CONSidering the big question ....

What do I need to do to make Minequesting in my classroom a smooth operation and the best use of instructional time?

In Producing Solutions, the Minequest project intends to move students beyond collecting information to applying their new insights to solve problems, make predictions, or propose alternatives. Some Minequests require students to draw conclusions about the concepts of complexity and compromise. The products generated at this stage of the Minequest may be ones you wish to collect for assigning credit and grades.

• Minequests attempt to build in individual accountability by directing students to complete some tasks on their own. You may want to adjust a Minequest by changing which tasks are done in teams and which are done as individuals. You can do this by reviewing the task summary and assigning one or more tasks as individual requirements rather than group work or vice versa. Reviewing the tasks before having students begin will also give you time to decide which written assignments you will collect for grading or class credit.

• Many Minequests require the use of the Minequest Problem Solving Matrix. Links are provided within the Minequest for students to print the matrix, if your hardware configuration supports this. If you do not want students to print the form, you will need to provide a copy for each student. The matrix is always accessed in the PRODUCT stage of the quest, but you might decide to share the matrix and its scoring rubric with your students even before they begin the Minequest. You are welcome to copy and use the Problem Solving Matrix and accompanying draft rubric in any of your class assignments. (Watch for opportunities to participate in the revision and improvement of the Matrix and its scoring rubric, informed by the analysis of student work, to be announced at www.minequest.org.) The Matrix and scoring rubric is also accessible through links on the Teacher Gateway page.

Last but not least ...

At the end of each Minequest, your students are invited to join conversations related to the topic of the quest at the Minequest Student Lobby. Your comments at the Conference Room, accessed through the same link are also invited. Webquests abound on the Internet and quality ranges from poor to excellent. We need your feedback on the quality of web links included and the effectiveness of the tasks to ensure that these Minequests are worth your instructional time. After completing a quest with your students, we hope you will drop into the Minequest Conference Room to offer your suggestions to the site and join conversations with other teachers about the topics you and your students are studying

Moving on ...

At the end of each Minequest, students are reminded to check with you to confirm which products should be turned in for credit or grading.

EXPLORATION

MINING

PROCESSING

PRODUCT

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