Writing+a+Research+Paper

**__Research Steps__**





1. Decide on a topic (this will allow you to decide //how// you wish to organize your information).

 2. Prior to pulling sources, decide on your notetaking format (Are you a graphic organizer person? Do you prefer an outline? Did your teacher assign a specific format?).

To create printable, customizable graphic organizers, click [|HERE]

 3. Pull sources for information, from either the shelves in the library (the 900s are Social Studies, by the way) or the Internet. Begin to take organized notes, and keep track of your sources **as** you are finding your information. This will save you time later. (You may wish to fill out a separate graphic organizer for each source)

A great starting point for research is World Book Online

 4. In general, you will need the following for a citation: author, title, year, publisher (if a book), and city of publication. If you are citing a website, you will need the **//entire//** URL, or web address. If the website lists an author, you need that as well. (bibme.org will actually create these citations for you!). The key idea is that whoever is reading your work can access the same information as you, whether it’s a book or a website. If the web address you provide is incomplete or has an error, this won’t happen! (Copy and paste the web address!)

For access to an online bibliography creator, click HERE  media type="custom" key="11760708"

 5. After gathering your information and your sources, **//then//** you can begin to write your paper, being sure to paraphrase the information you found. If you have found a particularly meaningful quote, you can use it exactly as it is, but because it is a quote, you **//must//** put it in quotation marks **//and//** give credit to the person that said it.

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 6. The proper format for a research paper is as follows: title page/cover page, paper (in a professional font, so that it’s easy to read), bibliography (this is where ALL of your sources appear). Remember that research papers are a specific genre of writing and should appear to be professional and informative. A bibliography allows for you to avoid plagiarism charges while showing off how well-informed you are about your topic!

[|Getting Started]

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