Independent+Research+Project

=Independent Research Project=

When completing an independent research project, you will either --

 * Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas, concepts, and information through the selection, organization, and analysis of relevant content, or **
 * Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, relevant descriptive details, and well-structured event sequences. **

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I hope you are excited about all of the possibilities available to you for your project! Have you been wondering just how does electricity come from a wind mill? Or maybe what can cause an electrical blackout? Have you heard someone on the news talking about a brownout and wondered what the difference is? Or maybe you are concerned about the number of orphans in Africa. Maybe you are wondering what is involved in an international adoption process? Maybe you are a photographer and have always wanted to learn about the history of photography and how it all works. Or have you heard that some people believe that Shakespeare is not actually Shakespeare -- that the real Shakespeare was illiterate and that it may have been someone else who authored all of those plays and poems? Allow your brain to explore almost ANY topic of interest to you and turn it into an academic independent research project!=====

Topic Exploration C: Download and print this "I've Been Wondering" worksheet; complete as many question marks as you can using topics from Topic Exploration A or B or any other academic topics.


====Topic Exploration D: Download and print this web; put a big topic in the center (from Topic Exploration A or B or any other academic topics) and brainstorm as many aspects of the topic you can think of.====

II. Reading and Gathering Information
====Choose one or more aspects of your topic to read more about on your way to choosing/submitting a final topic. Find and read a lot about your topic, being mindful, even at this stage, that sources you spend time reading are reliable sources. How do you know if a source is reliable? First, check the domain name (URL ending); remember that endings such as edu, mil, gov, and org are better bets than .com endings. Here's a chart explaining domain names.====

[[file:Domain Names URL endings]]
====Next, check how easy it is to find the author and his/her credentials. Look for a bibliography for the article and what organizations support it. Check the date of the source to be sure it is recent/still reliable. If you can't find an author, a bibliography, or a date, you have cause for some suspicion.==== ====Consider filling out another web (above in Topic Exploration D) or just jotting down new thoughts/ideas as you explore your topic. Keep an open mind -- you never know where your research will lead you!====

Go back to favorite sources read for topic exploration or find new ones, and fill in the following chart as you read.
(URL ending, organizations, etc.) || What I learned (paraphrased in my own words): ||
 * What I Read (title, author, URL): || How I Know this Source is Reliable:

====If you prefer, you may use note cards, post-it notes, or another method of your preference in place of the chart. You must, however, do source evaluation for every source you are using for notes -- printed on purple sheets in the media center!====

====You will need a minimum of three reliable sources for your project, and these will need to be listed in a bibliography turned in with your final project, so please accurately record websites and other sources NOW as you take your notes!====


 * VII. Choosing Your Project**