KRP Student Research Guidelines
- 1. The Young Person’s Guide to Doing Research Student Guidelines Second Edition August 2014 Copyright © 2014 by Kids’ Research Partners (KRP)
- 2. 2 The Young Person’s Guide to Doing Research Doing Research is the process of exploring and learning about something. A research project is a plan to follow while doing research, coming to conclusions and presenting what you learned. A researcher is a person who conducts research and tells their story about it. These Guidelines will help you learn about the steps of the research process, and they will lead you to completion of your research project. Copyright © 2013 by Kids’ Research Partners (KRP)
- 3. Why do research? Some people do research because they like to focus on their interests. Other people want to be able to solve problems more easily and share their ideas more clearly. Still other people want to gain experience that will help them in school and in their future jobs. Why do you think you’d like to do your own research? Whether it’s for one of the reasons listed above, or for some other reason, people who conduct research are always learning and growing. That can make them happy and feel satisfied. 3 For hundreds of years, people have been exploring new concepts and expanding their view of the world.
- 4. Research Process Research is a continuous cycle 4 Conducting Research (projects) 6 Evaluate Project 1 Choose Topics 3 Find Answers 4 Organize Findings 5 Present Findings 2 Develop Questions Inquiring
- 5. Your Research Project While doing research you will: Step 1: Choose a research topic. Step 2: Develop guiding questions about your topic. Step 3: Find answers to your questions. Step 4: Organize your findings. Step 5: Create your presentation and communicate your findings. Step 6: Receive feedback from your audience. Step 7: Reflect on what you’ve learned. Consider your audience’s feedback. While you are working on your project, you will be the researcher. 5 Steps of the process
- 6. Before you begin, ponder this… When you do research, you are a learner and a teacher You are embarking on a journey while doing your research, and later you will share what you learned with an audience. Your audience will be asked to evaluate your presentation and research. Some factors that your audience will consider are: 6 • Project completeness • Completed all steps of the research process thoroughly • Clear and easy to follow language • Reviewed and used all types of sources • There is a bibliography and it is completed correctly • Good use of visual aides • Grammar and spelling errors • No grammar errors • No spelling errors • Amount of thought put into project and presentation • Words are clearly understood • Voice easy to understand • Good eye contact • Scans the audience well (looks around the room continuously) So as you do your research, consider these factors so your audience evaluates your research well!
- 7. 6 1 2 3 4 5 Use the Internet to help you find a topic. Just enter a term in a search engine and review your results. (If you don’t already know how, follow the instructions for searching for information on the Internet on page 9 of these guidelines. Second, list several ideas that interest you. Search the Internet to be sure you can find enough information to do your research. Third, keep only the ideas that interest you the most. Step One: Choose a Topic When choosing any topic: 1) Think BIG about ideas. Write down as many as you want at first. 2) Pick a few topics that interest you/have a connection with in your life. 3) Decide on one idea that you want to learn more about. Example 1) General Topic: Discovering America 2) Research Ideas: (Selected from lesson) Christopher Columbus The London Company Holland Separatists Native Americans John Cabot Juan Ponce de Leon Jamestown Colony Plymouth Company Mayflower Compact 3) Selected Ideas: (From list above) Jamestown Colony Holland Separatists Christopher Columbus 4) Research Topic: (Final selection) Jamestown Colony First, write down your general topic (from a school lesson or life experience). Fourth, choose one idea that you want to focus on for your research project. 7 Brainstorm on topic ideas The next page and follow the directions for choosing a research topic.
- 8. Step 1: Choose a research topic Topic Worksheet What is your research topic ? Directions Ex: Explores, Volcanoes, US Constitution • Use your current unit to brainstorm on topic ideas. If there were people, places, or things that you wanted to know more about, these might be good topics for your research project. • First write a long list of possible topics, then select favorite ideas until you have just one idea. 1)Unit Title: __________________________________ 2) Research Ideas (Selected from lessons or real world experiences). Search the Internet for ideas then be sure you can find enough information to do your research. _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ______ _________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 3) Selected Ideas: (From the list above) ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 4) Final Idea: (The topic of your research) ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 8
- 9. Step Two: Develop Guiding Questions 6 3 4 5 2 9 1 Research is based on inquiry and discovery. Researchers ask questions that help them define, explore, and learn about their topic. There are three main types of questions: Factual questions are asked to help you retrieve facts about a topic. These types of questions start with who, what, when, where, why and how. They might have just one correct answer. But sometimes there are alternative answers to these questions. Each answer should be written down for you to consider during your research. Although, the answer is not always simple, factual questions are commonly best for research projects and they will lead to greater exploration of the topic. Example: What factors motivated the British to settle in the Hudson Bay? The answers to factual questions form the foundation for higher-level (interpretive and evaluative) questions. If we don't know the "facts" about something, our interpretation and evaluation of something may not be right. Interpretive questions ask for a researcher’s understanding of, or opinion on facts that they learned about a topic. These questions ask what can be inferred by the facts (see page 17 to learn more about inferences). Example: What factors may have contributed to the British deciding to build a settlement at the mouth of rivers in the Chesapeake Bay? Evaluative questions ask for some kind of opinion, belief, or point of view. Answers to this type of question depend on a person’s knowledge and experience. Example: Why do you think that the British settlers decided to build the Jamestown Colony at the end of a peninsula surrounded by the James River, York River, and Chesapeake Bay? Evaluative questions are good follow-up questions for inquiry-based projects, because they are focused on the researcher’s opinion. The answers to these questions are the basis for a researcher’s conclusions.
- 10. 10 Questions help direct your research To help you develop questions, you might ask yourself: What do I know about my topic already? What do I want to know? Start by asking some who, what, when, where, why, and how questions. Your first question should help to define your topic. Asking this type of question may be enough to get the ideas rolling and deeper questions will come. Then you can ask deeper questions. Example Topic: Jamestown Colony General, defining question: What was the Jamestown Colony? Deeper questions: Who started it? Where was it? Why did they settle there? Why did they start it? What did they do there? Why was it important to American history? The next page and follow the directions for choosing a research topic.
- 11. Guiding Questions Worksheet Step 2: Develop guiding questions 1. Research Topic: __________________________________ 2. General Question:_____________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ 3. Deeper Questions:___________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ 11 What questions do you have? Directions • Ask yourself, what do I already know about my topic? What do I want to know about it? • Start with a general question that helps to define the topic, then follow with deeper questions to help describe and add a better understanding of the topic.
- 12. Step Three: Do Your Research Learning about information sources and searching methods 6 2 3 1 4 5 Information is a set of facts or ideas that are given by one person or thing and meant to be received and understood by another person or thing. Sources of Information Where can you go to answer your guiding questions? The Internet - Websites - Photographs Public libraries - Books - Articles Experts - Interviews - Discussions To be sure that you have a complete picture, you should look at all the sources of information (resources) that are available to you. Then you can select the information that answers your questions. Sometimes you need to combine bits of information to get the complete picture. Keep this in mind as you review your information. The following pages will help you learn more about these sources of information. 12 Just what is information? Characteristics of Information It… • is not always complete. Some information may be incomplete and only one part of the whole view of a subject. • is influenced by a giver’s point of view. Information providers help form the receiver’s understanding of an idea. Information givers are telling their version of a story. • differs in value. Some information doesn’t add new ideas on a topic. • is sometimes just a copy (duplicate) of other information. Consider these facts while doing your research
- 13. 13 Internet (World Wide Web) The Internet is the link to information that can be accessed from anywhere in the world. Just as anyone can read books, magazines, newspapers and videos in a library, they can also access these resources from the Internet through a World Wide Web (Web) browser such as Google or Microsoft Explorer. Internet Commerce Sites (Amazon, etc.) Images Videos (World Wide Web) Other Stuff Social media Personal opinions Blogs Looking for answers on the Internet To find information on the Internet open your Internet (World Wide Web) browser - Explorer or Google Chrome, and follow the steps below: 1st, Go to a search engine. Enter the address for Google (www.google.com) or Bing (www.bing.com). 2nd, Enter your search term. Type in one or two key words in your question. 3rd, Review the search results. Scroll down or use the direction keys on your keyboard to review the results of your search. 4th, Go to the information. Click on the highlighted links on the page to review each site and look for information that you can use for your research. 5th, Repeat your search. If you are not satisfied with your original search results, then try new words or combinations of words that describe your question and search again. You can do this again and again until you think that you have got the complete answer to your questions. Government information Documents From Libraries Company Sites
- 14. 14 Steps to Searching the Internet Enter your search term Go to a search engine such as Google or Bing Scroll down results page using the direction keys on your keyboard Using your mouse Click on the highlighted text to review the web page 4 3 2 1
- 15. 15 Libraries A library is a great place to find resources that you can use to answer your guiding questions. The library holds both print and electronic information, videos, and music. The library catalog helps you locate the resources that are found in the library. Using the library catalog 1) Locate the library catalog. Libraries have catalog terminals throughout the building. Electronic catalogs are also available on library websites. 2) Enter your search term. These are the same terms that you used to search the Internet. Most library systems also allow you to search by subject, source title, author, or key word. 3) Review your search results. Scroll down the results page or use the direction keys on your keyboard to review your library source results. 4) Select your resources. Click on the links and find the source location (library locator/call number). Having trouble using the catalog or finding a location? Ask a Librarian! Librarians love to help their customers. Please ask the librarian for help, if you need it!
- 16. Experts An expert is a person that knows a lot about a topic. They might work in an area that involves your topic, or maybe they work in school and researched your topic too. • Experts may live close to you or across the world. • Even if they cannot answer your question, they may know where to go to get the answer you need. The Internet is a great source of locating experts. They can be found on: • Personal or company websites • Social media sites (such as Linked-in and Facebook) • Schools (educational institutions) • News articles • Conference agendas Examples Authors University professor and researcher News reporters Museum staff Local officials Local experts If you look around your community, you might find experts that can help answer your questions. Asking for Information • Contact experts by email or call them. • Introduce yourself (student and researcher). • Explain your research and interest in the topic. • Ask them if you could ask some questions. • Ask them questions about your topic. • Afterwards, thank them for their time. The next page and follow the directions for choosing a research topic. 16
- 17. Research Worksheet What sources will you use? Directions • Select and use key terms to search the Internet (World Wide Web) using search engines such as Google or Bing and Library catalogs. • Find and contact experts to interview and ask your guiding questions. • Review all of the resources that are listed below while you are doing your research. Check off each resource as you review it. • Use at least three sources of information to answer each question completely. Source check-list Check off each type of source as you review it. Internet websites News or magazine articles, electronic or hard copy Books, from libraries or electronic Experts, found locally or on the Internet 17 Step 3: Find answers to your questions
- 18. Writing a Bibliography When you do your research you should record the resources that you used to explore your topic. That record is called a bibliography. • A bibliography is a list of the sources that are used to conduct research. These resources will include books, movies, websites, interviews, and magazine articles. 18 Information for bibliographies can be found directly at the source! The book’s title page will provide the name of the author, the publisher, and where it was published. Bibliography Owl, Grey, Tales Of An Empty Cabin, Dodd, Mead & Company, New York, 1936 QuickTime™ and a TIFF (Uncompressed) decompressor are needed to see this picture. Example: Bibliographic entry for a book INSIDE: Title, Author, City of publication, Publisher’s name & Year of publication Go to page 20 and follow the directions for Creating a bibliography.
- 19. Bibliography Style Sheet Use the following examples while you create your bibliography Article in a newspaper (on the Internet) Stolberg, Sheryl, “Centrists Pose Challenges,” New York Times, February 27, 2010, Accessed February 28, 2010, www.nytimes.com/2010/02/28/us/28health.html. Last name, First name, Article title, title of publication (news service), Article date, Article access date, Internet address. Book (one author) Goldman, Daniel. The Life of Michael Jordan. New York: Bantam, 1996. Last name, First name. Name of book. City of publication: Publisher’s Name, Year Published. Expert Interview/correspondence Goodman, Mary, Personal interview, September 3, 2012. Last name, First name, Personal interview/correspondence, Date. Internet fact sheet/website (articles, reports, and facts on topics) * If an author is indicated, then add it in the front of the entry* *Smith, Paul,* “Platypus,” Animal Facts Guide, September 7, 2013, www.animalfactguide.com/animal-facts/platypus. Internet site “Google Privacy Policy,” Accessed March 11, 2009, www.google.com/intl/en/privacypolicy.html. Title of Internet website, Access date, Internet address. Magazine article (Found on the Internet. If not from the Internet, list the same, but without the address) “Price, Sean, “Hunting Spiders,” Kids Discover Spider, February 2003: 13, 8-9, www.kidspider.comkspidersFeb03.html. Last Name, First name, “Title of article,” Name of magazine, Date, Volume, Pages, Internet address. 19 Last name, First name, Title of factsheet/article/blog/Title of Internet website, Access date, Internet address.
- 20. Bibliography Worksheet Directions • Use the lines below to create a bibliography (a list of all the sources that you used to answer your guiding questions). • Follow the simple style sheet located on page 19 to create your bibliography. • Alphabetize by author’s last name. If there is no author on the source, go by the first main word of the title of the source (book, magazine, Internet website). • List your sources in alphabetic order starting from the author’s last name or (when no author is found) by source title. Bibliography ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ 20 What sources did you use ?
- 21. Bibliography Worksheet ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ 21
- 22. Step Four: Organize Your Findings Organization of your findings (answers to your questions, interesting facts, and any conclusions) is the first step to presenting your research to others. Presentations are stories about your research. In your presentation you will introduce your topic, tell your audience what you did, and tell them what you found while doing your research. Organize your findings in the same way. When organizing your findings: First, write the title of your research topic. Second, convert your questions to create headlines and bullet points. Use key words from your guiding questions to create headlines. Below each headline add bullet points using the answers from your guiding questions. Example Question: What did the settlers do at Jamestown? Converted Headline: Jamestown Work and Life • Settlers grew tobacco crops • The first slaves in America were traded in Jamestown Third, add in any new and interesting facts that you found while doing your research. Example • 1614 - John Rolfe married Pocahontas, a native of the area • Their marriage brought peace between the settlers and natives • 1619 – The first African slaves were brought to America through Jamestown Fourth, add concluding thoughts or impressions that you have about the topic after doing your research. Consider your observations and the facts that you found, then make inferences about your topic. Example • Settlers came to America to grow crops and make money • Discovering America was not easy • Settlers helped to form the United States 6 3 4 5 22 Example Jamestown Colony Its importance to American History 1 2
- 23. 23 Observations and Inferences The main reason for doing research is to learn about a topic and then come to some conclusions about what is learned. Observations are points of information that are sensed through sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell. Observations can be clues that a researcher sees, either literally (looking at something) or figuratively (reading about it). From these observations, researchers can make inferences. Inferences are interpretations of and conclusions about a person’s observations or the observations of other people. Inferences express probability, not certainty. By asking questions about your topic and finding answers to your questions, you begin to make your own inferences about your topic. In research you make observations, learn new facts, make inferences and then come to conclusions about the facts that you observed. Example Observations - There are lots of birds near the surface of the water - Many fishing boats are out and they are using their trolling nets Inferences/Conclusions - There must be a lot of fish in the water - There might be sharks or other predators close by too Remember! Different people can make the same observations and come to different conclusions about that observation. It all depends on a person’s past experience, knowledge, and point of view. This should be considered when coming up with your own conclusions. Keep your mind open to all points of view. The next page and follow the directions for creating an outline
- 24. Organization Worksheet Step 4: Organize your findings Outline 24 How do you want to tell your story? The first step is to organize your research Directions • Create an outline using your guiding questions, answers, interesting facts, and conclusions. • Use bullet points and short complete statements, NOT complete sentences. Section One: Title of research/research topic _______________________________________________ Section Two: Your questions and answers (Located on page 3 of this workbook) ________________________________________________ Headline created from a general question • ________________________________________________________ • ________________________________________________________ • ________________________________________________________ • ________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________ Headline created from deeper question _________________________________________________________ • _________________________________________________________ • _________________________________________________________ • _________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________ Headline created from deeper question • ________________________________________________________ • ________________________________________________________ • ________________________________________________________ • ________________________________________________________
- 25. Organization Worksheet ________________________________________________ • ________________________________________________________ • ________________________________________________________ • ________________________________________________________ • ________________________________________________________ • ________________________________________________________ Section Three: Interesting facts Facts that you learned while searching for answers • _________________________________________________________ • _________________________________________________________ • _________________________________________________________ • _________________________________________________________ • _________________________________________________________ • _________________________________________________________ • _________________________________________________________ • _________________________________________________________ • _________________________________________________________ • _________________________________________________________ Section Four: Conclusions Personal thoughts about your topic after doing your research • ________________________________________________________ • _________________________________________________________ • _________________________________________________________ • _________________________________________________________ • _________________________________________________________ • _________________________________________________________ • ________________________________________________________ • ________________________________________________________ • ________________________________________________________ 25 Headline created from deeper question
- 26. Step Five: Present Your Research 26 6 3 1 4 5 2 Once you have completed your research you will present your findings to an audience made up of your friends, family, and peers. The purpose of presenting your research is to share what you’ve learned and to bring about a common understanding of a topic. When creating a presentation: 1) Design your story (using your organized information) 2) Decide on your presentation type/format and create your presentation 3) Practice your presentation skills Design your presentation Make your presentation sound like a story. Every presentation has a beginning, middle, and end. Beginning Middle End Introduction Main body Conclusion Your presentation will include an: Introduction • A title/headline introducing your research (your research topic) • Introduction or description of your topic (define what your topic is) • Details about your project (definition of your topic; steps that you took to find the answers to your guiding questions; sources of information that you used to answer your questions). Main body (Details about what you learned about your topic) You’ve already organized your information in this way (Step 4). • Headlines – formed using key words from your guiding questions • Bullets under your headlines from your answers • Interesting facts as bullet points Conclusions (Lasting thoughts about your topic) • Inferences that you make about what you observed during your research
- 27. 27 Decide on Your Presentation Type/Format Create Your Presentation There are a number of presentation formats that you can use to share your findings with others. Factors that help a researcher decide on the format to use include: • The purpose of the report (Examples: to share or inform, to explain an accomplishment or to motivate others to do something) • The ideas that are to be shared • The time and place that a researcher is using to report their findings Presentation Types/Formats The three main formats are written papers, oral presentations (PowerPoint or Prezi), or a combined approach – display board with an oral presentation. Written Paper A research paper is a written explanation of the research done and the method that was used to do it. Papers are usually written using an expository style, a type of writing that is designed to convey information or explain ideas. In this type of writing, the author begins with a topic sentence or paragraph, adds details, and ends with a concluding section. A research paper should include a bibliography. • This guidebook will NOT detail research paper writing. Other guides do that well. You may want to go onto the Internet to find more information on writing a research paper. • For your research using this publication you will focus on oral presentations. Wait
- 28. 28 PowerPoint Presentations PowerPoint presentations include pictures, and clip art (animations), designs, tables, and simple texts. Presentations may include video and sound too. Each presentation will have: • 1 title slide; then • 6-8 main body slides; and • 1 conclusion (or summary) slide. Some important steps to follow when designing your presentation: • Less is more. Use simple designs. • Standardize heading positions, colors and styles throughout the presentation. • Colors should contrast the background. • Follow the same format with effects, transitions and animation. • Fonts show be clear and easy to read from a distance. Text guidelines • Use bullet points (phrases not complete sentences). • No more than 6 words a line. • No more than 6 lines to a slide. • Font type: Arial. • Font size between 18 to 36 point. • Try to use bold font for most text on a slide. • Text should contrast with background. • Information should be simple and clear to understand (just what’s needed). • Avoid abbreviations and acronyms. • Limit punctuation marks. Clip art and graphics • Graphics should help the audience. understand the text, not overwhelm it. • No more than two graphics per slide.
- 29. 29 Prezi With Prezi zooming presentation software, you can create a visual experience that leads your audience down a path of discovery.
- 30. 30 Display Board Single and Tri-Fold Display boards are simple, artistic and mobile ways to help tell the story of your research. A display board is used at a competition, a showroom, in a classroom, at a conference, or in any situation where the researcher wants to have a self explanatory display and provide details through an oral presentation. When using a display board, think about the following: Organization Ensure that your presentation goes from… • Top to bottom • Left to right …so your audience can quickly and easily follow it. Font size Adjust your text fonts… • Headlines – 24 to 36 points • Text 18 - 20 points …to make the presentation easy to read from a few feet away. Visual aids Add visual aids such as… • Photos, drawings, diagrams • Models • Tables (for numbers) • Experiment results …to make the presentation interesting and easy to understand.
- 31. 31 Tell Your story: Presenting Research Skills Once you have completed your research and created a presentation, it is time to share it with your audience. A presentation should be no more than 10 minutes long (if you are doing a PowerPoint presentation there will be about 10-12 slides). While preparing for your presentation make sure that you: • Know your audience. Consider what your audience already knows about your topic. It will help you connect with them better. • Plan carefully. Review your presentation to make sure that you aren’t missing anything. Your audience should not wonder what your presentation was about when you have completed it. • Time your presentation. Plan to speak about one minute for each section. Practice your presentation and time it to make sure that you do not go over or under your allotted time. • Speak slowly and clearly. Speak clearly, not too fast, naturally, and loud enough that everyone can hear what you are saying. • Follow the text and pictures on your presentation. You want your audience to follow you as you tell your story. If you follow what’s on your presentation, the audience will be able to follow you. • Speak about, but DO NOT READ the information on your presentation. The presentation helps you know what to say and it gives the audience a guide to follow. But don’t read from the presentation, because it will get boring to the audience. Instead, while speaking, add more details and provide more examples. • Practice your presentation. Good presentations take practice. Practicing will help you feel more comfortable and natural when you get up in front of people and share your work. Practice will help your body and your mind naturally remember the pace and rhythm of your presentation. If you have problems, don’t worry. It happens to everyone! Your presentation will be your cheat sheet and help you remember what you are talking about. • Have fun with your presentation. While you are up there, you are the expert. Just enjoy your experience of presenting and be OK with it. It only lasts for a short time and then you will feel that sense of “WEW, I did it!” The next page and follow the directions for Checking your presentation content and format.
- 32. Presentation Worksheet Step 5: Create a presentation How will you present your research findings? Directions • Decide on your presentation format (paper, PowerPoint, Prezi, or display board). This will depend on your audience, the forum, and the time given to make the presentation. • WE RECOMMEND that you use PowerPoint for this presentation. This is because: - PowerPoint is still the most common type of presentation tool used in schools and workplaces, - It is available in most households (most computers have some form of MS OFFICE tools) - It will be the easiest to use and present to your student’s audience. • Use your outline (from pages 24 of these guidelines) to assemble headlines and facts. • Design your presentation (see examples on pages 20-22 from this book) 32 Presentation Check-list Check each box as you complete the activity. Decide on presentation format. Organize your presentation. • Does it have an introduction, a body, and a conclusion? Check your design. • Spell checked • Everything is easy to read • All fonts, pictures, and designs are easy to see Practice your presentation. • Time how long it takes to present it
- 33. Step Six: Receive Feedback From Audience 33 6 3 1 4 5 2 This step is completed by your audience. They will evaluate your presentation and research. Audience comments can help you develop your research and presentation skills. Most people find that comments can be helpful. Even though they may be hard to hear sometimes, Audience evaluations and comments can help a researcher improve their work. Your audience will be asked to measure various factors about your presentation and research. Some factors that your audience will consider include: • Project completeness • Completed all steps of the research process thoroughly • Clear and easy to follow language • Reviewed and used all types of sources • Bibliography is complete • Good use of visual aides • Grammar and spelling errors • No grammar errors • No spelling errors • Amount of thought put into project and presentation • Words are clearly understood • Voice easy to understand • Good eye contact • Scans the audience Your parents or teacher will provide instructions for evaluating your presentation.
- 34. Step 6: Audience evaluates the presentation With your parent or teacher’s help, make copies of the rubric (evaluation sheet) that is found on page 23 of the Parent Teacher’s Guidebook and pass them out to your audience. Provide instructions to your audience that they are to listen to your presentation and evaluate it based on criteria that is established on the rubric. After you’ve given your presentation, ask the audience to give you their rubrics for your review. 34
- 35. The next page and follow the directions for doing a reflection. 35 Step Seven: Project Reflection Once you have completed your research and presented your findings, you can feel a sense of appreciation and accomplishment for doing what you set out to do. It is important to keep in mind that research projects are learning experiences and doing them will help you grow. Please take a few minutes to review your audience’s feedback (from their evaluation sheets) and reflect on (consider) how things went for you during your project.
- 36. Step 7: Reflect on what your learned Reflection Worksheet What did you learn? Directions In the lines below, write any thoughts about your experience doing your research and making your presentation. These conclusions may be helpful when you do research in the future. Are there any parts of the research process that you liked more, less, or didn’t understand? _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________ Do you have any thoughts about your research or presentation, or the comments that came from the audience’s evaluation? _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________ 36
- 37. Congratulations! 37 You did it! You conducted research on your topic, created your presentation, and presented it to your audience. NOW Remember In all things that you do… be curious! Take every opportunity to wonder about ideas that pop into your mind. Question your ideas and ideas of others, Then go find answers and tell someone what you’ve learned. The process of inquiring, learning, and sharing is life long. ENJOY!