Download Student Activity Sheet(s) for printout in PDF Format
Overview
Students visit sites where, with a parent or guardian, they can ask a homework
question and receive an answer from an expert over the Internet. They find
out that such personalized help takes time and is not suitable if they need
an immediate answer.
Objectives
| |
|
Describe how to ask an expert for homework help via the Internet |
| |
|
Explain how E-mail response time influences whether or not to use
this strategy |
ISTE® National Technology Standards
Site Preview
Online Resources
Materials
| |
|
Activity sheet (1) |
| |
|
Online computer access |
Introduce (offline)
| |
|
Review offline strategies for getting homework help. (use a textbook,
ask a classmate, ask a parent, or ask an older student) |
| |
|
Review online strategies for getting homework help. (search a homework
help Web site) |
Teach 1 (offline)
| |
|
Distribute the activity sheet. Read and discuss its contents. |
| |
|
Emphasize that students should ask an adult to go online with them
when seeking homework help. |
| |
|
Point out that students may have to wait days for an answer to
their E-mail questions. Therefore, this strategy will not work if
their assignment is due the next day. |
Teach 2 (online)
| |
|
Take students to www.becybersmart.org and click on the
triangle. Find the title of this lesson, and open its links. |
| |
|
Have students, individually or in groups, visit one of the recommended
sites and report to the class their first impressions. |
| |
|
Point out that the features on these sites often change, that there
are many more sites available than those listed here, 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. |
| |
|
Remind students that, for safety and privacy reasons, they are
not to use the E-mail features without permission from a parent, guardian,
or teacher. |
Teach 3 (online)
| |
|
As a class, submit a question to one of the recommended sites.
Use your own E-mail address so that you will receive the reply. |
| |
|
When it eventually arrives, share the reply with students. |
| |
|
Tell students that when sending E-mail for homework help, they
should use their parent's name and address or use a first name only
or nickname. |
Close (offline)
| |
|
Ask: How can you find the
answer to a question about homework on homework help sites?
(Look on a bulletin board for a similar question or send an E-mail
to an expert.) |
| |
|
Ask: Why do you have to think
about time when you send E-mail for homework help? (Because
experts generally take up to two days to answer a question.) |
Extend (online)
The following activity can be added for students who completed this lesson
in a previous grade.
| |
|
Have students make a list of schoolwork-related questions they
have. Select the best questions to submit to two or more homework
help sites. Have students compare the E-mail response times and evaluate
the answers received. Have students draw conclusions about which service
worked best. |
|
E-mailing for Homework Help