Writing a Research PaperAnnElise Thomas

What is needed in a Paper

• Header• Title• Page Numbers• Thesis Statement• Citations• Works Cited Page

So What’s a Header?

• A Header is where you tell your teacher your name and other important information she needs to know like :

• Your name• Teacher’s Name• Class Period• The due date

• They go in this order on the top Left hand side of the page.

Why is a Title so Important?

• Titles tell your readers what they are about to read about in just a few words.

• A title can be many things, but the best titles are fun and creative.

How do I insert Page Numbers?

• Page numbers go on every page BUT the first page.

• They go in the upper right hand corner• This can be done in Word by double clicking at

the top of the page, in the white space. Then when it opens the header you can click header in the top left and select the appropriate page number picture.

What is a Thesis Statement

• A thesis statement is a sentence (usually in the first paragraph) that tells the reader what the paper they are reading is about.

• A good thesis is clear, concice, and covers all of the topics discussed in the class.

• Dont forget that if you change what you discuss in your paper to change your thesis.

• For this research paper your thesis my not be very broad, since you are only researching a person.

What is a Thesis Statement

• They may look something like this:– Benjamin Franklin led a very interesting life, and it

started with him writing the Silence Dogood Letters and continued throughout his life with writings such as Poor Richard’s Almanac, and his autobiography.

Why Do We Cite Information?

• We have to show evidence to back up our claims in our papers.

• By doing this we we have to give credit to those people who wrote, or said the information that you quote in your paper.

• If we dont do this then we are plagiarizing information. This can get you in BIG trouble!

How do We Put this in Our Papers?

• This increase accompanied the decrease in rural populations, as farmers who “preferred trade, transportation, or ‘tinkering’” to the tasks of tending to crops and animals found great opportunities in the city (Danhof 7).

• Notice that we put the last name of the author that we cited and the page number in parenthesis at the end of the sentence, but before the period.

How Do We Cite Information?

• Citing information is easy, but there are different ways for different types of sources.

• They go on a seperate page at the end of your paper, which should be titled Works Cited

• Be sure to reverse indent citations that are more than one line long.

• A book is cited like this – Lastname, Firstname. Title of Book. Place of

Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication. Medium of Publication.

How Do We Cite Information?

• A website is cited like this:– Editor, author, or compiler name (if available). Name

of Site. Version number. Name of institution/organization affiliated with the site (sponsor or publisher), date of resource creation (if available). Medium of publication. Date of access.

• Besure to put periods after each item. • For more types of Citations see the OWL

websites that I put on your assignment sheets.

How do We Put this in Our Papers?

• When writing your paper you must include quotations that back up what you are talking about.

• Keep in mind that this is your paper, not sombody else’s, so dont make your paper mostly quotes. I put a limit at 5 quotations.

• Quotes are like a best friend. They support you, but they dont do the work for you!

HELPFUL HINTS!!!

• Look at the Assignment Sheet that I gave you for resources with help for citations and such.

• As you are looking at websites, books, videos, and such take notes! You can and should use short hand. This will help you learn to take notes easier for future high school and college classes. Do NOT forget to write down where you get information from. If you use it in your paper as a quote you need to be able to cite it!