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Practice Activity 
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On Your Own 
Srliaerr VVorl<sheer # i 0 
Step 2 Writing the Thesis Statement 
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Write a Thesis Statement 
Look again at the four different kinds of thesis statements used on Study Sheet #2. In the spaces below, practice writing a few thesis statements about our sample subject and k>pic . 
The subject is "Dinosaurs." 
The topic is liThe Death of the Dinosaurs." 
"Why, after millions of years on earth, did the dinosaurs die?" 
It's your turn to write the thesis statement for your own research paper. First, check the box below that shows your purpose, or main idea, for writing your research paper. 
_ I will ask a question and offer an answer or a solution. 71will prove (or disprovel a theory or an idea. _ I will compare (or contrastltwo or more things. UIwill summarize the information about my subject. 
	Other 	_ 
28 How to Write a Research Paper 

On Your Own 
S\ .. ce('lr /Vor'<3i"'eel :# 1 5 
Bibliography Card Guidelines '.c-e 
Make a bibliography card for each reference that you are using for your report. You will need at least _ resources for your paper. (You have already listed many of your resources on the Reference Worksheet. Use that sheet to help you write your bibliography cards.) 
Refer to the checklist below as you make your bibliography cards. Make an index card for each source. When you have completed writing all of the bibliography cards, put them in alphabetical order by author's last name. Then numQer the cards in the upper right-hand corner. This will help you when you begin the notetaking process. 
Books - The following information should be included on a book bibliography card: 

Step 5 Writing Bibliography Cards 
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Name of author or authors (last name first) Title of book (underlined) 
Place of publication (city and state preferable) Publisher 
Date of publication 
Magazine Articles - The following information should be included on a magazine article bibliography card: 
Name of author or authors (last name first) Title of the article (in quotation marks) Name of magazine (underlined) 
Month and year of publication (in parentheses) Page numbers 
Encyclopedia Articles - The following information should be included on an encyclopedia article bibliography card: 
Title of encyclopedia (underlined) 
Date of edition (followed by letters "ed. ") 
Letters "S.v." followed by the subject title (in quotation marks) If an author is given, write the author's name (first and last) 
Note: If you find that you did not use any information from a specific source by the time you have completed the paper, throwaway the card. Likewise, be sure to create a new bibliography card whenever you add a new reference. " 
38 How to Write a Research Paper 

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What Is a Note Card? 
A note card is a 3" x 5" index card upon which you write information from your reference materials. These note cards are your reminders of what you might include in your written repon. A good note card has a short title and contains information, main ideas, facts and important statistics from reference materials that you have rewritten in your own words. It is best to focus on only one idea or concept per card. That does not mean you need to write only one sentence. 
Taking good notes is a very important part of researching. It is from this information that you will be writing your research paper. The more information that you gather and summarize on your note cards, the easier your research paper will be to organize and write. 
Remember, in order to write good note cards, you must be able to select the main ideas from your resources and summarize them in your own words. 
How to Write a Research Paper 39 

Practice Activity 
Srude'11 Wor(Sneel # 16 conllnued 
Step 6 Taking Notes 
What Is a Note Card? 
Read the selection below and complete the sample note cards 
on this page. Make sure you put the correct idea, fact, statistic or quote on the correct note card. 
The idea that dinosaurs might still be living somewhere on earth has long fascinated human beings. Stories and movies have been written telling tales of prehistoric creatures living on "los("' islands. beneath the sea. and even at the center of the earth. But nowhere is this interest more apparent than at Loch Ness. Scotland. This large. deep lake is believed by many to be the home of "Nessie." the Loch :-.iess monster. Each year. thousands of people visit. hoping to catch a glimpse of what some believe IS a genuine. surviving plesiosaur. 
For hundreds of years. people have reported seeing a longnecked dragon-like creature swimming in the lake. Photographs have been taken that show a graceful. curving neck nsing out of the water. One famous photograph. taken underwater. shows what appears to be a huge flipper. Unfortunately. the quality of these photographs is so poor that they cannot be accepted as proof. In recent years. scientists have tried many methods of taking underwater pictures. The water of Loch :-.iess. though. is extremely cloudy and dark. making photography nearly impossible. 
Each year. people try new ways of obtaimng proof of the creature's existence. Sonar has been triedwllhout success. Adventurers 
ha ve searched underwater in small submarines. but the murky water has prevented them from seeing much of anything. Huge nets have even been dragged through the water. again with no results. And yet the legend of Nessie persists. 

S"l,.,cel""r 
S'Ley Sreet 45 
Topic Outline vs. Sentence Outline 
Your revised outline will be the foundation upon which you build your research paper. If your outline is well organized and complete, the chances are good that your paper will also be organized, focused, and will say what you want it to say. 
Your revised outline can be either a topic or a sentence outline. Both use the same format used in your first outline (see Step 4). The difference between the two is the way in which the headings and subheadings are written. 

A topic outfine uses simple phrases to convey the topic or subtopic. 
A sentence outline requires that each heading and subheading be written in a complete sentence. 

Step 7 Writing 'he Final Ourline 

Although it may seem easier to write a topic outline, a sentence outline can save you time in the long run. Many of your headings and subheadings can be used as topic sentences in your research paper. 
Now it's time to revise your first outline. The revised outline is your organizational plan for your written report. It should contain: 
• An introduction to the paper that states the purpose of your paper. 
• The body of your report with the information and facts gathered from your research that support the purpose of your paper. The heading and subheadings in this section will match your first outline and note card headings. The headings and subheadings represent one or more paragraphs in the written report. 
• A conclusion that summarizes the important points of the report, and how these points relate to the purpose of the paper. 
• A bibliography that lists the resource materials used in writing the report. 
Look at the sample outlines on page 44. Note how the information mentioned on this page is included in the sample outlines. 

How to Write a Research Paper 43 

STudenT Worksheer #22 
Step 8 Writing the First Draft 

First Draft Checklist 
On Your Own 
Use this checklist to guide you while writing your first draft. As you finish each section, check the box. 
The Introduction - Your introduction should be only a paragraph or two in length. It should contain your thesis statement and the reasons why you chose the subject. The introduction should grab the attention of the reader and make him or her interested in reading the rest of the paper. 

The Body - Take your note cards that correspond to the first heading or subheading in your final outline and spread them out in front of you. Read the cards aloud. If two cards have the same information, paper clip them together. 
Place the note cards in logical order and read them again. 

Now pick up your pencil and begin writing. As you use the information on a card, turn it over. 

When you have finished with the first set of cards, put them in order and secure them with a rubber band. 

If any cards were not used, but the information seems important, put them in a separate pile. Keep these cards handy. They may fit in under future topics. 

Continue the same procedure for the rest of the topics and note cards. 

Spelling or Grammar Questions - If, as you write, you're not sure about grammar, spelling or punctuation, just put a question mark underneath the word or section you're having trouble with. Then when you are finished writing the rough draft, you can go back and check for possible errors. 
- Your footnotes should be numbered consecutively 
t ugho ""'YoU(, paper. As you work on your f.i!st d'raft, make sure that you make note of ell information that will require a footnote. A good method is to write down a nurn!?er in the margin of the paper next to the information to be footnoted. On another sheet of paper, write down that number and the required bibliographical information about the source. 

The Conclusion - like the introduction, the conclusion should be only one or two paragraphs in length. It should summarize the ideas presented in the body of the paper. 

If your thesis statement was in the form of a question, the conclusion should contain a paragraph that answers the question. 

You may choose to giv an opinion about your topic. This opinion should be based on the Information presented in the body of the report. 

No new information should .be presented in the conclusion. You should not need your note cards to write the conclusion. 
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::.'· .... ce,..r 	Revision 	Checklist 	·c-~ 		
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				:,::'e 		
	Once the rough draft is completed, it is time for you to take a slow and 			
	careful examination of what you have written and how you have 			
	written it. Your rough draft will require some revisions before you 			
	begin the final copy. The objective of Step 9 is to find the areas that 			
	need fixing and FIX THEM! 			
	Here is a checklist of suggestions to help you revise your first draft: 			
	1 	Read your entire paper aloud. You will be able to hear 			
		errors in grammar and sentence construction that aren't as 			
		clear when you read silently. Ask yourself, "Is every sen- 			
		tence a complete sentence? Are there any run-on sentences 			
		that I should make into two separate sentences?" 			
) 	2 	Read your entire paper slowly and silently. You should be 			
		able to catch any spelling and punctuation errors. Ask 			
		yourself, "Are all proper nouns and place names capital- 			
		ized as needed? Are all commas, periods, apostrophes, 			
		semicolons, and quotation marks properly located and 			
		marked?" 				
Step 9 	3 	Keep a dictionary handy to check any words you are not 			
Revising 					
the First 		sure of. Ask yourself, "Have I checked the spelling of all the 			
Droft 		words that I am uncertain of?" 			
	4 	Keep a thesaurus handy; too. If you find that you are re- 			
		peating the same words over and over again, look up a 			
		synonym in the thesaurus and replace the overused word. 			
		Ask yourself, "Have I used descriptive words to make my 			
		paper more interesting and more accurate?" 			
	5 	To mark and make your corrections, deletions or additions, 			
		use a pen or pencil that is a different color from the one 			
		you used to write your paper. This will make it easier to 			
		rewrite your paper when you prepare the final copy. 			
	6 	If you decide to add information, write the new m'aterial on 			
		the blank line above. Use this symbol ( 1\ ) to indicate 			
		where the new material will begin. 			
	7 	If you decide to take out any information, draw a thin line 			
		through the material. You may change your mind later, so 			
		don't erase. 				
	8 	Read each paragraph to make sure that every sentence 			
		within the paragraph is related to the same topic. 			
	9 	Cut any material that is not appropriate or that is repetitive. 			
	10 	Add information that makes the report clearer. 			
	11 	Have a parent or another adult proofread your repart. 			
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.. 		How to Write a Research Paper 	51 	
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~Pll Comolered 
, 
Final Copy Guidelines 
You have almost completed your project. This step, writing the final copy/ is very important. This is how your work will be finally judged and graded, so it is very important ta do a neat and complete job on this final copy. 
If your teacher has not otherwise specified how the paper should be prepared, follow these guidelines for handwritten papers: 
	2 	Use a black or dark blue pen. If you are not using an erasable pen, use White Out to cover any mistakes. 
Remember to leave one line at the bottom of the page for each footnote used on that page. 
Use the left and right margins indicated on the paper. Leave an inch at the bottom of every page. 
Prepare a title page that includes the title of your research paper, your name, your teacher's name, and the date. 
Assemble the pages in this order: 
The title page 
The body of the report The bibliography 
Any maps, charts, or pictures that are not included in the body of the paper 
	10 	After all the pages have been assembled in correct order, number each page (except for the title page) in the center about 1/2" from the top. 
54 How to Write a Research Paper