Cities of the World

Webquest for 7th Grade Social Studies

Vada Judd
UNC Wilmington
Wilmington, North Carolina

INTRODUCTION

Each year the United Nations, an organization promoting international peace and welfare,
hosts a Model UN summit for students. These students come together representing
ambassadors from around the world. Together these students explore the role of a true UN
representative by working together to make diplomatic decisions for realistic situations.
This year, the United Nations has narrowed their choice of location for the Model UN
summit to six incredible cities worldwide. Now we need help from you, the research teams,
to decide which city has a historical and cultural background vibrant enough for such a
special occasion. We look forward to seeing what information you can bring us on these six
cities.

TASK
It is your job as researchers to gather information on each of the six cities the UN has
considered. You will compile this information into a creative presentation using either
emaze or prezi which you will then present to the UN general assembly (your class).
The process section will give you detailed instructions on completing this process, but
before we get started lets brainstorm some of the qualities we will be looking for in these
cities by answering the questions below:
1) What makes a city cultured or worldly? How will we show this in our research?
2) Which aspects of culture do you think are the most important? Why do you think
this?
3) Which aspects of culture do you think are least important in the process of choosing
this city? Why?
Below you will find a graphic organizer that you and your team will use to gather your
information throughout this assignment. Begin by circling the aspects of culture you find
most important.

Before you present your findings to the United Nations you must have the following:
A prezi or emaze presentation with at least one frame for each of the above blocks in
your graphic organizer
At least three photos from each of the researchers in your group
List of sources used throughout your research
A printed outline of speaking points so that you are prepared for your presentation
Once you have all of these things completed you are prepared to present and will show the
assembly your findings. You can look at the rubric in the evaluation section of this
webquest to read more specific information about the expectations for your presentation.
Happy Researching!

PROCESS
Step 1: Form Your Research Group & Topic
You will need to to gather information about your cities from four key areas and compile
them into a presentation you can give to the United Nations general assembly. Each of the
four researchers in your group will take on a specific role as a culture theorist, historian,
anthropologist, or political advisor. Together the information you find will provide a wealth
of information about the city you represent.
Before you begin, review the list of cities and job descriptions below. Decide which city
your group would like to research, and which job will be assigned to each person within
your group.

Cities:

Athens, Greece
Cairo, Egypt
Damascus, Syria
Jerusalem, Israel
Luoyang, China
Barcelona, Spain

Job Descriptions:
Culture Theorist: The culture theorist will research the art, literature, and music
prevalent within their city.
Historian: The historian will research the overall history of the city as well as the
architecture within that citys prominent buildings.
Anthropologist: The anthropologist will research the religions and languages that
are most common within their city, as well as the ceremonies and traditions
surrounding these cultural aspects.
Political Advisor: The political advisor will research the geography, economy, and
government of the chosen city.

Step 2: Research Your City

You can use the graphic organizer from the Task section to organize your information as
you find it. Below you will find a few helpful links for each of the jobs in this assignment.
These resources will give you most of the information you will need, but you will still need
to do some research on your own. Remember that Wikipedia is not a proper source, but it
is a jumping off point! Use the small blue numbered citations within wikipedia articles to
find primary sources with the information you need.

Culture Theorist Links:

http://harmsen.net/ahrc/
http://www.infoplease.com/ipea/A0934958.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cultural_and_regional_genres_of_music

Historian Links:
http://www.visual-arts-cork.com/architecture-history.htm
http://muse.jhu.edu/

Anthropologist Links:
http://www.religioustolerance.org/var_rel.htm
http://aboutworldlanguages.com/

Political Advisor Links:

https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/
http://www.historytoday.com/kathleen-burk/what-political-history

Step 3: Organize Your Information

Now is the time to organize all the information youve found. Remember, you must turn in
an outline of speaking notes at the time of your presentation. Beginning with your outline
will help you to make a better presentation later on. Begin by having each member of your
team condense their information. They should organize their information into the
categories listed on your graphic organizer. Once you have done this use the link below to
learn how to make an outline:
https://depts.washington.edu/psych/files/writing_center/outline.pdf

Step 4: Create Your Presentation

Using your outline as a guide, create a presentation using either Prezi or EMaze. I have
provided the links below to these platforms:
https://prezi.com/
https://www.emaze.com/
Remember that you are to have at least one slide for each of the blocks within your graphic
organizer, and three pictures from each researcher in your group. Please remember to
create a works cited slide or separate word document so that I can see your sources used.

Step 5: Practice and Peer Review

Now that youve finished your presentation you can switch work with another group and
compare each others presentations. Use the rubric in the evaluation section to determine if
your group is ready to present. Once you feel youre ready, practice! Practice timing your
presentation to the requirements on the rubric.

Step 6: Present!
Now it is time to present your presentation! Make sure you have the following things ready
on presentation day!

An engaging presentation with at least 12 slides and 12 photos

A list of works cited either in your presentation or printed out
A printed speaking outline to use during your presentation
Printed copies of your research notes
A good attitude and excitement about what youve learned!

EVALUATION
The below rubric will be used to score this assignment.

CONCLUSION
Congratulations! You have worked very hard and finally completed your research project.
The UN assembly has enjoyed your presentations and will make an announcement shortly
about which city they have chosen for their Model UN summit. For now, keep researching
the cities that fascinate you and perhaps you can represent them one day as well!

RESOURCES
Here are some additional resources for those of you who want to research your own
location:
http://www.factmonster.com/countries.html
http://www.factmonster.com/ipka/A0001196.html