials)
• Bibliography - list the sources where your information came from (internet sites)

Hint: There are many animals that people commonly associate with Australia, like the Kangaroo and the Koala, but there are also many reptiles, amphibians, birds, and even sea life that you could use for your book. Pick something that is interesting to you!

Resources

Taronga Zoo - http://www.taronga.org.au/

Perth Zoo - http://www.perthzoo.wa.gov.au/

Australia's Animals

Evaluation

	Needs work (1 pts)	Adequate (2 pts)	Excellent (3 pts)	Possible
Layout / Design	The pages are unattractive. Text is difficult to read.	The pages appear busy or boring. Text may be difficult to read.	The pages are eye-catching and attractive. Text is easy to read. .	3
Images	There are no pictures, or pictures are inappropriate	Pictures present, most are appropriate	Pictures used creatively and are appropriate	3
Content	Few of the facts about the animal are included.	Most of the facts are included	All the facts are included about the animal	3
Organization	Information is poorly organized, inaccurate, or incomplete, difficult to read by target audience	Information could be better written and too much information is given in each page.	Information is well written and interesting to read and is presented in short sections that would appeal to target audience	3
Overall Presentation	Book messy, not put together well, title page or bibiliography is missing	Title page present, book is neat and well put together, missing bibiliography	All elements present, title page, bibiliography, and book is nicely put together.	3

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Credits:

Webquest written by Shannan Muskopf

Graphics taken from various clipart sites.