1. Choosing a Topic and Forming a Research Question Introduction Choosing and narrowing a topic Forming a research question Talk About It Your Turn Tech Tools in this presentation Yippy Ask.com

2. Joe needs to focus on just one topic that he really wants to learn about. Then he can come up with a question that will guide him as he does his research. I want to write a research paper about soccer, but there are so many topics I could write about! Introduction

3. rules teams tricks basics

4. One way to break a broad subject down into topics is to use a Thinking Map™. From your map, choose the topic that is most interesting to you. SOCCER leaguesequipment rulesfamous players Olympic soccer countries where soccer is played Introduction

5. The topic for a research project should be just the right size: not so small that you will run out of things to say not so big that you can’t cover all of the information well Narrowing a topic

6. David Beckham If the topic you’ve chosen is too big, you should narrow your topic. Narrowing a topic soccer Famous Players Mia HammPele

7. Tech Tool: Yippy Another way to narrow down a topic is to use a search engine such as Yippy. Yippy groups similar Web sites into clusters. These clusters can show how your subject might be broken down into topics. If you click the plus sign beside a cluster, Yippy will narrow the topic even further.

8. Another search engine, Ask.com, also can help you narrow down your topic. When you type in your topic, it suggests additional topics that you might try. Tech Tool: Ask.com On the first page of your search results, Ask.com lists possible ways to narrow your search, expand your search, or search on related topics.

9. can’t be answered with a simple fact found in one source Good research question: How many kinds of sharks are there? is clear and specific Poor research question: Researchers often form a question that asks specifically what they are looking for. A good research question Forming a research question What types of sharks live off the coast of California?

10. No. Not specific enough. No. Too narrow. Can be answered with a fact from one source. Forming a research question Are these good research questions? Yes, this is clear and specific. The answer requires collecting and analyzing information from multiple sources. What is a soccer ball made of? Should soccer be taught in public school? What are the basic skills a soccer player should know?

11. Keywords are the most important words in your research. What are the keywords in this research question? When you begin to look for information to answer your question, you can use the keywords to start your search. Forming a research question

12. You may also want to list synonyms of your keywords to have additional search possibilities when you look for information later. fundamental soccer skills important soccer skills essential soccer skills Research Tip Synonyms What are the basic skills a soccer player should know? Synonyms:

13. Tech Tool: Ask.com Let’s take another look at Ask.com. You can begin to look for answers to your research question by entering it in the Ask.com search bar.

14. A focused topic and a specific research question are the start to a winning research project! Forming a research question

15. Discuss these questions with your classmates. 2.If you decided that it was not a good research question, how would you change it to make it better? Talk About It What should schools do to help students make good decisions about nutrition? 1.Is this a good research question? Why or why not?

16. Use a piece of paper or a computer to follow these steps: 2. Use a Thinking Map™ to break the subject into topics, and then narrow one of the topics. 3. Use one of the search tools in this lesson to break down the same subject into smaller topics and then narrow one of the topics. Your Turn 1. Type or write down a broad subject that interests you. 4. Did you come up with different ideas by using the two methods? Tell whether the Thinking Map™ or the search tool was more effective for you, and why.

17. 2. Thinking Map™ : 1.A subject that interests me is: 3.The search tool that I used was: 4.Different ideas that I came up with are: The tool that I found more effective was: It was more effective because: Your Turn

18. 2. Thinking Map™ : 1. A subject that interests me is giraffes. 3. The search tool that I used was Yippy. Your Turn: Possible Responses 4.Yes, I came up with different ideas, using Yippy. It listed African savanna, mother, and photography. My concept map was more effective for me. The topics I thought of on my own interest me more than the ones I found using Yippy.

19. The End