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Fifth Grade Research Paper—A Guide from the Library: Writing Your Paper

Tips for Writing a Great Paper

Below are some things you can do to make writing your paper as fun and easy as possible. These tips will also help you end up with a paper you love.

WHILE YOU'RE RESEARCHING

  • READ FIRST!
    When you find a source that looks good, READ IT! Don't rush off immediately to find another one. By reading, you become an expert in your topic, which will make it easier and more fun to write your paper when you sit down to do it. Even though it's tempting to just fill your folder (or your Google Docs) with tons of sources, the most important thing is to have a few really good ones and to know what they say. DON'T take notes on your first read.
  • NOT ALL SOURCES ARE GOOD
    Sometimes a source will look great at first, but when you get into it you realize it's not what you were hoping for. If you start reading and you realize you have no idea what it all means, it's either too hard for fifth grade or just bad. Put that source aside and look for something you can actually use. Some sources will be too basic. Some are not really about your topic. Don't worry. Some are just right.
  • BE OK WITH REPETITION
    Some of your sources will repeat information you already have. You may be tempted to stop reading something because you think you know it all. READ ON! You may find a couple of interesting facts that you didn't know. This will help bring your paper alive. Also, be on the lookout for facts that don't match up with what you think you know. If that happens, check more sources until you're sure you've got the truth.
  • KEEP TRACK OF YOUR SOURCES!
    Your paper will include a list of the sources you used to write it (this is called a bibliography). So make sure you know where all your info comes from. If you photocopy pages from a book, be sure to also copy the title and copyright pages (in the front). If you print out or save pages from a database, make sure you get the last page, which usually tells you the official name of the article and where it comes from (this is called "citation information").

WHILE YOU'RE WRITING

  • HAVE A PLAN: THREE SECTIONS!
    You should have an idea for how your paper will be structured before you start writing. A good way to start is to think of dividing your paper into three sections. Let's say your paper is about the Brooklyn Bridge. Section 1 could be all about the person who designed the bridge and how he planned it. Section 2 could be about how the bridge was built. Section 3 could be about the Brooklyn Bridge today. There are many different way to divide up any topic.
  • DON'T START PLANNING TOO EARLY
    You should not decide on your sections until you know a lot about your topic. If you do it before, you run the risk of having a section but no info to put in it! A basic rule of writing a paper is that you can't write about something you don't have information on. Sometimes you think it will be easy to find info on a certain topic, but it's just not available in sources you have access to.
  • HIGHLIGHTING EVERYTHING IS THE SAME AS HIGHLIGHTING NOTHING
    After you've read each of your sources at least once, you may want to go through and highlight the parts that will be important for your paper. You should highlight ONLY important, key details. The point is to use the color to draw your eye to the important parts. If you highlight too much, it's not highlighting. It's just making yellow paper. Use your highlighted sources to take notes for your paper. Some people use a different highlighter color to indicate info for each of their three sections.
  • DECIDE HOW YOU WANT TO TAKE NOTES
    There are lots of ways to do it. Here two of them: Create a Google Doc called My Fifth Grade Paper Notes. Make a heading for each of your three sections. As you re-read your sources, take notes on the parts you want to use in your paper. Put each note under the heading for the section where it belongs in your paper. Another way is to do this exact thing, but use actual paper. Dedicate a few pages in a notebook to each of your three sections. Take notes there as you read. Use your highlighted sources.