A Parent’s Guide to Surviving

Research Essay Season

A Few Reminders…◦ Q3W6-Q4W7: Research essay season

◦ Q3W6: Begin process while finishing CMC

◦ Q3W7-8: Only research essay assignments

◦ Q4: Begin The Bronze Bow, no at-home annotation requirement

Choosing a Topic◦ Topic requirements:

§ Influential Person (Not American)§ Only 3 people per country§ Will address their influence/legacy

AND make an argument◦ Should be feasible for your student

(complicated topic = complicated writing process)◦ Consider choosing a topic that you find

interesting or know something about

Handout: Research Essay Assignment

How can you

help your

student?

Handout: A Parent’s Guide to Surviving Research Essay Season

Q3W6: Choose topic, begin securing sourcesQ3W7: Working thesis, begin researchQ3W8: All sources secured, 1st set of notecards due.SPRING BREAK: Continue researchQ4W1-3: Complete research, finalize thesis, complete outliningQ4W4-5: 1st five body paragraphs, intro & conclusionQ4W6: Proofread complete rough draft with parent checklistQ4W7: Final Paper dueNOTE: This is not a comprehensive list of assignments

Securing sourcesBegin securing sourceso Core B source requirements: 4 sources total,

2 must be book sourceso Take a trip to the library. Ask a librarian for

help!o Search the library database (EBSCOHost)or

google scholar (https://scholar.google.com/)

o Help your student find credible sources, especially when finding online sources

o No Wikipedia! Evaluate websites carefully: Author? Date? Design? Sources listed? (Best: .gov, .edu)

Handout: Research Essay Assignment, EBSCOHOST instructions

Forming the

Working Thesis

Complete a brainstorming activity with the “Topic to Working Thesis” worksheet (Posted to Weebly)

Remember, a quality thesis does the following:• Clearly expresses the essay’s

purpose and main ideas• Presents an argument (Think:

would someone disagree?)• Broad enough to allow plenty

of room for multiple, related sub-topics

• Narrow enough to provide a clear focus

Working Thesis

Beginningthe

Research:Note Cards

Core B note card requirement: 40 note

cards, 4 source cards

◦ First set of 20 note cards due Q3W8,

◦ Complete set of 40 note cards due

Q4W1 (each set should be submitted

with applicable source cards.)

◦ Note card hints:

◦ Decide on general topics before beginning research

◦ Choose facts wisely: pick strong facts, avoid repetition

◦ If adding your own commentary, place in parentheses

Handout: Notecards

God’s grace to Bunyan Source # 2

“His realization of the depth of God’s grace in his own life gave Bunyan an ability to speak to many people, even generations, of their own spiritual state.”

(Bunyan’s experiences enable him to encourage others who are suffering with the truth of God’s grace.)

p. 128

Sample note card

You will assign each source a

number (1-4) in order to keep

track of notes taken from each

source.

CHOOSE QUOTES

WISELY!

Avoid quoting commonly

known information. Always keep direct

quotes within quotations.

Optional: Place your own

commentary in parenthesis.

What is the importance of this

quote? What point am I

trying to make by using it?

Always remember to cite

the page number! For

online sources, write a W.

Each note card must have a

topic listed in the upper left

corner. This will help when you

sort through your information and begin the writing process.

Quoting/Paraphrasing/Summarizing.What’s the difference?

Quotations: must be identical to the original, using a small segment of the source. Must be placed within quotes.

Paraphrasing: putting a passage from source material into your own words. Usually shorter than the original passage, condensing it slightly. (Think: 1 paragraph 2-3 sentences)

Summary: a short version of a longer original source. Summaries include only the most important ideas of the original text. (Think: 2-3 paragraphs 1-2 sentences)

v Both paraphrases and summaries communicate the ideas using different wording and syntax.

v All 3 must be properly cited!

What is plagiarism?Plagiarism is stealing words and/or ideas and claiming them as your

own by not properly citing the material.

How do I avoid plagiarism?• Format notecards properly

• Be careful in all steps of the process to include in-text citations

• When in doubt, CITE!

Schmeichel 3

Works Cited

“Athlete's Foot - Topic Overview.” WebMD, 25 Sept. 2014, www.webmd.com/skin-problems-

and-treatments/tc/athletes-foot-topic-overview.

Berger, Joseph. “Esther Hautzig, Author of Wartime Survival Tale, Dies at 79.” The New York

Times, 3 Nov. 2009, www.nytimes.com/2009/11/03/books/03hautzig.html.

ESV Study Bible: English Standard Version. Crossway Bibles, 2016.

Hautzig, Esther. The Endless Steppe. HarperTrophy, 1987.

Langhamer, Claire. “Love and Courtship in Mid-Twentieth-Century England.” Historical

Journal, vol. 50, no. 1, 2007, pp. 173-96. Ebscohost, doi:10.1017/S0018246X06005966.

Royde-Smith, and Thomas A. Hughes. “World War II.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 3 Oct.

2018, www.britannica.com/event/World-War-II.

Wysocki, Anne Frances, et al. Writing New Media: Theory and Applications for Expanding the

Teaching of Composition. Utah State UP, 2004.

1. Should use same page format (last name and page #) that you use for essay

2. “Works Cited” should be centered, using 12pt Times New Roman font that is set to double-spacing (no extra space, no bold / italics / underline)

3. Citations should be in alphabetical order based on the first word of the citation

4. Margins are the same as for essay (1 inch all around), but after 1st line of citation, proceeding lines should be indented ½ inch

#4

#3

#2

#1 Forming a Works Cited page:

Resources available for MLA8 Formatting help:◦ Purue OWL ◦ MLA8 practice

template◦ www.easybib.com

***Caution: Citation generators are not 100% accurate!

Handout: Sample Works Cited, MLA Practice Template

Two-step outline process• Research many necessitate thesis statement

changesü Will finalize thesis by Q4W2

• Sort note cards by topic (aiming for 8-10)• Arrange topics into a logical order

Set up argument (background info) develop argumentstrongest points

• Form topics into topic sentence outlineü Each topic sentence must directly relate to thesis and help prove

argument.

ü Note: Counterarguments will be introduced in Core C. They are not a requirement for the Core B research essay.

• Develop the body paragraph outline

EDITING & REVISION

Handout: Parent Checklist, Essay Rubric

Writing process begins Q4W4• Week 4, 1st Five Body Paragraphs

ü Proofread, provide suggestions• Week 5, Intro & Conclusion

ü Proofread, provide suggestions• Week 6, Full Rough Draft

ü MUST be proofread by a parent, using checklist

• Week 7, Final Submissionü Verify Tii submission!ü Check student’s folder!