Office of Curriculum, Technology, & Assessment

Program Title: Mystery Quest
Program Length: 2.5 hours
Delivery Method: Video Conferencing
Program Provider: Berien County Intermediate School District
Additional Information
Audience: Grades 3 – 5
Site Limit: 3 Schools

Overview:

This project is designed for middle school students studying world geography. Through video conference technology, students are able to meet other students while learning about cities and countries in the world. Prior to the video conference each classroom will create a presentation with clues about their ONE mystery country and city. South Dakota’s mystery country comes out of the Western Hemisphere.  The other classrooms, using maps, the Internet, textbooks, and other resources, will try to discover the mystery location presented by each participating classrooms.

Social Studies Standards
3-5 

Goal 2 – GEOGRAPHY

Students will understand the interrelationships of people, places, and the environment.

Indicator 1: Analyze information from geographic representation, tools, and technology to define location, place, and region.

Third Grade

1. integrate the study of communities through map work by identifying, locating, and using map title, map key, compass rose, lines and borders, roads and routes, and objects and symbols.
2. use grid systems to locate communities.

Fourth Grade

1. define regions as categorized by geographic location.
2. use appropriate maps for a specific purpose, including elevation, land use-resource, road maps and mileage tables, time zones, and migration/movement patterns.

Social Studies Standards
6-8 

Goal 2 – GEOGRAPHY
Students will understand the interrelationships of people, places, and the environment.  

Indicator 1: Analyze information from geographic representation, tools, and technology to define location, place, and region. 

Grade Level Standards

Seventh Grade

1. use maps, globes, and other geographic tools to analyze the human and physical features in order to recognize the different map projections and explain the concept of distortion; explain the characteristics, purposes, and differences among maps, globes, aerial photographs, geographic models, and satellite images; apply the concepts of scale, orientation, latitude and longitude; create and compare political, physical, and thematic maps (e.g., choropleth maps, cartograms) of countries and regions; and create and interpret charts, graphs, and diagrams.
2. study the basics of climate in order to understand the physical settings of this region by identifying the factors that influence climate such as latitude, ocean currents, winds and mountains, elevation, and nearness to water. 
3. understand the concept of culture by explaining how culture and technology affect perceptions of places and regions, explaining the spatial distribution of cultures both locally and in other parts of the United States and the world, and describing how cultures and cultural landscapes change.

Indicator 2: Analyze the relationships among the natural environment, the movement of peoples, and the development of societies. 

Grade Level Standards

Seventh Grade

1. know how and why people define regions by identifying a region by defining its distinguishing characteristics, explaining how and why regions change, and analyzing the influences and effects of regional labels and images (e.g., Sun Belt states attract retirees and tourists).
2. analyze the geographic, political, economic and social structure of each region/country with emphasis on location and physical setting; the cultural characteristics of the people; the ways people have adapted to, changed, and used their environment in the past and present; the flow and interaction of people, ideas and products as they are influenced by transportation and communication systems; and the role this country/region has in the international setting.

Indicator 3: Analyze the impact of Earth’s natural processes, patterns, and cycles on various regions of the United States and the world.

Seventh Grade

1. study the basics of climate in order to understand the physical settings of this region by identifying ways in which climate influences people.
2. understand the effects of interactions between human and physical systems and the changes in meaning, use, distribution, and importance of resources by describing how human modifications of physical environments in one place often lead to changes in other places; explaining the role of technology in the human modification of the physical environment; explaining how the characteristics of different physical environments provide opportunities for or place constraints on human activities; identifying how technology affects the definition of, access to, and use of resources; and describing why people have different viewpoints with respect to resource use.

(NOTE: Each site must audio mute upon connecting to the session to prevent voice activated moving of the cameras from site to site.)

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