How to Write a Research Paper Day Two
Dec 26, 2015
How to Write a Research PaperDay Two
How to Write a Research Paper
• Thesis statement• Source cards• Information/note cards• Bibiography
Day Two
Thesis Statement
• the main idea of an essay• “a sentence that expresses the writer’s
position on a certain topic”• “will be supported by evidence”• “an idea the writer intends to support or
‘prove’”
Thesis Statement
S-O-R example formatS - the subject or topic to be discussedO – the opinion about the subjectR – the roadmap, which
forecasts/previews your development
of the essay
Thesis Statement
S-O-R example formatS – Capital punishmentO – should be used in all fifty statesR – because it would decrease the rate
of serious crimes, prevent dangerous criminals from further damaging society, and save taxpayer money.
Thesis Statement
S-O-R example formatS –The setting of MossflowerO – reveals the author’s ominous toneR – through the use of personification, imagery, and diction.
Thesis Statement
Additional example formatIn (title of the work) , (the author) uses
(diction, imagery, assonance, metaphor, etc.) to (reveal, show, explore, portray, etc.) (tone, theme, purpose).
In _____________, the author uses __________ to __________________ ___________________.
Thesis Statement
Additional example format• In Wuthering Heights, Emily Bronte uses the
archetype of the demon lover to reveal to the reader the dangers of passionate love.
• In Moby Dick, Herman Melville uses the image of the white whale to reveal the contradictory nature of evil.
Thesis Statement
Too broadJulius Caesar made many changes in Rome.Tom Sawyer is a likeable character.
Too narrowJulius Caesar was killed on March 15, 44, B.C.Mark Twain was born in Florida, Missouri.
How to Write a Research PaperDay Two
Practice
Source Cards
For a book
Source card numberAuthor (last name, first name)Title of book (underlined)Publisher and placeCopyright date
1
Crawford, Cindy
Birthmarks of the Stars
Celepress Publishers, Los Angeles
1999
Source Cards
2
Zeleny, Robert O., ed.
“Birthmark”
The World Book Encyclopedia
1992
Vol. 2
380
For an encyclopedia article
Source card numberAuthor (if given, or editor – found in volume 1)Article title or entry word (in quotations)Full name of encyclopediaCopyright dateVolume number or letterPages on which article appears
Source Cards3
“Skin Care with Dr. Dorine – Glossary”
21 Nov. 2000
<http://www.drdorine.com/glossary.html>
For online sources
Source card numberAuthor (if given)Title of article or topic referenceName of publication (if given)Volume and/or issue number (if given)Publication date (date info published)Access date (date you accessed info)Electronic address (enclose in angle brackets)
*Do not leave blank lines if some information is missing. Simply omit it and continue with other information.
Source Cards
4
“Birthmarks Concern Parents of Newborns”
Sillycity Daily Gazette
13 Nov. 2000
4C
For a newspaper or magazine article
Source card numberAuthor (if given)Article titleTitle of publication (underlined)Publication datePage number of article
Source Cards
5
Moleman, Joe M.D.
“Birthmarks and You”
Medicine Chest Medical Ointment Distributors
Chicago
1997
For pamphlet, booklet, or brochure
Source card numberAuthor or editor (if given)Title of publicationOrganization that published the workLocation of organization (if given)Publication date (if given)
Source Cards
6
Adams, Hunter P., ed.
“Birthmarks”
Family Medical Guide
Reader’s Digest Association. New York
1998
652
For a book selection (an edited book with several sections/authors)
Source card numberAuthor (if given)Selection or chapter titleBook titlePublisher and placeCopyright dateSection pages
Source Cards
7
“Birthmark”
Encarta Encyclopedia
Microsoft Corporation
2001
For an electronic publication (for example, an encyclopedia on CD-ROM)
Source card numberAuthor (if given)Title of article or subjectTitle of publicationPublisher and placeCopyright date
Practice
Now you try!
Take your assigned book and practice creating a source card for it.
Note Cards
A – source number in upper left corner
B – card number in upper right corner
C – subtopic at top center
D – information paraphrased, summarized, or directly quoted “ ”)
E – brief reference to the source used and its page number on bottom line
Note Cards
3 Treatment 8
-surgery is only treatment for some types
-Cosmetic cover-ups sometimes effective
-Some can be faded out w/ concentrated high energy light beams from lasers
World Book, p. 380
Note Cards
2 Definition of birthmark 9
“any persistent area of discolored skin that appears at birth or shortly afterward”
Fam. Med. Guide, p. 652
Note Cards
When taking notes from a source, use a variety of techniques:
• Summarizing: rewriting the main points without your own interpretations or ideas
• Paraphrasing: rewriting the passage in your own words without your own interpretations or ideas
• Quoting: copying the words exactly as they are and placing them within quotation marks; use the same punctuation and capitalization
Practice
Now you try!
Take your assigned book and practice creating a note card for it. Use one technique on three different cards.
Bibliography
At the end of your finished essay, you must include a bibliography, which is a list of all the sources you used in composing your essay.
• Type all information from your source cards in the same order, but put all information on one line, placing a period and a space after each item.
• Alphabetize all entries• Double-space all lines• Do not indent the first line of each entry; indent the
second and other lines of each entry
Bibliography
Bibliography
Hewitt, Ben. "Quick Fixes for Everyday Disasters." Popular Mechanics Nov. 2004: 83-88.
Midge, T. "Powwows." Encyclopedia of North American Indians. Ed. D.L. Birchfield. 11 vols. New
York: Marshall Cavendish, 1997.
Nordland, Rod, Sami Yousafzai, and Babak Dehghanpisheh. "How Al Qaeda Slipped Away."
Newsweek 19 Aug. 2002: 34-41.
Osen, Diane, ed. The Book That Changed My Life: Interviews with National Book Award Winners and
Finalists. New York: Modern, 2002.