A Journey Across The

Beringian Land Bridge

A WebQuest for 4th Grade History and Social Studies Curriculum

Designed by

Amy E. Bisson, Instructional Technology Specialist
Cardinal O'Connell School, Lowell Massachusetts

Introduction | Task | Process | Evaluation | Conclusion | Credits | Teacher Page

Introduction

Have you ever wondered how humans came to live on all the continents of the world? After all, the continents are isolated from each other -- separated by distance and more often by large bodies of water. Scientists wonder about this question too. One of the theories of how humans came to our continent is the Beringian Land Bridge theory.

You will be exploring some of the same data that modern scientists used to develop this theory. After you have read some of this theory, you will be asked to write a paragraph summarizing its major points.

The Task

As a scientist, you need to develop a hypothesis and then prove it with data. While scientists can hypothesize about the Land Bridge, no one is alive from the Ice Age to give first-hand information. Your job will be to summarize the information about the Land Bridge and tell whether or not you believe there is evidence to support the theory.

The Process

For this project, you will work individually on some data gathering and note-taking. After you have gathered data from both print and non-print (electronic) resources, you will need to write 2 paragraphs paper telling about the Beringian Land Bridge and whether or not you believe there is enough evidence to support the Beringian Land Bridge Theory. Your writing will be evaluated based on

1. completeness of the Land Bridge Summary
2. paragraph construction -- does it have a topic sentence, a clincher sentence and 3 or more detail sentences.
3. have you included a sentence telling whether or not you feel that the Beringian Land Bridge Theory is supported by the evidence scientists have gathered so far.

Here are some questions to guide you...

Where is Beringia?

Use the map handout to label major land and water masses.

Resources that might help include a World Atlas and Beringian Map from the Internet. Check in the Library Media Center for Atlases and other print materials that will help you complete the handout.

What is Beringia like today?

Describe the climate, location, natural landmarks and geopolitical landmarks. 

Visit the Beringian National Park website or use print resources from the Library Media Center to gather information.

How do scientists think the Land Bridge helped people the Western hemisphere?

What caused the land bridge to appear?

Explain what evidence scientists are using to promote this theory.

The following web resources should be helpful in finding out more information about the Land Bridge and how scientists are using data to prove the theory:

Beringia National Park

Land Bridge Preserve

Gates of the Arctic: History

After you have completed the research or note-taking guide, write a 2-paragraph essay. In the first paragraph of your essay, you need to summarize what the Land Bridge is. Include details about what happened during the Ice Age to allow early humans to travel from the Continent of Asia to North America. In the second paragraph, give your opinion of whether or not you feel scientists have enough evidence to support the Land Bridge Theory.

Evaluation

	Beginning 1	Developing 2	Accomplished 3	Exemplary 4	Score
Paragraph 1 includes a clincher and topic sentence	Only one of these elements is evident.	Topic and clincher sentences are evident	More complex topic and clincher sentences are evident.	Topic and clincher sentences indicate high level of sentence structure.
At least 3 details support the topic in each paragraph.	One or 2 simple sentence support topic.	Three simple sentences support topic.	More than 3 well-contructed sentences in evidence.	More than 5 wl-constructed sentences in evidence.
Opinion paragraph: Is there enough data to support theory?	Separate sentence gives opinion, but lacks supporting detail for opinion.	Separate paragraph gives reason for opinion.	Separate paragraph with top, clincher, and detal sentences gives adequate reason to support opinion.	Advanced paragraph gives opinion and reasoning. Logical and well-constructed.

Conclusion

You have researched a theory of how humans migrated from one continent to another during the Ice Age. Scientists are still wrestling with this theory. In 1996, another prehistorice find was made in the Snake River Valley of Washington state. The remains of Kennewick Man seem to indicate there may be more to the mystery. To learn more, visit the Kennewick Man website.

Credits & References

Inspiration and Perspiration:  Places that were helpful and useful in the pursuit of information:

The Webquest Page

Beringian Center

Beringian Tour Center

US National Park Service

US Land Bridge Preserve

Arctic Circle

Kennewick Man

Thanks to Sandy Martinez, Blanchard Middle School, Westford, MA for showing me this tool in the first place.

Last updated on August 15, 1999. Based on a template from The WebQuest Page