|Introduction|Task|Process|Evaluation|Conclusion|Credits & References|

Introduction

     This Web Quest was designed to promote phonemic awareness in students through nursery rhymes.  Hopefully, it will also serve as an informative and pleasurable opportunity to incorporate use of the internet into the elementary curriculum.
     Nursery Rhymes are frequently a child's first exposure to classical literature.  They have been used to teach rhyming, identify emotions,and stimulate creative thinking.  Their appeal is timeless.

The Task

     In this Web Quest you have just been selected to be on a special children's edition of  "Who wants to be a Millionaire?".  The rules have been modified a little.  You must answer all the questions alone, using the internet as your lifeline.  The prize for the winner will range from one to three nights of no homework depending on the level you reach..
     Your topic will be Mother Goose Nursery Rhymes.  You will be given a list of twenty-five nursery rhymes to study.  You must be able to recognize lines taken from these rhymes;  listen for and make up rhyming words;  complete a rhyme;  solve some nursery rhyme problems;  and, answer questions about rhymes.  Let's begin!

The Process

•      You will find the list of nursery rhymes at the website below.  Follow the directions to print out the names of the rhymes and their corresponding numbers.  When you have completed this job please come back to the quest.  ( After you have visited any website, click on the toolbar option "Back" to return this quest.)

•      These rhymes are listed in alphabetical order to make them easier to find on the next website.  This site contains all of the rhymes except numbers 14 (Little Tommy Tucker) and 22 (The Wheels on the Bus).

•      You can read the omitted rhymes at:

•      And now for your listening pleasure,  you will find an audio version of three nursery rhymes on the following site.  Make sure you choose "audio" so you can listen carefully to the rhyming.

•      The next website will enable you to make up your own rhymes.  Try at least five words for practice.

     After all this work with rhymes you should be ready to write one of your own.  To make this task a little easier, a rhyme has been started  for you.  You may copy this beginning rhyme on a piece of lined paper and complete it by filling in the blanks.  Then continue the pattern using some facts from the twenty-five rhymes on your  list.  Or you may create your own rhyme.  It must have at least twenty verses (lines). The choice is yours. Here's the rhyme starter:



                                        Do you remember rhymes of long ago?
                                        Stories of kittens who lost their --------.
                                        And didn't know where to find --------.
                                        Little Miss Muffet who sat on a -------.
                                        Little Bo Peep who lost her ------------.
                                        And all the king's ------------------------.
                                        Who couldn't put Humpty together ---
 

•      I hope you're ready for those math problems now . You will need to visit the following website to print out a copy of the word problems.  There are thirty problems to solve.  Don't get discouraged!  The answers are given at the end.  This might seem too good to be true but remember, for each problem I need to see all the work, labels and a summary sentence which answers the question.  You may do all this work right on the printed copy.

•      Next you will find interesting nursery rhyme background information and recipes to try on this website:

•      Finally, you are ready to play "Name That Nursery Tune"!  All your hard work has been to prepare  for this moment. Please follow the directions on the next site carefully. You may be standing before Regis Philbin as he asks you : "Is that your final answer?".  You will be sure it is if you get 100% on this website.  You must play both parts 1 and 2.  Good Luck!

     The following point system will be used to evaluate your Web Quest responses.  If you get a perfect score, you have no homework for three nights.  If you get 85 % or more, you have no homework for two nights.  If you get  between 70 % and 85%, you get a homework pass for one night.  You may choose when  to use it.
 
 
 

Conclusion

    By completing this WebQuest  you will have learned how important rhymes are in helping us to read and recall information more easily.  Writing and Math are more enjoyable when you include a nursery rhyme theme.  Can you think of a way to incorporate nursery rhymes into other subject areas?  How about using Humpty Dumpty in science?  See how much fun you can have when nursery rhymes become part of what you are doing?
     As a reward for all your hard work, there is one last site for you to visit  Look, listen and enjoy!

    The Mining Company
Over the Rainbow
© Kitty Roach

                Here are some additional books you will enjoy about  rhymes:

                Polacco, Patricia:  Babushka's Mother Goose  New York:  Philomel Books, 1995

                Krensky, Stephen:  The Missing Mother Goose  New York:  Doubleday, 1991

                Gross, Sarah Chokla:  Every Child's Book of Verse  New York:  Franklin Watts, Inc.  1968