Curriculum

Research and Information Fluency: Grades 4-5

Homework Help in a Hurry

Download Student Sheet(s) for printout in PDF format.

Read a Letter to Educators about Internet research and information fluency from CyberSmart!

Overview

Students learn strategies for getting immediate help with their homework, including going online with an adult to homework help search services and reference databases.

Objectives

Describe offline sources of homework help
Review online homework help directories and databases

National Educational Technology Standards for Students © 2007

Source: International Society for Technology in Education

Research and Information Fluency
1. plan strategies to guide inquiry.
2. evaluate and select information sources and digital tools based on the appropriateness to specific tasks.
3. process data and report results.

Home Connection

Download the Home Connection sheet related to this lesson.

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Materials

Activity sheet (1)
Online computer access
Printer access
Drawing paper
Markers or crayons

Introduce (offline)

Ask: What do you do when you don't know the meaning of a word in your vocabulary homework? When you have to find out your state flower? When you can't answer your math homework questions? Allow students to share their strategies.
Tell students that this lesson is about getting homework help they sometimes need in a hurry.

Teach 1 (offline)

Distribute the activity sheet.
Read and discuss "Got a problem with your homework?"
Emphasize that offline strategies should always be tried first, as they are likely to be the fastest and most helpful.

Teach 2 (offline)

Read and discuss "Still having a problem?"
If students are familiar with search engines and directories, point out that some homework sites are directories organized into school subject categories and that others are databases, or collections, of useful information.
Point out that these are some of the most well known of many online homework help sites available. Explain that features on these sites often change and that new sites for homework help are constantly being developed. NOTE: The intent of this lesson is not to recommend sites to students, but to familiarize them with the general types of sites currently available.
Have students follow the directions on their activity sheet to go to www.becybersmart.org/students, click on the green triangle, and locate the links for this lesson. You can go to the same page as the students by clicking Student Links in the left navigation of this page.
With the students, explore the site and answer the questions on their activity sheet. Explain that when they are outside of school an adult or older student can help them search and read the recommended help at any of these sites.

Teach 3 (online)

Allow students to print the home page of each homework help site.
Have students complete the instructions under "Problem Solved!" making sure that all the sites are represented with at least one ad.
Discuss the "Be CyberSmart" tip, pointing out that each site offers many activities and that it takes some willpower to stick to the task of answering a specific homework question.

Assess (offline)

The following items assess student mastery of the lesson objectives.

Ask: What offline strategies can you use if you need help with your homework? (Use a textbook; ask a classmate, adult, or older student.)
Ask: How can you use online homework sites to answer your questions? (Search by grade and school subject and look up facts in online references such as encyclopedias and atlases.)

Extend (online)

The following activity can be added for students who completed this lesson in a previous grade.

Have students return to the same homework help sites and systematically record all their features. After students compare their results, have them vote for "the site most likely to help" when homework problems arise.

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