Crafting An Engaging Research Project
Discover tips for selecting the perfect topic for your research project. Learn to narrow down broad ideas and ensure your paper is manageable yet detailed enough for a compelling study.
Crafting An Engaging Research Project
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Presentation Transcript
Research Project & Paper Picking a Topic
Pick a topic: Listen carefully-Think about what you hear in class, during conversations, even on TV. Ask for ideas-Ask teachers, parents, friends, or other adults. Pretend their ideas are clay, then mold that clay into your own idea for a project. Read-Look at magazines or reference books. Use what you know-Think about interesting people or important issues.
Size the topic: Choose a topic that is narrow enough to manage in a 3-5 page paper, but wide enough that you can find information about it. Too big-Sports More specific-Women in Sports Even more specific-Women’s Gymnastics Manageable-The History of Women’s Gymnastics Too small-Sneezing Habits of Baby Penguins Bigger & Better-Adaptations that Help Penguins Survive in Cold Climates
Brain Ticklers What problems do you see with these topics? Martin Luther King, Jr. Facts about the play habits of Three-Day-Old Bengal Tigers The 1970 Citywide Outcry When the School Board Threatened to Suspend Students for Wearing Baseball Caps
Your turn: In your writer’s notebook, find three broad topics you’re interested in. You may use our brainstorming list, your CK book, or your social studies & science notebooks. Size those topics so they are manageable, yet you are able to find research about them. Rank your topics from your favorite to least favorite, with 1 being your favorite. This is your list of topics to choose from for your project & paper. If your favorite doesn’t work out, move on to another topic.