Gwinnett County Research Process Lilburn Elementary by Lisa Campbell Media Specialist.

Gwinnett County Research Process

Lilburn Elementaryby Lisa Campbell

Media Specialist

Five Basic Steps

The “Well, Duh!” approach.

obvious

logical

Step 1. Planning

Pick a topic!

(“Well, Duh!)

Your topic is no doubt too large, so you must narrow it down

so you don’t go crazy

Trying to write a report on a huge topic is like trying to take

a sip from a fire hose

Information Overload

The internet doubles every three months!

Let’s say you want to do research on the Revolutionary War.

You check our catalog and see that we have 137 books on the

Revolutionary War.

The county databases have hundreds and hundreds of

articles

Too much! Where do you start?

How to narrow the fire hose

What small part of the revolutionary war really, really

interests you?

Uniforms?

Weapons?

Hospitals?

One battle?

One person?

You get the idea

Now you’re ready to pull your materials.

It’s no longer a fire hose of information, but a digestible amount of information.

That's it! Step 1 of the Research Process is

simply this:

• Pick a topic

• Narrow topic

• Select your materials

Step 2. Drafting

Take notes!

(“Well, Duh!”)

You’ll never remember all the things you are reading.

Every time you pull something from a website, book or

magazine, write down the source. This will make step 4

much easier.

Ok, you’ve got notes.

great stuff, but it is kind of a mess

Organize your cards and papers so it sounds good

and makes your point

Now you can write your first draft.

So, Step 2 is this:

• Take notes (with source information)

• Organize notes

• Write draft

Step 3. Revising

Read it to your parents, friends or teacher

They might have suggestions for you

Revise your report. Make it better.

Step 3 again:

• Share it.

• Get feedback.

• Revise it.

Step 4: Final Editing

Prepare the final version of your research.

Double check

grammar

spelling

Make sure the bibliography is complete and in the correct

format.

Ask Ms. Campbell for example sheet

Step 4 is:

• Finalize

• Double check grammar and spelling

• Check Bibliography

Step 5. Publishing/Presenting

Present your final report

Graciously accept the applause

think

How could you have improved it?

Review:

Step 1: Planning

• Pick a topic

• Narrow it down

• Select Materials

Step 2: Drafting

• Take notes

(with sources!)

• Organize notes

• Write first draft

Step 3: Revising

• Read it to several people.

• Get their feedback.

• Rewrite paper.

Step 4: Editing

• Final stab at perfect spelling, good grammar, and a logical paper.

•Make sure bibliography is complete and in the right format.

Step 5: Presenting/Publishing

• Present your research.

• Reflect on how it could have

been even better.

Quiz!

• What part of the research process involves taking notes?

• Step 1 – Planning• Step 2 – Drafting• Step 3 – Revising• Step 4 – Editing• Step 5 – Presenting/Publishing

Quiz!

• What part of the research process involves taking a final look at the grammar and spelling?

• Step 1 – Planning• Step 2 – Drafting• Step 3 – Revising• Step 4 – Editing• Step 5 – Presenting/Publishing

Quiz!

• What part of the research process involves rewriting your report after getting advice?

• Step 1 – Planning• Step 2 – Drafting• Step 3 – Revising• Step 4 – Editing• Step 5 – Presenting/Publishing

Quiz!

• In what part of the research process would you pull books for your report?

• Step 1 – Planning

• Step 2 – Drafting

• Step 3 – Revising

• Step 4 – Editing

• Step 5 – Presenting/Publishing

Quiz!

• In what part of the research process would you pick a topic?

• Step 1 – Planning

• Step 2 – Drafting

• Step 3 – Revising

• Step 4 – Editing

• Step 5 – Presenting/Publishing

Quiz!

• In what part of the research process would you read your report to your best friend?

• Step 1 – Planning

• Step 2 – Drafting

• Step 3 – Revising

• Step 4 – Editing

• Step 5 – Presenting/Publishing

Quiz!

• In what part of the research process would you take a bow and sign autographs?

• Step 1 – Planning

• Step 2 – Drafting

• Step 3 – Revising

• Step 4 – Editing

• Step 5 – Presenting/Publishing