1. ThinkQuest UK Tony Parkin & Glyn Barritt ICT Development Team, SSAT

2. ThinkQuest UK  Renowned international competition open to teams of students aged between 9 and 19  Aim: to create and develop an educational website for publication in the ThinkQuest Library  UK competition runs in parallel and will offer prizes for student voice, community & global perspectives  Teachers and other adults in a learning resource capacity are invited to coach teams of students  Or volunteer to judge the 2008 competition!  Free Adobe software for participants! Student voice … lifelong skill development … www.thinkquestuk.org.uk Further information available from

3. ThinkQuest UK  UK winners announced in June  2007 Awards event on 6 and 7 November, London’s Design Museum  Press coverage, case studies … high profile for winning teams!  But … one primary team also an international 3 rd prize winner and spent a week in November in San Francisco!  Successful sites are published for the world to see in the ThinkQuest Library Our first UK winners! www.thinkquest.org/library ThinkQuest Library

4. ThinkQuest UK Kelly Rayson, Barrow Hill says … “ Project-based learning is nothing new to the education world. The idea that students learn through engaging tasks that require them to use teamwork, problem solving, critical thinking and time management skills in real life situations has clear benefits. An international website competition offering fantastic prizes also provided a wonderful carrot to dangle in the face of my prospective team members.”

5. ThinkQuest UK International winners …  Young Blood: Children of War [1 st prize 19U 2007] Young Blood: Children of War  On the Brink [1 st prize 12U 2007 and Intl Global Perspectives] On the Brink  Internet Safety [2 nd prize 15U 2007] Internet Safety  Coffee: All Ground Up [2004 Finalist Best of Category] Coffee: All Ground Up

6. A website to help visitors gain a deeper understanding of the importance of water and the consequences of water shortage. A section also deals with the devastating forces of water. 1 st prize in the 19U

7. ThinkQuest UK The role of the Coach  Register the team(s) NOW – changes to the team are possible up to the submission date  TQ Calendar –important dates and deadlines –also ability to add your own planning events  Free Adobe software – offer ends 31 March 2008!  TQ Library – ideas on content, design and winning ingredient!  Step by step guide and other support available from the international site.

8. ThinkQuest UK Points to watch out for …  Websites not submitted by the due date or incomplete when uploaded  Sources of information not cited – immediate disqualification!  Plagiarism.. content needs to be presented in students’ own words! –Encourage students to search for sources other than found on Wikipedia!  The inclusion of inappropriate/objectionable content or advertising materials

9. ThinkQuest UK  Ensure that the site does not contain students’ last names, email addresses or contact details  No links to discussion boards, guestbooks or any other tool whereby students could post personal information  No more than six students in a team! Points to watch out for …

10. ThinkQuest UK … and the ‘techie’ points!  First page should be named index.htm/html and be found at the top level of the website.  Use relative links and image references, not absolute links which may break on upload.  Each site is allocated 50Mb on the TQ server!  Ensure that all files run within a browser and test the website in several browsers  Certain applications are not supported – do read the supporting material

11. ThinkQuest UK Judging based on …  Content –deep exploration of topic, accurate, credible, current  Writing and Organization –concisely, correct grammar & punctuation & spelling  Originality – think about using interviews, surveys, videos, observations  Educational Relevance – websites must have relevance to other students & teachers  Global Impact –diverse views, engages others in making a difference

12. ThinkQuest UK Judging based on …  Citations –ALL sources to be identified and credited … footnotes on the relevant page and on a summary citations page  Collaboration –Site Profile and website to describe team working and contingency planning  Team Diversity –Members in different countries, socioeconomic groups etc  Website Structure, Appearance and Function –Aesthetic, easy to navigate, no technical issues  Media Use – appropriate use

13. ThinkQuest UK OK … the real role of the coach …  To monitor team leader’s timelines and project management.  Continual encouragement - to remind students that every successful team’s a winner!  Their website, having passed its health checks, will be published in the renowned TQ Library for the world to see … and use … and gain encouragement from in the competition years to come!  To help avoid the pain of disqualification … but let’s hope that’s not going to happen!

14. ThinkQuest UK Kelly says … “In all honesty, the prizes and trip were just the icing on the cake. My team members have gained self- confidence through this project, and are already to engaging themselves and their peers in new endeavours, entirely of their own volition. My team this year have a lot to live up to!”

15. UK Winning Teams

16. Seven … thought to be a sacred or lucky number for thousands of years. We talk about being in seventh heaven when we’re very happy, but facing seven years’ bad luck if you break a mirror! And so this website takes a look at the occurrence of the number 7 … from the Seven Wonders of the World … to 7 in stories, like Snow White! 3 rd Prize in the UK’s 12U

17. Through animiated characters like Ally the Apple, Mike the Melon and Ollie the Orange, this website looks at food and lifestyle for keeping fit and healthy. And this site also won an Honourable mention in the international competition, in the 12 and under category. 2 nd Prize in the UK’s 12U and Student Voice Prize

18. Global Tales - a collection of traditional myths, legends and folk tales from all over the world! The countries featured are Australia, Japan, Iraq, China, Africa, India, Norway and the United Kingdom. 1 st Prize in the UK’s 12U and Global Perspectives Prize and 3 rd prize in the international 12U competition!

19. Now that so many computer games are based on conflict avoidance strategies, this website was developed out of a fascination with the cold war period and the lessons learned in avoiding a similar situation in the future. 1 st Prize in the UK’s 15U

20. This site aims to cover the whole UK Life Support syllabus, to aid all those qualified in Life Support to keep their knowledge up-to- date and to prepare for exams. The skills are the same worldwide, so you might just save a life … perhaps that of a loved one! 2 nd prize in the 19U and Community Prize

21. 2008 submission date … 02 April 2008 So plenty of time to get THINKING!