Monday, May 1, 2017

Magical Mystery Tour

Magical Mystery Tour

Plan an expedition to a country anywhere in the world that really interests you.  Your purpose, besides enjoying the trip, is to try to solve a mystery somehow related to the country.  It could be a mysterious legend of a hero that has been passed down from the indigenous people.  It could be a newly-discovered secret passageway in an ancient site or building.  It could be a mysterious event in the country’s past that has never been solved, or it could be a lost treasure that you want to try to find.  Your destination and means of transportation must be real and possible today. 

Your expedition is sponsored by Mrs. Gloria Vandercluesen, a wealthy aristocrat from Rhode Island.  Her only condition is that you compile a pictorial scrapbook to record everything you see and learn in your quest to solve the mystery.  Since Mrs. V will finance your entire expedition, it is important that you communicate with her by letter, email, and postcards, and you will create a scrapbook, either physical or digital, that thoroughly records your expedition. 

Before you go, you must make several decisions  
·         How will you travel to your country? 
·         Where will you stay in your country? City, village, camp?
·         What obstacles do you expect to encounter? What surprises happened?
·         Did you solve the mystery?  If so, was it what you expected?

You are not writing an essay!  Using your best creative skills, incorporate into your scrapbook the following information about your expedition:
  • ·         Map(s) of your country, city, and areas where you will be exploring;
  • ·         Hotel in the city where you will be staying, currency of the country, method(s) of transportation (If you will outside a city, document that.);
  • ·         Travel rules/requirements for your destination (passport, visa, immunizations);
  • ·         Pictures, sketches (Each should have a description of what is shown and the names of any people in the picture.);
  • ·         Picture post cards with addresses and messages to Mrs. V and others;
  • ·         Emails and letters to friends, family, and professional contacts, in which you include information about your expedition;
  • ·         Plane, train, boat tickets (and other transportation arrangements);
  • ·         Museum tickets;
  • ·         Invitations to special events;
  • ·         Information on indigenous people of the region (their history, language, cultural information, legends);
  • ·         Something completely unexpected that makes your scrapbook different from the others.


Before you begin, you will need to do research on the country and all aspects of the people and their culture, past and present.  Keep a list of every book, magazine, documentary, web site, etc., that you use to gather information, and create a WORKS CONSULTED page that is a required part of your project.  A no-fail site that will help you cite your sources and create your Works Cited page is Noodle Tools that is available on the MMS Library Resources page.    

You will work on your scrapbook in class during times set aside for that purpose.  You may also do some work at home, but most of your work will be done in class and you will be graded on the work you do in class. 


If you choose to create a digital scrapbook, use “Pic Collage.”  The app is available on the class iPads.  If you have used another free scrapbook app, talk to your teacher, and we will see if it can be approved to add to the school iPad. 

Design the cover of your scrapbook to include a title, the date, and your name.  The pages of your scrapbook should be dated, but you do not need a page for every day.  Your trip should begin on Monday, May 1, 2017, and end on Friday, May 12.  That means you have two weeks to solve your mystery

Your completed journal or scrapbook is due Wednesday, May 17.





______(5) Cover follows guidelines listed above

______(20) Works Consulted page is complete, correct and follows all MLA format                                              conventions

______(10) All conventions are followed (-2 each error up to 5)

______(15) Travel information (visas, passports, modes of transportation, etc.) in complete
                         and appropriate for real life travel to your destination of choice.

______(40) All the stuff J  (I really want you to have flexibility here.  Make sure you cover
           what’s in the bulleted list and that it reflects accurate information about your destination.


______(10) Voice, Personalization, Unique quality that shows it’s YOURS