Travel Agent to the Ancient World:

Travel Agent to the Ancient World:

A WebQuest

Welcome to the annual convention of ancient travel agents! You are gathered to sell your best product--your own, very impressive, civilization. Get ready to sell it!

A large group of ancient tourists is planning a trip. As members of a travel agency, you have been brought it to "sell a trip" to your own ancient civilization. Not only do you want to land this big account and prove your culture the very best destination, you are also a proud citizen. You want to encourage tourism, to show this group of early tourists all your civilization has accomplished.

Each group member will be responsible for two products: a two-page persuasive essay and a section of a PowerPoint travel brochure.

Within each of your small groups, each member will develop an area of expertise.

Each member of your group should select an area of expertise from among the following:

In addition to a section of the PowerPoint, each "expert" will need to create a two-page persuasive essay for the client, promoting his or her particular aspect of the ancient culture. (Make sure to include a Works Consulted page! Use our MLA Style Sheet as a guide.)

Once you have completed your essay, you are to combine your knowledge with that of the rest of your group. Use PowerPoint to create a multimedia travel brochure promoting your civilization. Your presentation should have at least 12 slides.

Each member of the group should play a part in the presentation itself. Remember, you will be graded on how convincingly you "sell" your civilization. Feel free to be dramatic!

Following the group presentations, the class (acting as the travel client) will establish the three most important criteria for making the travel decision and determine the civilization they would most like to visit. Students will be expected to actively participate in the discussion, remembering major points brought up by the various groups of travel agents. You will use this organizer to help with this decision.

Use the Resource page or visit GaleNet's Student Resource Center. Remember, though the Web is a rich source of information on ancient civilizations, we have a fine collection of books covering this period. Please check the catalog for many more resources. (Hint many of the books fall into the following Dewey numbers in both the reference area and the circulating collection: 913, the 930s, 290s (for religion and mythology). Please look for other areas for the history of dress, cooking, art, drama, etc.

	Criteria	Poor (1)	Adequate (2)	Good (3)	Exemplary (4)	Score
Content	Essay is historically accurate and covers the major areas of the aspect of the civilization assigned.
Mechanics	Essay is well-structured and carefully proofread for errors.
Creativity	Students' writing was clever and engaging. S/he used the format of the essay creatively to convey the information.
Documentation	Students used a variety of high quality resources. Students documented all sources appropriately in their Works Consulted page.

	Criteria	Poor (1)	Adequate (2)	Good (3)	Exemplary (4)	Score
Content of PowerPoint presentation	Presentation is historically accurate, reflects thorough research, and makes significant points about the civilization.
Creativity	Students' writing is clever and engaging. They use the format of the presentation creatively to convey the concepts to the class.
Presentation content	Presentation includes appropriate number of slides, well-chosen media, is profession-looking and visually appealing. No distracting elements are used.
Presentation delivery	Presentation grabs the audience's attention. Students speak convincingly, made eye contact, know their subject.
Documentation	Students used a variety of high quality resources and incorporated appropriate documents and visuals into their work. Students documented all sources appropriately in their Works Consulted slide.
Group work	Work displays evidence of collaboration. Students worked effectively as a team incorporating the talents of all members.

In acting as travel agents, and in evaluating the presentations of your classmates, you will have had the opportunity to compare and contrast and draw conclusions about the contributions of several ancient cultures.

We hope you will continue to consider the big questions. What various social, political, and economic patterns emerged in the ancient world? What accounts for the commonalities and differences in these patterns across civilizations? How did these civilizations relate and adapt to their environments? Their neighbors? How advanced were their technologies? And how can a study of civilizations long gone, their triumphs and their tragedies, inform our lives as citizens today?