Research Paper The Big Kahuna

What is a research paper? A “research paper” is taking and combining “information you find by doing research” and “your own ideas” to prove a “thesis statement”. Information + Ideas = Research

What is considered “my own ideas”? –Any “general” information –You MUST “cite” any information that has numbers Dates (birth and death) Statistics (% of free-throws made) Etc. What is a research paper?

What is a research paper continued… EXAMPLE –Billy the Kid Wild West outlaw (this we already know) “was an orphan at the age of 15” (what we learn through research) So we create a statement… Billy the Kid, a well known Wild West outlaw, most likely turned to violence after becoming an orphan at age 15 (Source 12). After Billy’s parents were… (The statement above was “paraphrased” but we still “cited” the source.)

How long does this have to be… Remember essays? –Our essays have been 5 paragraphs: the first paragraph is the Introduction, the middle three paragraphs are the Body, and the last paragraph is the Conclusion. This RESEARCH PAPER needs to be 5 pages: Introduction Multiple Body Paragraphs Conclusion

What Do I Need To Do? Choose a Topic (a good one) Make a Statement Question Your Topic

Choosing A Topic See what is available Ask yourself, “Is my topic too contemporary?” NARROW your topic –“Football” should become a “specific important player past or present” or “a specific issue related to the game (domestic abuse)” –“WWII” should become “an important leader” or “a major battle”

The “Thesis” Statement This is the “Main Idea” of you paper It becomes a “Focus” for your thoughts __________________ made/had a big impact on ______________ because _______, ________, and __________. Fill in the “Blanks” and get a “Thesis”

Narrow your topic for your Thesis Statement –“Football” is too BROAD a topic to cover for your “THESIS STATEMENT” Football made/had a big impact on ?. –BUT “Joe Montana” as a topic should be okay (if there are books available.) Joe Montana made/had a big impact on football because ________, __________, and __________.

The “Thesis Statement” Continued Once you come up with a thesis statement you are ready to research You now need to QUESTION your topic

Questioning Your Topic Ask yourself… –What do I already know? –What do I want to learn by doing research? Organize your questions into three subtopics (Examples) –Youth, Adult, Death –Before, During, After

What’s next? Source Cards –Encyclopedia –Book –Magazine –Internet Note Cards Reliability

Source Cards Encyclopedia Author Last name, First. “Subject Title.” Encyclopedia Name. Year of publication. Gold, John. “Edison, Thomas.” World Book Encyclopedia ed. Classroom Don’t forget to indent

Encyclopedia: Author Last name, First. After each “subject entry” in an encyclopedia there is an author. You will find that it is written in VERY small print at the very end of the article. Each “subject entry” is BOLD and is ALWAYS lined up on the left. Subcategories are also bold but they are indented slightly.

This one is easy… The “Subject Title” is what you are looking for –“Football” is a “Subject Title.” –“Ali, Muhammad” is a “Subject Title.” –“Cow” is a “Subject Title.” RULE: ALWAYS look for “people” by their LAST NAME first Encyclopedia: “Subject Title.”

Source Cards Book Author Last name, First. Book Title. City of Publication: Publisher, Year of publication. Josephson, Matthew. Edison: A Biography. Portland: Wiley, 1992.

Book: City of Publication and Publisher This information can be found on the “TITLE PAGE” The “Title Page” is the page in book that contains the title, author, publisher, publisher address, and copyright date. The “copyright” date is found by the © The “Title Page” is everything you need to create a “Book Source Card”

Source Cards Magazine Author or editor Last name, First name. “Article title.” Name of Magazine. Date of Magazine published: Page numbers. Saunders, Fenella. “They Invented it.” Discover Magazine. Oct 2006: 2-3. Ebsco-host

Source Cards Author or editor Last name, first name. Web site title. Date of publication of site.. Beals, Gerry. Thomas Edison’s Home Page Internet

Reliability on the Internet Reliable sources on the internet will always include an “author”, a “date”, and should always be “cross referenced” “Cross referenced” means you check the information with info from another web site.

Note Cards RULES: –Write a “direct quote” word-for-word –Always record the “page number” A “direct quote” is the information you are getting from a source. The “direct quote” should answer one of your “research questions.” You need to record the “page number” from your source because you will need this when you “cite” your information in your paper.

Note Cards Continued… A sample for you… »The page number »The “Direct Quote” “The most famous of his inventions was an incandescent light bulb.” Pg.. 89 Inventions

…and then? Outlines Citing in Writing and the Rough Draft Works Cited Title Page Final Production or Final Draft

Outline The research paper “outline” should be easy to organize…if your note cards are organized. The outline for the body will be easy to write…it may be that the “Intro” and “Conclusion” will be more difficult The “Intro” and “Conclusion” are… YOUR OWN WORDS…NO CITATIONS!!

Citing in Writing: What you Need What you need… Note Cards Source Cards From the “Note Cards” you need the “Direct Quote” and “page number” From the “Source Cards” you need the “Authors Last Name”

Citing in Writing: The Cards Jones, Matthew. Edison: A Biography. Portland: Wiley, School Library “The most famous of his inventions was an incandescent light bulb.” Pg. 89 Inventions <<<<<Source Card Note Card >>>>>>

Citing in Writing: What you Do Research is Citing. You must tell the “reader” where you get your information and we do this by “CITING” our source. The way we do this…

You take the direct quote and include your own thoughts to create a sentence in your research paper… Thomas Edison made many inventions in his lifetime. Some inventions are more famous than others. “The most famous of his inventions was an incandescent light bulb” (Jones 89). Citing in Writing: The Way We Do This…

Citing in Writing: Now what? EVERY TIME you use a “quote” from a note card you “Cite” the source. RULES: –Use the first item on your Source Card (Usually the author’s last name) –Use the page number from the Note Card –DO NOT write the word “page” in the “citation” –EXAMPLE: …” (Last Name Number).

The “WORKS CITED” Page Definition: The “sources” you “cited” in your research paper are written “collectively” on one page. This page is called the “Works Cited” page. SO WHAT DO YOU DO? –Type all your source cards IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER (by the first item on the card usually the Author’s Last name). REMEMBER: Indent ALL lines after the first.

You need ALL your “Source Cards” NOW… you need to type them…but there are rules… The “WORKS CITED” Page Jones, Matthew. Edison: A Biography. Portland: Wiley, School Library Beals, Gerry. Thomas Edison’s Home Page < edison.com/> Ebsco

So…your “Works Cited” page should look like this… ALPHABETICAL ORDER by Author’s last name Single spaced source information Double space between each source The “WORKS CITED” Page Works Cited Beals, Gerry. Thomas Edison’s Home Page < edison.com/> “Edison, Thomas.” World Book Encyclopedia ed. Jones, Matthew. Edison: A Biography. Portland: Wiley, Saunders, Fenella. “R&D: They Invented it.” Discover Magazine. Oct 200: 1.

Title Page: Let’s Name this Baby! The “title page” is the cover page for your research. What do you want on the “title page”? –The title –Your name –Your teacher’s name –The date you turn in your paper –Your class hour

Production: Format Formatting Your Paper –Times New Roman (font) –12 Pt (size of font) –Double Space (Format; Line Spacing; Double) –1 inch margins (already set) –NO BOLD –NO ITALICS –NO PICTURES This is a “FORMAL” piece of writing and it should look like it

Are we there yet? YES… Scoring Guide >>> Order to turn in –Scoring guide –Title Page –Research paper –Works Cited –Rough Draft –Outline –Note Cards

Assignment Write a Research Paper of at least 5 pages using at least 5 sources. “Research Paper Topics” 5-18/5-19—Notes #1/Topic/Prewriting 5-20/5-21—Notes #2/Work on Rough Draft 5-22/5-26—Rough Draft Due/Editing 3X 5-27/5-28—Final Draft Due 5-27/5-28 & 5-29/6-1—Presentations