Web Quest Lesson Plan

Introduction

In this unit, students have explored the topic of how to keep from giving up when bad things happen. In this lesson, students will read about artifacts that Jane Goodall collects to give her hope during difficult times. Students will then read an interview with Ahmed Kathrada, who was a political prisoner with Nelson Mandela for twenty-six years.

Lesson Description

Students will read selected passages from Jane Goodall: Symbols of Hope <http://animal.discovery.com/fansites/janegoodall/jane/jane.html>, and an interview with Ahmed Kathrada <http://globetrotter.berkeley.edu/conversations/Kathrada>. Students will then answer questions based on the reading.

Instructional Objectives

1. Students will use the Internet as a resource for learning how different people keep from giving up when bad things happen.
2. Students will read about physical items as well as states of mind that have kept people from giving up.
3. Students will answer questions based on what they have read.

Student Web Activity Questions and Answers

1.Why is the surgical glove on Jane Goodall's website a symbol of hope?

Possible answer: The glove is a symbol of hope because the man who wore it lost both of his hands in an accident when he was a child. They were able to sew the hands back on, but they couldn't replace his thumbs. Still, he was determined to become a doctor, and, later, a surgeon. Everyone said he couldn't do surgery without thumbs, but he worked very hard, and eventually his dream came true. This is one of his thumbless gloves.

2.What is the bell on Jane Goodall's website made of, and why is that material significant?

Possible answer: The bell is made out of metal from a detonated land mine in Cambodia. The mine was detonated during one of the bloodiest regimes in Cambodia's history. Now, the regime is gone, the country is being rebuilt, and the people are putting their lives back together. The bell is material that was once part of something terrible but has now been made into something good.

3.Why do you think it is important for Jane to keep these artifacts?

Possible answer: Jane Goodall travels all around the world for her research, lectures, and work. She's seen many things in her travels, both wonderful and terrifying. She needs the symbols so that she can remember that there is hope in the world and that things will ultimately be OK. This allows her to keep making a big impact on the world instead of getting bogged down in the bad things that happen.

4.Describe the state of mind Ahmed Kathrada was in when he entered prison. Why did he feel this way?

Possible answer: Ahmed Kathrada entered prison with a positive state of mind. He said that when you take part in political protests, you know that eventually you might go to jail, so, when it happens, you think of it as just one more struggle to endure in your fight for what you think is right. He also said that he knew others who were not in prison had it worse than he did, with harassment and even being killed. In prison, he at least felt protected. But, overall, the thing that got him through was the knowledge that one day they would win the fight.

5.Describe one project that made life in prison meaningful to Ahmed Kathrada.

Possible answer: One project that made life in prison meaningful was that the men all collaborated on writing Nelson Mandela's autobiography. Mandela wrote it, Kathrada and another man edited it, two more men rewrote it in tiny writing so that it would take up less space, and the last man smuggled it out of prison when he was released twelve years later.

6.What did Kathrada say was one of the greatest hardships he and his fellow prisoners had to endure?

Possible answer: Kathrada said one of the greatest sacrifices he had to endure was the absence of children because not having children around is unnatural.

7.Name three positive things Kathrada said he took away from being in prison.

Possible answer: Three positive things Kathrada mentioned were an education, discipline, and the advantage of physical work.

8.What kept Kathrada and his fellow prisoners from giving up while in prison?

Possible answer: The thing that ultimately kept Kathrada and his colleagues from giving up while in prison was the belief that what they were doing was essential and that they would eventually win.