9
Research
Finding information in a research project is often difficult for students. If they don’t get instant
results, they often give up. Sometimes they find too much information and have trouble
selecting the portions they need for the assignment. In addition, students in the middle school
work at a variety of ability levels, and have trouble locating information that is appropriately
presented for their level of understanding.
The tools that are included here are designed to help students find and record the information that
they need. This includes evaluating sources for reliability, locating information in the chosen
sources, and extracting information from the sources once they are found.
Research:
-Gather sources
-Extract info
from sources
10
THE DEWEY DECIMAL SYSTEM
Dewey numbers divide
humanity's knowledge, ideas,
and artistic creations into ten
major categories spanning a range
from 000 to 999:
200 Religion
300 Social sciences
Each major category divides into
nine sub-categories spanning a
range of 10 to 90. For example:
400 Language
500 Natural science & mathematics
500 Natural sciences & math
510 Mathematics
600 Technology (Applied sciences)
520 Astronomy & allied sciences
700 The arts
530 Physics
800 Literature & rhetoric
540 Chemistry & allied sciences
900 Geography & history
550 Earth sciences
560 Paleontology & paleozoology
Each sub-category is further
divided into nine
specialized topics ranging
570 Life sciences
from 1 to 9:
520 Astronomy
By adding decimals, the
specialized topics are broken down
even further:
521 Celestial mechanics
523.3 Moon
522 Techniques, equipment, etc.
523.4 Planets
523 Specific celestial bodies
523.5 Meteors, solar wind, zodiacal light
524 [Unassigned]
523.6 Comets
525 Earth (Astronomical geography)
526 Mathematical geography
527 Celestial navigation
523.7 Sun
523.71 Constants and dimensions
523..72 Physics of
523.73 Motions
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THE DEWEY DECIMAL SYSTEM
000 Generalities
010 Bibliography
020 Library & information
sciences
030 Encyclopedic works
050 Serials & their indexes
060 Organizations & museums
070 New media, journalism,
publishing
080 General collections
090 Manuscripts & rare books
100 Philosophy & psychology
110 Metaphysics
120 Epistemology, causation,
humankind
130 Paranormal phenomena
140 Specific philosophical
schools
150 Psychology
160 Logic
170 Ethics
180 Ancient, medieval, oriental
philosophy
190 Modern western
philosophy
200 Religion
210 Natural theology
220 Bible
230 Christian theology
240 Christian moral &
devotional theology
250 Christian orders & local
churches
260 Christian social theology
270 Christian church history
280 Christian denominations
290 Other & comparative
religions
300 Social Science
310 General statistics
320 Political science
330 Economics
340 Law
350 Public administration
360 Social problems & services
370 Education
380 Commerce,
communications, transport
390 Customs, etiquette, folklore
400 Language
410 Linguistics
420 English & Anglo-Saxon
languages
430 German languages
440 French languages
450 Italian, Romanian, RhaetoRomanic
460 Spanish & Portuguese
languages
470 Latin languages
480 Greek languages
490 Other languages
500 Natural science &
mathematics
510 Mathematics
520 Astronomy & allied
sciences
530 Physics
540 Chemistry & allied
sciences
550 Earth sciences
560 Paleontology &
Paleozoology
570 Life sciences
580 Botanical sciences
590 Zoological sciences
600 Technology (applied
sciences)
610 Medical sciences
620 Engineering
630 Agriculture
640 Home economics & family
living
650 Management
660 Chemical engineering
670 Manufacturing
680 Manufacture for specific
use
690 Buildings
700 The arts
710 Civic & landscape art
720 Architecture
730 Sculpture
740 Drawings & decorative arts
750 Paintings & painters
760 Graphic arts
770 Photography
780 Music
790 Recreational & performing
arts
800 Literature & rhetoric
810 American literature in
English
820 English literature
830 Literature of Germanic
language
840 Literatures of Romance
language
850 Italian, Romanian, RhaetoRomanic Literatures
860 Spanish & Portuguese
literatures
870 Latin literatures
880 Greek literatures
890 Literatures of other
languages
900 Geography & history
910 Geography & travel
920 Biography, genealogy,
930 History of the ancient
world
940 History of Europe
950 History of Asia
960 History of Africa
970 History of N. America
980 History of S. America
990 History of other areas
12
Where can I find....?
(Getting to know the Dewey Decimal System)
Call Numbers, Fiction and Non-Fiction
Books in the library are put on the shelf in a special order. Each book has
a number. This number is called a call number. It is found on the spine of
the book. A call number is a group of numbers and/or letters that tell
you where to find a book.
Remember: A call number is not made up of just numbers. Some call
numbers are made up of letters or both numbers and letters.
Library books are sorted by fiction and non-fiction books.


Fiction books are stories that are made up by the author and are not true.
Non-fiction books are true and give you information about all kinds of things.
Fiction Books
Non-Fiction Books
Fiction books are given call numbers that
use the author's last name. They are put on
the shelf in alphabetical order by the
author's last name.
Non-fiction books are also sorted by the
first letters of the author's last name.
However, they are also organized by their
subject or what the book is about.
In our library, fiction books can be found in
two places.
Each subject has its own number. This
number is based on the Dewey Decimal
System.


Easy books (or picture books) are
sorted using the first letter of the
author's last name.
Chapter books are sorted using
the first three letters of the author's
last name under the letter F.
When you sort non-fiction books, the
number comes first. After the numbers
have been put in order, you can put the
letters in alphabetical order.
Adapted from www.emerson.k12.nj.us/staff/rmkelly/custom/mediacenter/Kids%20Corner/Dewey/DeweyDecimal.html
OTTOSON MEDIA CENTER
REFERENCE SECTION
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C
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P
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E
R
S
Computers
C
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M
P
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T
E
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S
Biographies
0-200 Generalities
and Psychology
Picture Books
200-500: Religion, Social Science, and
Language
Room
219
500-599: Natural Science and Math
600-699: Applied Science
C
O
M
P
U
T
Lookup
Desk
Hardcover fiction
E
R
S
Card
Catalogue
700-799: Arts and Recreation
800-917: Literature and History
917-999: History
Atlases
Paperback Fiction
LOBBY 
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Parts of a Book
Author
Person who writes a book
Title
Name of the book
Title Page
Page that includes basic information about the book
Table of Contents
List of chapters at the beginning
Glossary
List of words at the back of the book
Index
List of subjects included at the back of the book
Place of Publication
City where the book is published
Copyright Date
Date book is published
Illustrator
Person who draws the pictures
Publisher
Company that produces the book
USING THE PARTS OF A BOOK
A book has many parts. The title page of a book has the information about when and
where the book was published. It will give you the name of the author. It will tell you
the copyright date or the date the book was written or published.
The table of contents in a book will help you to find the names of the chapters of the
book and the page number where each chapter begins. Each chapter of the book will
have a name and usually has a chapter number.
The glossary of a book will give meanings to words used in the book. Vocabulary words
or new words in the book will be here. The glossary can help you to understand your
reading and will make it easier for you to learn and study the information.
The index of a book is very valuable to learners. You will find a listing of each topic in
the book, names of people, maps in the book, or any other information in the book listed
here. The listing will be in alphabetical order and will have the page number in the book
where you can find the information you are looking for.
Adapted from www.teach-nology.com/worksheets/research/book/basic/index.html
15
Notes
Often, students become overwhelmed when faced with a large amount of information on
a subject. Being able to extract necessary information from a text, website, video, or other
source is vital to the research process. The following pages are designed to help students take
notes while researching.
To assist students in this task, we have created a uniform note-taking format that students can
use while taking notes. This format can be adapted for students of different learning styles and
abilities, as well as tailored by teachers to different levels of complexity. Regardless of any
adaptations made, it is important that students follow the rules outlined below:
1. Information is separated. Notes should be written one fact at a time. This allows
information to be sorted later.
2. Source information must be included. This includes page numbers for printed works.
3. Ability to categorize. Once students have taken their notes, they must have a way to sort
the information. Categories can be assigned ahead of time or students can create them
after they have finished their research.
We are including two templates here. One is for note cards. Gathered from many different
teachers, this format includes all of the required elements listed above. When using note cards, it
is important that students also keep a master list of their sources.
The other template is a notes page. It contains the same information as the cards, but is kept
in one place for a student who may have trouble keeping track of cards. The source information
is gathered on the same page as the notes. If used as single-sided handouts, the sheet could later
be cut and organized in the same was as the cards would be.
One step further: color-coding
Color-coding can be another way to organize notes. Using different colored index cards
can help students to organize by topic, provided topics are given with the assignment and that the
assignment does not have more than five or six topics. They can also be used to keep track of
what information came from what source (different color per source) or from what source type
(blue for book, white for web, green for video, etc.)
Students can also use white note cards and later sort by color using highlighters. This
may be a better option if students are using more topics for longer assignments.
16
Learning to Use Note Cards
When it comes to organizing information for a term paper or even a short two or three
page paper, the "Note Card System" can be very useful. By using this system, you create note
cards from blank 3x5, 4 x 6, or 5x7 index cards that you fill with information pertinent to the
subject that you are researching. Make sure the information is expressed in your own words,
unless it is a quotation. Use good sentence structure: this will save you time when you start to
write the paper.
On the side with the lines:
Sub topic (Optional)
One fact
OR
One quote OR
One thought
Internet Source
Title
OR
Author and Page Number
On the side with the lines Example:
Jane Parker was born August 21, 1960 in Dorchester,
Massachusetts.
Mellencamp, 32
17
On the blank side:
Topic
(Ex.) Childhood
What to Do With Your Cards:
1. Organize the cards by topics to create an outline for your paper.
2. Write the term paper following this sequence. Use topical, concluding, and transitional
sentences to link the information on the cards.
3. Keep a separate set of cards with the complete information of books, magazines, films,
etc. These will be used for entering citations, and when compiling the works cited page.
4. Color or highlight note cards so that you can vary the number of sources in the paper.
(Examples) Pink card or highlight is for books, Blue card or highlight is for magazines,
newspapers or online journals, Yellow card or highlight is for Internet websites, and
Green card or highlight is for audio or video sources.
5. When organizing your paper try to vary the color of each source so that your paragraphs
and paper are not comprised of entirely one or two color sources.
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NOTE TAKING FORM
Type of Source (Circle one):
Book
Magazine
Newspaper
Video
Online Journal
Internet Website
Other: __________________________________________
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
Author(s): _______________________________________________________________________________________________
Title: ____________________________________________________________________________________________________
City of Publication: ________________________________________ Publisher_______________________________________
Copyright date: ____________________ Page Number(s): ____________________Date Updated: _____________________
Web Address: ____________________________________________________________________________________________
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Topic/Subtopic
Note from this source:
______________ ________________________________________________________________________
______________ __________________________________________________________________Page #
______________ ________________________________________________________________________
______________ __________________________________________________________________
Topic/Subtopic
Note from this source:
______________ ________________________________________________________________________
______________ __________________________________________________________________Page #
______________ ________________________________________________________________________
______________ __________________________________________________________________
Topic/Subtopic
Note from this source:
______________ ________________________________________________________________________
______________ __________________________________________________________________Page #
______________ ________________________________________________________________________
______________ __________________________________________________________________
Topic/Subtopic
Note from this source:
______________ ________________________________________________________________________
______________ __________________________________________________________________Page #
______________ ________________________________________________________________________
______________ __________________________________________________________________
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Topic/Subtopic
Note from this source:
______________ ________________________________________________________________________
______________ __________________________________________________________________Page #
______________ ________________________________________________________________________
______________ __________________________________________________________________
Topic/Subtopic
Note from this source:
______________ ________________________________________________________________________
______________ __________________________________________________________________Page #
______________ ________________________________________________________________________
______________ __________________________________________________________________
Topic/Subtopic
Note from this source:
______________
________________________________________________________________________
______________
__________________________________________________________________Page #
______________
________________________________________________________________________
______________
__________________________________________________________________
Topic/Subtopic
Note from this source:
______________ ________________________________________________________________________
______________ __________________________________________________________________Page #
______________ ________________________________________________________________________
______________ __________________________________________________________________
Topic/Subtopic
Note from this source:
______________ ________________________________________________________________________
______________ __________________________________________________________________Page #
______________ ________________________________________________________________________
______________ __________________________________________________________________
Topic/Subtopic
Note from this source:
______________ ________________________________________________________________________
______________ __________________________________________________________________Page #
______________ ________________________________________________________________________
______________ __________________________________________________________________
20
E-ROAD
The Path to Researching on the Internet
Evaluate:
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Where am I?
Is this page worth visiting?
Does the site offer anything informative, unique, or insightful?
Is it free of errors, misspelled words, and poor grammar?
Do you understand the language? Is it too casual and basic or detailed and
scholarly?
Relevance: (Relates to the topic)
 Does this site address the topic you are researching?
 Are there enough details for this to be useful?
Objectivity: (Point of view)




Who wrote this?
Is it a trusted source?
Is there an obvious bias or point of view?
What gives the author authority or expertise on the subject?
Accuracy:
 Is the information consistent with other sources?
 Are the website’s sources listed?
 Are the sources also useful to you?
Date:
 When was the page originally written?
 When was it updated?
 Is the information current?