Wading Through the Web: Teaching Internet Research Strategies

Overview

Featured Resources

From Theory to Practice

 

OVERVIEW

Because the Internet contains a vast amount of information from reliable and unreliable sources, wading through all the material could prove to be overwhelming for students. Learning to view Internet sites with a critical eye will help students become more efficient and effective researchers. In this lesson, students hold a class discussion about Internet research, including the differences between this type of research and traditional research and how to cite sources found on the Internet. Students view an interactive PowerPoint presentation that covers Internet search strategies, features of several search engines, and citation of Internet sources. As students watch, they conduct activities related to the topics introduced in the presentation.

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FEATURED RESOURCES

Internet Citation Organizer: Students can use this handout to help them organize the bibliographic data of sources they find on the Internet.

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FROM THEORY TO PRACTICE

Wepner, S., Valmont, W.J., & Thurlow, R. (Eds.). (2000). Linking Literacy and Technology: A Guide for K–8 Classrooms. Newark, DE: International Reading Association.

• Technology in the classroom should be used to enhance literacy, including spelling, reading, writing, and vocabulary.
  
  
• "Communication and comprehension are two of the most important aspects of using technology."�
  
  
• In order for technology to be an effective enhancement for literacy instruction, students must first master the basics of using computers "so that students can concentrate more on literacy tasks than on technology."�
  
  
• Students need to learn efficient ways of searching the Internet. "Because of the nature of the Web, navigation problems may arise."�

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