1. Selecting and Using Information in Projects
Research Skills
Selecting and Using Information in Projects

2. Research Steps Choose your topic List what you already know Keywords
Select your sources
Research Questions
Skim and scan for information
Make bullet points of interesting information
Write up in your own words
Complete your Bibliography

3. Your Topic Make sure you understand your topic Look up the dictionary
What facts will you need to write a good essay?
Write out questions you need answered

4. What Next? List what you know already List what you’ll need to do
Topic spider/ bullet points/collage
List what you’ll need to do
Gather lots of facts
Make them interesting and relevant
Words, tables, graphs, diagrams, pictures
colourful
Clear presentation
Use reasonable size font (12), use headings, bold for emphasis, label pictures etc

5. Keywords
Keywords are words that you will easily identify in texts as important to your topic.
e.g.
Topic is ‘Ancient Egypt’
Keywords
Pyramids, tombs, pharaohs, sphinx, Tutankhamun, hieroglyphics, sarcophagus, mummies....

6. Selecting Sources Use a variety of sources for the best essay/project
Books
Internet
Newspapers
Magazines
Think of your keywords!

7. Books Use the library catalogue Find your book
Look for your keywords
Find your book
Use contents and index pages
If useful take a note of book’s details
Author, title, publisher, date of publication, Dewey number

8. Internet Using the Internet Keywords for planned search
Website credibility
Who put the information on?/ is it up to date?
Relevance
If useful then note the exact web address
E.g.
And the date you accessed it

9. Newspapers/ Magazines
Newspapers don't have full contents pages, so you will have to look through the paper for relevant articles
Magazines
Use the contents page
Look for your keywords
If useful then note the title, the date,
volume number, issue number, page numbers

10. Research Questions
When you have research questions then your reading is more purposeful
Who?
What?
Why?
Where?
When?
How?
Have you included these words in your research questions?

11. Research Questions
Write up as many research questions you can using the question words
As you do this add in any new questions that occur
Put this sheet in your folder to refer to, as you continue with your research
You don’t have to read the WHOLE book/website to be a good researcher!

12. Skimming and Scanning Skimming Scanning Use this technique to
Get a general overview of the text
Use for finding basic information
Use for finding most important sections
Hint!
Look at first sentences/ headings/ bold text/ picture captions/contents and index
Scanning
Use this technique to
Get the detail from your text
Locate specific information quickly
Hint!
Have your keywords handy
Have your research questions ready
Use the index/contents page to go directly to the answer

13. Reading for Research You’ve found your information, now
Read every word of the relevant text
Know exactly what is meant by the text
Take notes in your own words, this will help you to
Remember what you have learnt
Keep track of information
Avoid plagiarism

14. Plagiarism Plagiarism is
Stealing or borrowing from the writings or ideas of someone else without permission (Chambers School Dictionary, Chambers Harrap, 2009)
Includes
Copying from books
Copying and pasting from the Internet
You must credit the author of anything you include in your essay/project that is not your original work. That includes pictures.

15. Notes
Read through information before starting to make notes in your own words!
Read
Think
Make notes
Short notes
Bullet points
Diagrams
Include only interesting and relevant information that you can understand
Can you read your notes?
Do you know what ALL the words mean?

16. Organise your notes Before organising your notes
Refer to your topic keywords
Refer to your research questions
Think about your end product
Divide your notes into sections by looking at their
Relevance
Their interest level
Diagrams/pictures
Then
Order them
Select Headings

17. Writing Up
Once you have put together all your notes, you are ready to write up your work
Look at your research questions before you start
Consider using your keywords as Section Headings or paragraph headings
Write each section separately
Finally look at the order
Have you used your own words?
Have you credited quotes?

18. Bibliography/ Source List
A Bibliography/ Source List is a list of all the resources you have used to gather information.
Book
Author, title, publisher, date of publication
Website
Full web address and date that you last looked at it
Magazine
Title of magazine, date of publication, volume number, issue number, page numbers

19. And Finally! Proof read your work for spelling errors
Spellcheckers don’t pick up everything
Check the chapters are in the right order
Write a contents page
Write an index if required
Good Luck!