Using your chosen topic from the Research Essay Topics list, you have now conducted research and organized your information. The next step is to submit your essay. Be reminded of the points below to ensure your essay is well developed.
A good research paper should do the following:
Present an interesting and significant topic
Present interesting, thorough, and significant information in a well-organized manner.
Use sources purposefully and ethically.
In this assignment, you will be doing all three as you uncover your research, evaluate information, and illustrate your thesis statement. Make sure you aren’t just writing a report about a subject, you want to argue about that subject. Use your resources to strengthen and support the credibility of your point.
Essay Format: MLA
Title: Be creative.
Introduction Paragraph: Introduction – Give background information about your topic. What does the reader need to know to understand your essay? Your thesis statement will be the last sentence of your introduction. This paragraph should be AT LEAST 10 SENTENCES.
Thesis Statement/Claim – (The thesis statement is the last sentence of the introduction.) This thesis statement is the point you are arguing about your topic. It must include your topic. Look at the topic you chose. Use “should”, “needs to”, or ‘must’ in your thesis statement.
Body Paragraph 1: Reason/Support One for your thesis – Begin your argument! Give the first reason to support your point in your thesis. Look at your thesis. Use words from your thesis and the first point listed. Your main idea will be your first sentence of the paragraph.
Body Paragraph 2: Reason/Support Two for your thesis – Continue to support/argue your thesis! Give the second reason you listed in your thesis to support/argue your point. Your main idea will be your first sentence of the paragraph.
Body Paragraph 4: Reason/Support Three for thesis – Continue explaining your thesis and supporting argument! Give the third reason you listed in your thesis statement to support your point. Your main idea will be your first sentence of the paragraph.
Conclusion Paragraph 5: Summarize your findings. Go back to each paragraph and summarize your findings in two or three sentences. Include those summaries in your conclusion. Recap and wrap up the points covered in your essay. This main idea will look similar to your thesis statement. Do not use your thesis statement. Reword it.
Directions: Your research paper should be:
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5 paragraphs and at least 1000 words
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Use in-text citations with signal phrases. Quotes, paraphrases, and summaries must be cited. Indicate what source you used at the end of the information you use. Read pages 486-494 very carefully. There you will find examples of how to cite your work.
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Use signal phrases to introduce quotes, paraphrases, and summaries. Signal phrases let the reader know you are going to use someone else’s words and/or information. See page 486 “Identifying the Source” for a list of signal phrases.
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All information that comes from a source must be cited. Failure to do so with result in that information not being accepted. All essays will be checked for plagiarism. Any information found that is not cited will not be accepted and points will be deducted.
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QUOTES MUST NOT BE LONGER THAN 3 SENTENCES. Any quote longer than 3 sentences WILL NOT be accepted.
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Two different sources are required for each paragraph. Each paragraph must have at least two different sources to argue your point.
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MLA style See (Ch. 31) or Purdue Owl, MLA Formatting and Guide, or MLA Module
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Work Cited page – with a minimum of five resources. Only list those sources mentioned in your paper. If you use ANY information from a source, cite the source in your essay and include it in your Works Cited page. See page 527 for an example of what a Works Cited page looks like. Notice the formatting.
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highlight the thesis statement in yellow – it is the last sentence of your introduction paragraph. This sentence will guide your essay.
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highlight the main idea sentences of each paragraph in yellow. For this assignment, the first sentence of every paragraph. Every paragraph must have a main idea. A main idea is a sentence. It begins with a capital letter and ends with a period. It is not part of a sentence. You should only have ONE main idea sentence for each paragraph.
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highlight the in-text citation used at the end of the sentence in LIGHT blue. (Do not use dark blue. If I cannot see under the highlight, it is incorrect.) Only highlight the source (in-text citation), not the whole quote. You should have two per paragraph. Review Chapters 29 and 31.
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Do not use any form of “you”, “I”, “we”, “us” etc. This is not a personal essay nor are you giving advice.
Do not use contractions. Spell out the words.
You should only have 5 sentences highlighted and at least 2 in-text citations (sources) per paragrap
