Wednesday, January 28, 2015

Researching and Taking Notes

After you've selected your topic and headings, it's time to research the answers to your questions. Some things to keep in mind.

Document what you've found. Be sure to tell the location of the source (book, website-National Geographic, video) and then then the source (author, website address, video address). Below is an example of a note card.

Make sure your source is reliable. Stick to a .org, .edu, or .net. If you use a .com, make sure it's reliable. Can you find the information in at least 3 other sources? Is the date current? Does the author have quality experience?

Take lots of notes. Use "quotation marks" if you are quoting an author word for word. Do you need to do this? Why are you quoting? Paraphrase short pieces of information and summarize long pieces. Click here to learn the difference. Try to have all your research COMPLETE by Friday.

Wednesday, January 21, 2015

Informational Research - Possible Headings

Animals

What do they eat?
Where do they live? (habitat)
How do they defend themselves?
What do they look like? (Physical characteristics)
How many are there? Are they endangered?

Famous Person

Their life when they were younger? Where were they born/grew up?

Why are they important?

What did they do that affected their country/the world?

Decisions/ consequences they've made

Country

Characteristics of the land (mountains/ lakes/ rivers/jungle/coastal etc.)

Government

Economy

Native People

Natural Resources

Conflicts

Religion

Tourism/Fun

Native Animals

Global Connections (how do they interact with the world?)

How do they travel/communicate?

Challenges they face

Diseases

What is it?
How does it affect you?
How does it spread?
Major Outbreaks
Is in undercontrol or out of control currently?
How is it treated?

Tuesday, January 20, 2015

Informational Report Planning

Think of a topic you'd like to research and write an informational report about. We'd like to stay in the theme of Africa so ideas may stem from one of the categories:

Country
Animals
Endangered Animals
Tribes and Traditions
Diseases
Famous People

Be ready to choose a topic by tomorrow.

Monday, January 12, 2015

Close-Ended Questions

If you can answer a question with only a "yes" or "no" response, then you are answering a close-ended type of question.

Examples of close-ended questions are:

Are you feeling better today?
May I use the bathroom?
Will you please do me a favor?
Have you already completed your homework?
Is that your final answer?

Open-Ended Questions

Open-ended questions are ones that require more than one word answers. The answers could come in the form of a list, a few sentences or something longer such as a speech, paragraph or essay.

Here are some examples of open-ended questions:

What were the most important wars fought in the history of the United States?
What are you planning to buy today at the supermarket?
What is your favorite memory from childhood?
What types of decorations do you plan to have for your friend's birthday party?
How did you and your best friend meet?
What sites do you expect to see on your vacation?

Open-ended Questions

Open-ended questions require a response with more depth and a lengthier response. Open-ended questions are also helpful in finding out more about a person or a situation, whether it's during an interview, or when getting to know a new friend.