​DISCOVERY QUEST

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• Discovery Quest is an oral question-of-the-month activity that allows students to learn public speaking skills and independent research skills.

• Students will use books, magazines, reference books, family member interviews, or research tools such as the Internet to learn about one of choices on monthly Discovery Quest topics.

• Students will present to the class throughout the year. At the beginning of each assigned month, we send a calendar home with student names with the presentation dates.  The date should also be written in the student's planner. 

• Acceptable participation means that they do not read their information, but they tell us what they have learned. Students may bring power points, pictures, posters they’ve made, visual aid items, short video clips, or another creative way to share their learning with the class.

Guidelines:

• Your Discovery Quest speech should be 3 to 5 minutes long.

• You may consult notes, but you may not read from them.

• You should speak in a loud, clear, confident voice, and make eye contact with your audience on a regular

basis.

• Your speech should be organized and on topic.

• Tell the title of your speech and where your information came from. (Tell this to the audience and then turn the same information into your teacher on an index card)

• Have an attention grabber and a conclusion. We should know when the speech is over.

• Give great information in your own words. NEVER just read what you’ve printed from the

computer!!

• Look like you’re enjoying telling us all about your topic!!

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Discovery Quest Topics

 

SEPTEMBER TOPICS

1. Discover your grandparents!  "Grandparents Day" is in September, so interview two or more grandparents and find out more about their life.  Ask about their childhood, jobs, family, and favorite memories.

2. Discover the library.  September is "National Library Card Sign Up" month and "Read a New Book" month.  Tell us how we go about getting a library card.  Then tell us about two books you recommend we read.  Be sure to include the title, author, summary, and why you recommend them.

3. Discover 3 American symbols. (bird, flower, statue of liberty, liberty bell, or one of the many others) Tell why it was selected and what it stands for.

4. Discover the history of one of the many firsts that occurred in September in the past: United States Post Office opened, U.S. Supreme Court started, and the first printed newspaper in America.

5. Discover a Jewish Holiday celebrated in September: Rosh Hashanah and/or Yom Kippur. You may pick one and discover it more in depth, or you may do both. When, why, and what Jewish people do to celebrate the day.

 

 

OCTOBER TOPICS

1. Discover a career that interests you that requires science, math, or both. Tell us about it. Tell us about what the job is, where you would work, the training you would need, and why you want to do it.

2. Discover which college you would like to attend. Tell us about three different colleges or universities and what you could study there. Then tell us why going to school there interests you.

3. Discover Columbus Day. Columbus Day is an October holiday but you do not have a day off school to celebrate it. Tell us what the holiday stands for.

4. Discover superstitions and/or "old wives" tales. Tell about one and its history (how it started).

5. Discover Molly Pitcher, a woman involved in the Revolutionary War.

 

NOVEMBER TOPICS

1. Discover veterans. We honor our veterans on Veterans Day, November 11. What is a veteran? Learn about it, and then tell the class about a veteran you know and his or her contributions to our country.

2. Discover Thanksgiving.  How did it come to be US holiday, and tell what are your family traditions are at Thanksgiving.

3. Discover the Prime Meridian and the International Date Line. What are they? Where are they located? Find out why they are important.

4. Discover a Native American legend. Learn a Native American legend, and practice telling it like it would have been told by Native Americans years ago. Don't read it! Tell it with expression, emotion, and personality!

5. Discover your favorite author! November 1st is National Author's Day, so dig into the life of your favorite author. This is more than just listing the books the author wrote.  Tell about his/her childhood, family, and career.

 

DECEMBER TOPICS

1. Discover the law of supply and demand. How does it affect the cost of your holiday gifts?

2. Discover holiday traditions. What holiday traditions does your family have that come from other countries or cultures?

3. Discover community service. Research a charity. Find out how people “give back” to their charity of choice. Who (or what) does your charity benefit? Tell us why others would want to donate their time, money, or resources to this charity and how they can go about getting involved.

4. Discover the story behind something. Find out how a toy or game was created. Who created it? Then create your own game or a toy.
 

JANUARY TOPICS

1. Discover a way to make the new year your best ever -- in school or at home. Share your 
resolution(s) and the reason you chose it/them. What are some resolutions your family members have and why?

2. Discover Mars. Choose to tell about the Greek god for whom the planet was named, or explain what scientists have learned in recent years about the planet.

3. Discover the Civil Rights Movement or one of the famous people involved in it, such as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. or Rosa Parks.

4. Discover living healthy.  January is national "Stay Healthy" month.  Tell us three ways to stay healthy and why it's important.  What do you and your family do to stay healthy?

5. Discover the Chinese New Year! Also include how the celebration is different than how we celebrate the New Year in the United States.

 

FEBRUARY TOPICS

1. Discover Valentine's Day. How did it start? It is an unofficial holiday, but why is it celebrated? Make a valentine for a family member. Share it with the class and then deliver it to your family member.

2. Discover a famous African-American, past or present. Tell about his/her life and contributions.

3. Discover National Dental Children's Month. What are the do's and don’ts to have healthy teeth. What are some interesting facts about teeth. You may also tell your personal story of a trip to the dentist.

4. Discover bugs and insects. Choose one and learn all about it! Discover where it lives, what it eats, and what insect or animal preys upon it, whether it is dangerous to humans, and how its existence is important to us.

 

MARCH TOPICS

1. Discover St. Patrick’s Day. What is the history behind St. Patrick's Day? What would it mean if you wore orange instead of green?

 

2. Let's go fly a. . .a. . .Well, let's learn about aerodynamics and how/why planes, kites, and birds fly. You can teach paper airplane making, IF you can show the reason it flies well!

 

3. Discover famous women. In honor of Women’s History Month, choose a famous woman, and tell when she lived, what her major accomplishments were, and how her achievements have impacted the development of our country.

 

4. Discover the state senators for Wisconsin and the state representatives for Milwaukee County. Are they Republican or Democrat? Find out more about one of them – his/her family, jobs (normally), and views on things that are important to you.
 

5. Discover 3 holidays that rotate between March and April: Easter, Passover, and Purim. Why are they on different dates? Why are they celebrated? Do people who celebrate these holidays do anything special for the celebration?

 

APRIL TOPICS

1. Discover how to be “green.” April is Earth Month. Tell us what being "green" means and how each of us can make a difference at home, school, and within the community.

 

2. Discover number patterns. Look at this pattern: 1,1,2,3,5,8,13,21. . . Can you continue this famous number sequence? It's called the Fibonacci sequence after the Italian mathematician who "discovered" it. Discover Fibonacci and his life OR find examples of this sequence in nature. (Hint: Count flower petals in multi-layer flowers for starters.)

 

3. With warmer weather comes more outdoor play--hooray! Discover safety on bikes, skateboards, roller blades, or scooters. Teach the class how to be safer while having more fun!

4. Discover the Olympics. The first Olympic games took place in Athens, Greece in 1896. Why did the Olympics start. Choose the summer or winter Olympics: name some of the games played during this season of the Olympics. Where and when have the Olympics been in the United States. When and where will the next Olympics be held? 
 

MAY TOPICS

1. Discover asthma and allergies. May is "Asthma & Allergy Awareness Month."  What is asthma?  What are some common allergies?  How do people live with these conditions?  Do you have allergies?  How has it affected your life?

 

2. Discover how to help in an emergency. You should know some basic first aid in case of emergency. Explain what someone your age can do in case of bleeding, choking, or if someone isn't breathing.

 

3. Discover Cinco de Mayo. Why is this holiday celebrated? What are some traditions of Cinco de Mayo?

 

4. Discover your mother. May is Mother's Day. Come up with 10-15 questions for an interview with your mom to find out about her life before you were born. Then include what she does and joys in her life.  Make a special Mother's Day card for your mom to share with the class as well.

5. Discover an invention. In the month of May the first U.S. patent for an automobile was approved. A government patent allows an inventor to prevent others from making or selling his invention. Come up with pictures and descriptions of your own invention(s). Also ask 3-5 others what invention they think should be made.

  

 

 

What will I be graded on?

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_______     Presentation was 3-5 minutes long. (Over 5 minutes- deduct ½ point)

_______   -Spoke in a loud, clear, confident voice, at an understandable pace

                 -You made eye contact with audience on a regular basis.

 

_______     -Include multimedia components (e.g., graphics, sound) and visual displays in presentations to enhance the             

                   development of main ideas

                   -You referred to it throughout the presentation- connect ideas to what you show!

 

_______     -Told the audience the title of your speech (from the correct month(s) assigned)

                   -Told where your information came from (resources)

 

                    (You MUST hand in your notes/visuals, questions, and references at the end of your speech.  If you do a power-point,     

                     please print the slides.)
 

_______     -You sequenced your ideas logically and used appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details to support the main

                    ideas. Your ideas are in your own words.

                -You completed the ENTIRE quest

 

_______  GRADE out of 5

 

                           Proficient = 4 or 5 out of 5

                           Basic = 3 out of 5

                           Minimal = 1 or 2 out of 5