Research PaperThe Researching Process

Source Card

Type: Book ___ Ency. ___ Periodical ___ Video ___ Gov’t Pub. ___ Internet ___ Other ___

Author(s) Name: _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Source Title: ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Article/Page Title: ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Editor: ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Pub. Company _____________________________________________________ City of Pub. _____________________________________________

Pub. Date: _________________________________ Pgs ______________

URL: ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Date Site was accessed: _______________________________ Database: __________________________________________________

Quick Notes about the source: _________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Your Name: ____________________________________________ Period: ______ Teacher: ________________________________________________

Topic: ________________________________________

Card Symbol: __________________ 

Source Format: circle one

PRINT WEB CD DVD MP3

PDF File

For Missing Information:

no pag. = no pages

n.p. = no publisher (common for websites)

n.d. = no date

Common Publisher Abbreviations/ Rules

Omit business abbreviations like Inc. or Corp.

UP (University Press)

Acad. for Educ. Dev. (Academy for Educational Development, Inc.)

Gale (Gale Research, Inc.)

Harper (Harper and Row, Publishers, Inc. & HarperCollins Publishers, Inc.)

Little (Little, Brown and Company, Inc.)

MIT P (The MIT Press)

NCTE (The National Council of Teachers of English)

SIRS (Social Issues Resources Series)

Summary:

General idea of large amounts of information– condensing paragraph details

Paraphrase:

Detailed notes on specific sentences and passages, not exact wording

Restate material in your own words.

Quick facts/Details i.e. dates, names, places awards won etc.

Paraphrasing

Majority of your notes!

Begin rewording Now!

Direct Quoting

Any material YOU COPY WORD FOR WORD from the text you are QUOTING.

When to quote?

When you believe that a sentence or passage in its original wording might 1.make an effective addition to your

paper.2.be needed in its entirety provide

clarity (i.e. definitions)

Direct Quoting Check List Use quotation marks for all phrasing

that is not yours

Copy it WORD for WORD, COMMA for COMMA

Put [sic] next to incorrect information (typos)

Use ellipses … to show words or phrases cut from the original text.

Direct Quoting

Your paper MUST include a MINIMUM of 3 quotes one of which MUST be a long quote: 5 or more typed lines or approximately 60 words.

Note Cards

Slug (Heading to indicate info on card)

Notes on card:

*1 or 2 bits of information per card

*Use abbreviations in your notes

*avoid over quoting

*majority of notes should be in YOUR words

Page Number

Source Symbol

Paraphrase Note Card

Heredity

Fred Hain explains that heredity is special for each of us, unless a person is one of identical twins.

p. 294

Paraphrasing: Here Hain’s words were simplified into my own

words making it a paraphrase.

Summary Note Card

R & J Plot Sum.

R & J is a play about a young couple who fall in love despite their families’ hatred of each other. Their whirl wind romance eventually leads to a hasty marriage and each committing suicide due to misunderstandings.

p. --

NO PAGE NUMBER? Websites do not have page numbers; so put a dash to indicate that you didn’t forget, just that one wasn’t available

Note Card using [sic]

Impact of Assassination Lovell

“John F. Kennedy , assassinated in 1964 [sic] became overnight an immortal figure of courage and dignity in the hearts of most Americans.”

p. 62Put [sic] after any mistakes in a quote indicating the mistake is not yours but in the original text

Note Card using Ellipses

General Remarks on Shakespeare C

“Shakespeare’s words and works offer a cultural treasure chest from which English—speaking people have been drawing… for more than three and a half centuries.”

p. iv

Use Ellipses if words are cut from a direct quote

Pg #s MUST always match the original text.

Thesis Statement

A single declarative statement about what your paper is about.

Appears at the END of your introduction.

Sets the argument to control and focus the entire paper.

Provides unity and a sense of direction.

Specify to the reader the point of the research.

Thesis Statement

DO NOT WRITE

In this essay/ paper…. I will write about…

Should commit the writer to a single line of argument.

Thesis Statement

SHOULD NOT BE Worded in a vague manner. Figuratively worded. Worded as a question.

Thesis Statement

SHOULD BE

As CONCISE as possible (TO THE POINT!)

The Thesis Formula In ONE sentence include the following information.

Limited Subject: the topic of the paper.

Precise Opinion: what you intend to prove about your topic

Blueprint of Reasoning: at least 3 reasons for your opinion.

Basic Sentence Patterns

[Subject] [does something: opinion] because [three reasons]

Black Elk Speaks accurately represents Indian lifestyle because of its attention to cultural detail, its use of Indian words, and its direct quotes from Black Elk.

Basic Sentence Patterns

Because of [three reasons], [topic] is [something: opinion].

Because the events in the story emphasize Black Elk's role as a Sioux Warrior, and do not describe Black Elk's eventual conversion to Catholicism and membership in the Society of St. Joseph, Black Elk Speaks presents a skewed and simplified view of the complex history of Native Americans.

Basic Sentence Patterns

Although [opposing ideas], [three reasons] show [topic] is [opinion].

Although many people question the reliability of the novel Black Elk Speaks its attention to cultural details, use of Indian words and direct quotations from Black Elk show that this novel accurately represents Indian lifestyles.

Faulty Thesis Statements

Wordy and Tentative

It seems to me that probably one of the seriously important decisions almost all teenagers face today is deciding what jobs they might have sometime in the future.

Confident CORRECT

The most important dilemma today’s teenager’s face is making informed career decisions: choosing a type of work that will sustain them and preparing adequately for that career.

Faulty Thesis Statement

Vague In this community crime is a problem people can

work together to overcome.

Specific Crime Watch, a community based resident

patrol, is a practical, effective way for citizens of all ages to cooperate in protecting themselves and their community from crime.

Faulty Thesis Statements

States Topic but doesn’t Limit Focus Dogs can be trained to help disabled people.

States Topic and Limits Focus For thousands of disabled Americans,

“service dogs” improve the emotional, social and economic quality of life.

Faulty Thesis Statements

Question How can high school start a school radio

station?

Statement With as little as $500, high school

students can create and staff a “drive-by” radio station, benefiting both the students and the school in a significant way.