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Research is ‘an investigation or inquiry into things’ [The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary] or ‘a search for knowledge’ [The Sage English Dictionary]. Students do this in many ways at the Primary School level, but perhaps the most common is with projects or assignments. This is the emphasis taken on this page.
There are basic elements for research, no matter what topic or type of research is to be done.
A simple outline is provided below that should help you achieve your best.
Remember :
- What
- How
- Where
- Who
- When
What Do I Actually Have To Do ?
Make sure you Know and Understand exactly what you have to do :
- Do you Understand what is required of you ? If not :
- Ask your teacher to Explain it again, so you do know;
- If necessary, Write Notes, so you don’t forget while you are doing the work;
- If there is a guide [or a Rubric, a marking guide], make sure you read and understand what it means. If you know what to do to gain a mark, you will know why you did Or did not get that mark;
- Make A List of things you have to do and the order they have to be done. If you are not sure, look at the following steps;
Now you know what to do, read about the next step.
How Am I Going To Present The Work When I Have Finished ?
This may sound strange before you start, But :
- While information might remain the same, the Materials you use will not;
- The materials you will need depend on whether e.g. you make a model, write an essay or do a computer presentation;
- You need to look at what Presentation you will make. Some choices are :
- Art/Graphics
- Computer Presentation
- Debate
- Description
- Diorama
- Drama
- Essay/Written Report
- Group Presentation
If it is a Group Presentation, it is really important that everyone does some of the work and that everyone knows exactly what they have to do and when they have to finish it. - Models/Experiments
- Oral Report
- Project
- Short Answers
Once you have decided this, you will be able to decide :
- Exactly what information you need to make the presentation you chose;
- What materials you need - craft things, computer program, pictures … , and where you can get them.
- Most important of all, you will be able to make up a Plan listing these.
When you do put it all together, make sure your work :
- Is Accurate;
- Is Spelt Correctly;
- Is Neat and easy to understand [preferably computer generated];
- Uses pictures/graphics that actually go with the information;
- Answers the question[s] you are supposed to answer;
- Makes Sense ! If it does not, you have wasted all that time and effort.
Now go on to the next step.
Where Will I Get Information Or Materials ?
There are many places to collect information or materials, no matter the topic. These include :
- Home;
- The Library :
- home;
- classroom;
- school;
- local;
- city;
- other.
- Remember, there are still books full of information [e.g. fact books, atlases, encyclopaedias];
‘Not everything is on the internet !’ - People in your family, or who you know, who can give you information to help you complete the activity;
- The Internet - if capable and/or with parental support, you may wish to use the internet for information and images. Make sure you know where to look or, use a good search engine to help locate what you want [see Other Search Engines and also the Specialist Search Engines for help with this]
- If you are not sure how to use a search engine properly, look at the help offered on the Search Help page, or one of the many help sites on the internet;
- Magazines and Newspapers - both information and images;
- Videos/DVDs and Television - you might have, or be able to get, a video/DVD on the topic, or a television program, that helps e.g. ‘The Planets’;
- Archives [collections of things]. They could be archives of photographs, records, letters, toys … .
- As you collect the material [information, pictures, artwork, photographs, models, etc.] put it in One Safe Place so you do not lose it.
Now go to the next step.
Who Is Going To Do The Work ?
You Are !
- This does not mean other people cannot help you, but means They Cannot Do It For You;
- Whatever you do, it has to be your best. Not everyone is brilliant at everything, but it should always be your best. Nothing less should be good enough for you;
- If you use Other People’s Work, you must tell people this;
- You Must Not claim you did someone else’s work;
- You must not just copy other people’s work and hand this in. It does not matter whether it is from a book, comics, newspapers, the internet, … . This is Cheating. It is also really easy to recognise !
- If you use a Bibliography [sources of information], include things other people have done there;
- A Bibliography lists all books, videos, internet sites, etc. you used for information. There are different ways to set out these, from just a simple list to special sorts of lists, but the important thing is to have one and list all sources;
- This way, the final result will be yours and Yours Alone.
Now go to the last point about Time.
When Am I Going To Do The Work ?
Set a Timetable and stick to it. You can make small changes but don’t go without one;
- Make your timetable Balanced to allow for work, play, sleep, rest.
- Make it Flexible to allow for unexpected things.
- Remember
- You do not want to be doing it at the last minute. No one does their best work then;
- If you leave it till the last minute, something usually happens to make it harder to do;
- Get into a habit of working to your own timetable. This allows you to have fun, do other things and still get work done in time;
- This is a good way to Develop Skills to use in the future.
Finally, make sure you hand it in On Time. It would be silly to finish and not do this.
