1. Now that we have narrowed your topic, written a thesis statement and conducted further research, we will work on outlining your Research Paper. You have a direction and you have more information. Now you need a plan for what you will write! You need to put your ideas, information and questions into a logical order. And finally, you need to make an outline for your paper. Organize your ideas into an Outline

2. Introduction: it may be 1 paragraph, sometimes more, depending on what you need to say. Things to consider when writing your introduction: A. What background information is necessary to introduce your thesis statement? – Who? What? Where? When? Why? How? Context? Opinions? Previous knowledge? B. How will you work your thesis statement into the paragraph? – Middle of paragraph? End of paragraph? Start of second paragraph? C. Do you have any ideas for an interesting opening sentence? – Quotes? Examples? An interesting way to illustrate you TS? Organize your ideas into an outline

3. Body: You are writing a 4-5 page research paper, so you need to have enough content to fill the pages. First, write your thesis statement at the top of your outline. Lets organize our papers into at least 3 major subtopics that support the thesis statement. Depending on your topic, you may need more. – Determine the 3 (or more) subtopics of your paper. – What information do you need to use to explain how these topics are related to your thesis statement? It is smart to think of these in terms of paragraphs. You may need 1, 2 or 3 to fully explain this subtopic of your thesis. – If you know you have a great quote to use, make a note to yourself in the outline! You will need at least one per page… – You must cite at least 6 sources in your paper, so work them into your outline. Organize your ideas into an outline

4. Conclusion: It may be 1 paragraph, maybe more, depending on what you want/need to say. A. These are the final thoughts for your paper. B. You should have proved your thesis statement through the body, and summarized your argument in the conclusion. C. Your thesis statement should probably appear here again, but in different words so that the writing is not redundant. D. It should not end abruptly, or sound unfinished – Is there a quote, or an example you can use to illustrate you TS? Organize your ideas into an outline

5. The more thorough the outline, the easier the writing will be!!!