Research Poster Project for The Cay by Theodore Taylor Part One

As a middle school English and Reading teacher, I have found that adding technology into the curriculum has many benefits. I teach using technology as often as possible. My love for Theodore Taylor’s novel, The Cay, stems from when I was in elementary school and read the book no less than ten times because it was easily amongst my favorites. When I teach this novel now, I share my love for the book and incorporate technology into my teachings. My students will tell you it is amongst their favorite novels, as well. I attribute that partly to the projects I conduct whilst reading the book. Here, you will find one of the research projects. It is meant to be conducted once the reading of the novel commences and continuing on throughout the reading of the novel. You will find that it has cross-curricular tie-ins, specifically with social studies and science, although it is meant as an English or Reading project.

This project is in the form of a web quest, meaning students access the Internet to gain information on a specific topic, in this case survival. Students will need a copy of the web quest and should be assigned to groups of three or four students. As mentioned earlier, the project is designed to occur throughout the reading of the novel; therefore, the length of time it takes is only approximate. Plan for it to take around four weeks, give or take a week. Web Quest pages are as follows:

• Introduction to the Project
• Task
• Process
• Evaluation
• Conclusion

All material is originally authored by me, with credit going to The WebQuest Page, which is where I got the template, and to Rubistar, which is where I created the rubrics. Bear in mind that the project places students in a futuristic setting, where they must learn to survive using only materials around them, just as was the case with Phillip and Timothy when they went ashore the cay. This project is divided into two parts, so be sure to read both articles, as the evaluation tools are listed in the second article.

Each group of students will need the following materials:

• folder with pockets
• access to computers and Internet
• 25 index cards (You may want to have some extras for groups that finish early or lose their supplies.)
• 5 rubberbands (for sorting the index cards by category)
• markers, colored, pencils, or crayons
• one posterboard
• a research assignment organizer (shown on page 5)
• rubrics (should be handed out and reviewed prior to beginning each portion of the project)
• group evaluation form (shown on page 5)
• presentation guide (shown on page 6)

Provide your students with the following scenario:

It is the year 2042 in the summer, and World War III is raging throughout the lands. Everyday when you listen to the radio, you hear news of some bombing or that the death toll is on a continuous rise. You and your family live in a large city, where there is always something happening. Typically, you and your family enjoy the city life. You have things to do, you have friends your own age, and you enjoy the environment. But, things are really about to change. The war is moving closer and closer to your home. Your mother decides to take you and flee to a safer place. Your father must stay behind to continue his research on weaponry for the Allied forces. So, you and your mother pack a few things and decide to leave the city. Things go awry! The opposing forces in World War III invade your city as you and your mother are on the way out. In all of the hustle and bustle, screams and gunshots, you are separated from your mother. While you are trying to find her, you are hit very hard on the head and pass out. When you wake, things are much different than before.

You find yourself lying along the curb of a street you have never seen. Nearby is a large Jamaican man, who introduces himself as Timothy. Timothy explains that he rescued you from the all the chaos and the invaders and that he does not know where your mother is or if she is even alive. He is a homeless man and he promises to share his knowledge of life on the streets with you. Your head throbs from the pain, and you black out again. Things continue like this for days, until one day you wake and cannot see at all. Timothy takes care of you, though. As you and Timothy look at your new surroundings, it becomes more and more evident that no one else is around. You are completely alone. Since there is no one to work in the factories or power plants, there is no access to purified water. All of the restaurants and grocery stores have been torn up and salvaged by the people who invaded your city. You have nothing but the clothes on your backs.

How are you going to survive? What will you need to learn in order to survive? Is there any hope for you and your newfound friend? These are all questions that you must answer.