King Arthurs Court Freak Web Quest

Freak the Mighty

By Rodman Philbrick

Enter the castle gates and venture on a journey through the Middle
Ages. Your quest is to find information that will bring you to a greater
understanding of Philbricks novel Freak the Mighty while exploring
medieval times.
Do you accept the quest? Then lets read on and prepare for
your adventure.

Kevin copes with having a fatal disease by escaping into books

and words. His favorite topic is King Arthur, knights, and their quests.
Kevin explains to Max that knights were the first robots. He believes
that by studying knights and robots, scientists may come up with a
way to get him a new body. Max has never heard of knights or King
Arthur and can't figure out why Kevin is calling his mom "Gwen of Air".
Together Kevin and Max become Freak the Mighty- Max giving Kevin a
body to use and Kevin giving Max a mindful of knowledge.
Your task is to pair up with a partner and do research on knights,
quests, castles, Lady Guinevere and King Arthur. You will need to find
information so you can help Max understand all the things that Kevin is
telling him.

Task 1
You will need to visit websites on King Arthur, knights, and castle
life in order to complete the following activity.
Write a letter to Max explaining what you've learned about
castles, knights, and life during the times of King Arthur. This
must be one page typed (double-spaced, Times New Roman, 1-inch
margins). Spell check your work, and be sure to edit your work before
turning in! Each of you is responsible for writing your own
letter. Be sure it is in your own words and that you provide
details and examples in your information. You may use the
following sites to get you started:

http://www.suelebeau.com/medievaltimes.htm

http://www.castlewales.com/life.html

http://www.kyrene.k12.az.us/schools/Brisas/sunda/ma/1ja
ke.htm

http://www.kyrene.k12.az.us/schools/Brisas/sunda/ma/1ki
mberly.htm

http://www.kathimitchell.com/middleages.htm#King
%20Arthur

http://www.middle-ages.org.uk/king-arthur-knights-round-table1.htm

Task 2
One of the recurring themes from the novel Freak the Mighty, by
Rodman Philbrick, is how people can overcome challenges. The main
character, Max, has a learning disability, but he writes his own novel.
The other main character, Freak, has a physical disability, but he lives
his life to the fullest.

A. You will investigate

Morquios Syndrome. This is the disease that claimed Kevins life.

Think about the symptoms of the disease, its life-long impact, and
how it affects Kevin and others in his life. Consider how Kevin

overcame the crippling affects of this disease. Also include how

this disease would affect others in general.

B. You will also investigate

Learning disabilities. Know some different types of learning

disabilities and how they affected Max and others in his life.
Explain what can be done to compensate for any of these
disabilities. How would Maxs life have been different if he had
outside intervention (someone to help him)?

Use the following sites to do your research

Freaks Disease
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/001206.htm
https://www.google.com/health/ref/Morquio+syndrome
Maxs Disease
http://kidshealth.org/kid/health_problems/learning_problem/learning_di
sabilities.html
Work with your partner and answer the following questions about the
diseases. Correct the true or false questions if they are false. If you
would like, you may copy and paste the questions into a separate
document and print it to hand in. Staple it to your letter and timeline.

1. How do you get the diseases that Freak and Max

have?
2. Write two (2) symptoms of Morquios Syndrome.
3. True or False If you have either of the disabilities Max
and Freak suffer from you can still be useful in life.
4. Is there a treatment for Morquios Syndrome?
5. True or False - Morquios Syndrome affects a persons
ability to think.
6. What is an example of the type of disability that Max
has?
7. Why do kids have a better chance than their parents
did in conquering their learning disabilities?

8. True or False If you have a learning disability you will

NOT be able to learn.

What you must hand in!

Both you and your partner must hand in a letter to Max

telling him about knights, castles, King Arthur, Lady
Guinevere, and anything else that relates to the Middle
Ages.

You must each do research on Morquios Syndrome and

Learning Disabilities and answer the questions about each
disability.

Each of you must fill in and complete a timeline (pg.5) on

important events connecting Freak the Mighty with King Arthur
and the Knights of the Round Table.

A great deal of information was taken directly from the following website created by
an anonymous source.
http://www.lalpfd.com/FTMwebquest.htm

Name(s)__________________
Period_______
Directions: Fill in the timeline with important events in the
story so far. Choose three events on your timeline that you
think are the most significant. List them and explain why
they are significant. Use complete sentences.
IMPORTANT EVENTS
#2

#3

#4

#5

#6

#7

#8

Beginning of the story

Where we have read to, so far

#1

Most Significant Events

1)

2)

3)