Step
1. Choose a topic
Step 2. Brainstorm
Step 3. Create a research plan
Step 4. Gather Data

Make sure the topic is broad
enough to allow for multiple
sources of information, but not to
broad for writing a focused,
relevant paper.

Ask yourself questions regarding the topic. What
is interesting about the topic? What makes the
topic worthy of a research paper? What do you
already know about the topic and what would
you like to learn? Talk with friends, parents,
teachers and others who can help you explore
your interest in the topic.

Decide how many and what kind of resources you will
use. Both print and online sources can be used for your
research project. Visit your school's library and find out
what reference books are available and might be useful.
Perform a preliminary search online using search engines
you learned about in computer class or from your school
librarian. Make a list of the sources you will use, and
make sure the number and kinds of sources fit the
requirements for your assignment.

While gathering data remember to not copy what the source says verbatim, but
reword the source into your own words.

Ex. of Source from website
Adolf Hitler was the founder and leader of the Nazi Party and the most
influential voice in the organization, implementation and execution of the
Holocaust, the systematic extermination and ethnic cleansing of six million
European Jews and millions of other non-aryans.
 Source: http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Holocaust/hitler.html
 ____________________________________________________________
 Source reworded in my own words
 Adolf Hitler was the founder and leader of the Nazi Party and the most
prominent voice in the organization and execution of the Holocaust. While
being the most prominent voice of this organization, he was the cause of six
million European Jews death.

Websites URL should end in .org, .edu, .gov, or
.com
 Ex. http://www.crlsresearchguide.org/
 Sources should come form educational websites.

› Example: www.discoverychannel.com
Write down all the sources from where you
gathered information.
 Do not use Wikipedia. It is not a credible source.



A primary source is a document, speech, or other sort
of evidence written, created or otherwise produced
during the time under study. Primary sources offer an
inside view of a particular event.
Examples include:
› Autobiographies, diaries, e-mail, interviews, letters,
minutes, news film footage, official records, photographs,
raw research data, speeches.

Examples of Primary Sources
› The Declaration of Independence — U. S. history

A secondary source is something written about
a primary source. Secondary sources include
comments on, interpretations of, or discussions
about the original material. You can think of
secondary sources as second-hand
information. If I tell you something, I am the
primary source. If you tell someone else what I
told you, you are the secondary source.
Secondary source materials can be articles in
newspapers or popular magazines, book or
movie reviews, or articles found in scholarly
journals that discuss or evaluate someone else's
original research.






Question to be answered in the report: Who is
Dr. Seuss and what has he accomplished?
You will work alone on your project.
You are responsible for writing a five
paragraph research paper and creating a
poster board to go along with your paper.
Your paper must be typed when turned in
and include sources.
We will work on your paper in class.
Your paper and poster is due March 4th .
Honors English must have five sources
and they must be typed and stapled to
the back of your paper.
 English 6 must have three sources and
they must be typed and stapled to the
back of your paper.


The poster MUST include the following:
› Topic Name (3 points)
› 4 pictures can be drawn or printed on the
computer (20 points)
› Captions for all the pictures (Tell what the
pictures are of) (12 points)
Total Points: 35 points
 50
points for research paper
 35 points for poster
 10 points for presentation
 5 points for sources
Total Points Possible 100
http://knowledgecenter.unr.edu/help/us
ing/primary.aspx
 http://www.ithacalibrary.com/sp/subject
s/primary
 http://www.merriamwebster.com/dictionary/inquiry
 http://www.merriamwebster.com/dictionary/conduct
 http://www.merriamwebster.com/dictionary/assess
