Research Paper:
Gather Sources
The general rule is to find twice the number of
sources required for your paper, which means you should find ten sources. You must make annotated bibliography
cards. On these cards, you will put the source
number, bibliography information, a summary of information found in that
source, and page numbers.
EXAMPLE
Call Number from binder of source
Take Notes
After you've gathered
your sources, begin reading and taking notes.
1.
Use 3 x 5 index cards,
one fact or idea per card. This way
related ideas from different sources can be easily grouped together or
rearranged.
2.
On each index card, be
sure to note the source, including the volume number (if there is one) and the
page number. If you wind up using that idea in your paper, you will have the
information about the source ready to put in your footnote or endnote.
If you copy something
directly from a book without putting it in your own words, put quotation marks
around it so that you know it is an exact quotation. This will help you to
avoid plagiarism.
You must cite your source if you quote
and use:
· someone's words ·
someone's ideas
or opinions · facts
that are not common knowledge · images
or pictures
3.
Before you sit down to
write your rough draft, organize your note cards by subtopic (you can write
headings on the cards) and make an outline.
Check out the
differences between these two note cards for a research paper on baseball:
Good note card:
|
II a Star players become national heroes Many Americans could
name every major league player, his batting average, and other
accomplishments. (What batting records
were set?) P
133 |
|
Bad note card:
|
Baseball becomes popular Ty Cobb (Detroit
Tigers) outfielder one of the great all-time players. Another star was Honus Wagner, a bowlegged shortstop. "Whoever wants to
know the heart and mind of America had better learn baseball." |
|
Research Paper: Organize Your Ideas
Using the information
collected on the note cards, develop an outline
to organize your ideas. An outline shows your main ideas and the order in which
you are going to write about them. It's the bare bones of what will later
become a fleshed-out written report.
1.
Write down all the main
ideas.
2.
List the subordinate
ideas below the main ideas.
3.
Avoid any repetition of
ideas.
OUTLINE
I. Introduction
A.
Background
B.
Thesis Statement ___________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
II.___________________________________________________(First subtopic)
A._________________________________________________(First Point)
1._______________________________________(supporting evidence)
2._______________________________________(supporting evidence)
B.________________________________________________(Second Point)
1._______________________________________(supporting evidence)
2._______________________________________(supporting evidence)
II.__________________________________________________(Second subtopic)
A.__________________________________________________(First Point)
1._______________________________________(supporting evidence)
2._______________________________________(supporting evidence)
B.________________________________________________(Second Point)
1._______________________________________(supporting evidence)
2._______________________________________(supporting evidence)
IV.___________________________________________________(Third subtopic)
A.__________________________________________________(First Point)
1._______________________________________(supporting evidence)
2._______________________________________(supporting evidence)
B.________________________________________________(Second Point)
1._______________________________________(supporting evidence)
2._______________________________________(supporting evidence)
V.___________________________________________________(Fourth subtopic)
A.__________________________________________________(First Point)
1._______________________________________(supporting evidence)
2._______________________________________(supporting evidence)
B.________________________________________________(Second Point)
1._______________________________________(supporting evidence)
2._______________________________________(supporting evidence)
VI. Conclusion: A restatement of the main points of
your paper.
Research Paper: Write a First Draft
1.
Every essay or paper is
made up of three parts:
o introduction
o body
o conclusion
2.
The introduction is the
first paragraph of the paper. It often begins with a general statement about
the topic and ends with a more specific statement of the main idea of your
paper. The purpose of the introduction is to
o let the reader know what the topic is
o inform the reader about your point of view
o arouse the reader's curiosity so that he or she
will want to read about your topic
3.
The body of the paper
follows the introduction. It consists of a number of paragraphs in which you
develop your ideas in detail.
o Limit each paragraph to one main idea. (Don't
try to talk about more than one idea per paragraph.)
o Prove your points continually by using specific
examples and quotations from your note cards.
o Use transition words to ensure a smooth flow of
ideas from paragraph to paragraph.
4.
The conclusion is the
last paragraph of the paper. Its purpose is to
o summarize your points, leaving out specific
examples
o restate the main idea of the paper
Research Paper: How to Write a Bibliography
A bibliography is a list
of the sources you used to get information for your report. It is included at
the end of your report, on the last page (or last few pages).
You will find it easier
to prepare your final bibliography if you keep track of each book,
encyclopedia, or article you use as you are reading and taking notes. Start a
preliminary, or draft, bibliography by listing on a separate sheet of paper all
your sources. Note down the full title, author, place
of publication, publisher, and date of publication for each source.
Also, every time a fact
gets recorded on a note card, its source should be noted in the top right
corner. When you are finished writing your paper, you can use the information
on your note cards to double-check your bibliography.
When assembling a final
bibliography, list your sources (texts, articles, interviews, and so on) in
alphabetical order by authors' last names. Sources that don't have authors
(encyclopedias, movies) should be alphabetized by title. There are different formats
for bibliographies, so be sure to use the one your teacher prefers.
General Guide to Formatting a Bibliography
For a book:
Author (last name
first). Title of the book. City: Publisher,
Date of publication.
EXAMPLE:
|
Dahl, Roald. The BFG.
New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1982. |
For an encyclopedia:
Encyclopedia Title, Edition Date. Volume Number,
"Article Title," page numbers.
EXAMPLE:
|
The Encyclopedia Brittanica, 1997.
Volume 7, "Gorillas," pp. 50-51. |
For a magazine:
Author (last name first),
"Article Title." Name of magazine.
Volume number, (Date): page numbers.
EXAMPLE:
|
Jordan, Jennifer, "Filming at the Top of the
World." Museum of Science Magazine. Volume 47, No. 1, (Winter
1998): p. 11. |
For a newspaper:
Author (last name first),
"Article Title." Name of newspaper, city, state of
publication. (date): edition if available, section,
page number(s).
EXAMPLE:
|
Powers, Ann, "New
Tune for the Material Girl." The New York Times, New York, NY.
(3/1/98): Atlantic Region, Section 2, p. 34. |
For a person:
Full name (last name
first). Occupation. Date of interview.
EXAMPLE:
|
Smeckleburg, Sweets. Bus driver.
April 1, 1996. |
For a film:
Title, Director, Distributor,
Year.
EXAMPLE:
|
Braveheart, Dir. Mel Gibson, Icon
Productions, 1995 |
CD-ROM:
Disc title: Version, Date. "Article
title," pages if given. Publisher.
EXAMPLE:
|
Compton's Multimedia
Encyclopedia: Macintosh version,
1995. "Civil rights movement," p.3. Compton's Newsmedia.
|
Magazine article:
Author (last name
first). "Article title." Name
of magazine (type of medium). Volume number, (Date): page numbers. If available: publisher of
medium, version, date of issue.
EXAMPLE:
|
Rollins, Fred. "Snowboard Madness." Sports
Stuff (CD-ROM). Number 15, (February 1997): pp. 15-19. SIRS, Mac version,
Winter 1997. |
Newspaper article:
Author (last name
first). "Article title." Name
of newspaper (Type of medium), city and state of publication. (Date): If available: Edition, section
and page number(s). If available: publisher of medium, version, date of issue.
EXAMPLE:
|
Stevenson, Rhoda. "Nerve Sells."
Community News (CD-ROM), Nassau, NY. (Feb 1996): pp. A4-5. SIRS, Mac. version,
Spring 1996. |
|
|
Online Resources
Internet:
Author
of message, (Date). Subject of message. Electronic
conference or bulletin board (Online). Available e-mail: LISTSERV@ e-mail address
EXAMPLE:
|
Ellen Block, (September 15, 1995). New Winners. Teen
Booklist (Online). Helen Smith@wellington.com |
INFOTRAC:
Author. "Title of
Article." Publication
Name. Volume Number Publication Date: Page number-page number. Database
Name. Service Name. Library Name, City, State. Date of access
<electronic address>
EXAMPLE
Smith, Martin. "World Domination for
Dummies." Journal of Despotry Feb.
2000: 66-72. Expanded Academic
ASAP. Gale Group Databases. Purdue
University Libraries, West Lafayette, IN. 19 February
2003 <http://www.infotrac.galegroup.com>
World Wide Web:
URL
(Uniform Resource Locator or WWW address). author (or item's name, if mentioned),
date.
EXAMPLE: (Boston Globe's
www address)
|
http://www.boston.com. Today's News, August 1, 1996. |