Teacher Process

  1. To begin, you will need to put your students into groups of four.  If necessary, there can be groups of three, but there are only four roles, so there can't be group of five or more.  Each student needs to choose their role, and print out their graphic organizer.
  2. Each group will need the chance to spend some time researching the websites listed in the Webquest.  The information they will need to fill in their graphic organizer, comes from those websites.  They can skim them as a group, or individually, depending on the availability of computers.   
  3. After they've filled in their graphic organizers, the students should share the things they have learned about each pet, with their group.
  4. There are four children's names listed, with links to letters that give a brief introduction to them and why they want a pet.  The next step will be for the groups to read these letters, and decide which pet would be best for each child.  They need to assign a different animal to each child, and be able to defend that decision with facts about the pet, they have learned from their research. 
  5. The student's final assignment will be to write a persuasive letter to one of the children, telling them which pet they should get and why.  They need to include at least three reasons for their decision, that come from the research their group has done.  I've included a sample letter demonstrating the format I want my class to use.