Research Daily Assignments
February 27 Today you will be reading a handout that gives a brief description of what each reference is, how the information is arranged, and what specific information is included. 

After completing the reading, I would like you to take some notes.  To do this you will need to open a Word document.  Then create a table with 4 columns (á and â) and six rows (ß and à) Label the first column "Reference Book", second column "What is it?", third column "How is information arranged?" and fourth column "What specific information is included?"

You may print the form and write in the information or you can type your responses in the table and then print the form when you are completed.  Please turn this into Mrs. Zebroski. 

Next, you will get to practice using a thesaurus.  Please complete the Synonym Workout worksheet. 

Congratulations, you are done with today's assignments!

 
February 28 Your assignment today is to practice using the dictionary.  You need to complete the Words Play Tricks worksheet.  Be careful, it can be tricky!

Congratulations, you are done with today's assignment!
March 1 Today you will practice using the almanac to answer the questions on worksheet 8-9.  This worksheet will give you clues as to where to look for the answers. 

Congratulations, you are done with today's assignment!
March 2 Please use Word to type me a short message letting me know where you are with your assignments for the week.  If you have completed all assignments, send me a note letting me know that.  If you have some assignments left to do, please send me a note explaining your plan for getting them completed before next week.  Please submit this message the same way you do your weekly journal entry. 

You can use today as a catch up day to complete any assignments from the week that you haven't turned in yet.  If you are current with all of your assignments, you can use this period to read pages for your reading log. 

 
March 5 Your assignment today is to practice using encyclopedias.  You need to complete the Encyclopedia Search worksheet.  You will need to complete this activity in the library where you will have access to a set of encyclopedias. 

Congratulations, you are done with today's assignment!
March 6 Today you will practice using the internet to answer the questions on the Internet Search worksheet.  Before you get started on the assignment, take some time to read the Internet Tips handout.  There is so much information (good and bad) on the internet and it takes time to sort through it. 

Congratulations, you are done with today's assignment!
March 7 Today you have the opportunity to put all the skills together that you learned about the last week.  You will be completing the Reference Book Challenge.  In this exercise, you will have to decide which reference would be the best choice to locate the information, then you need to find the answer.  This assignment may take a while to complete. 

Congratulations, you are done with today's assignment!
March 8 In today's activity you will read a handout explaining plagiarism and evaluate other's work for plagiarism. 

Congratulations, you are done with today's assignment!
March 9 Please use Word to type me a short message letting me know where you are with your assignments for the week.  If you have completed all assignments, send me a note letting me know that.  If you have some assignments left to do, please send me a note explaining your plan for getting them completed before next week.  Please submit this message the same way you do your weekly journal entry. 

You can use today as a catch up day to complete any assignments from the week that you haven't turned in yet.  If you are current with all of your assignments, you can use this period to read pages for your reading log. 

March 19 Today you will be introduced to the note taking and organization strategies that we will be using while completing this research paper.  This will be a lesson that is delivered to the whole group.
March 20 Today you will starting gathering information about your country to be used for your research paper.  Remember the note taking strategy we discussed in detail yesterday.  You will be required to use at least 3 sources. 
March 21 You will continue to gather information about your country to be used for your research paper. 
March 22 You will continue to gather information about your country to be used for your research paper.
March 23 Please use Word to type me a short message letting me know where you are with your assignments for the week.  By the end of class today, you should be finished gathering your research.  If you are not finished, please indicate your plan for finishing by the end of the week. 

You can use today as a catch up day to complete your research.  If you are current with all of your research, you can use this period to read pages for your reading log.  Please turn in your research folder to Mrs. Zebroski.
March 26 Today you will start writing your rough draft.  I suggest starting with the body of your paper (the middle).  The body of your paper consists of at least 3 paragraphs--with topic sentences and support.  Each paragraph of the body should focus on one culture area (clothing, recreation, school, customs and holidays, food, art...)

http://watertown.k12.sd.us/schools/srhigh/academics/Language_Arts/writing_handbook.pdf  This is a link to the Writing Handbook.  Look at page 10 for a reminder of the HAND concept. 

 
March 27 Class will begin with a discussion about thesis statements.  This will help you with today's assignment--writing your first paragraph or introduction.  Your introduction will include a thesis statement, attention getter, and background information (physical features, location, and climate). 

http://watertown.k12.sd.us/schools/srhigh/academics/Language_Arts/writing_handbook.pdf  This is a link to the Writing Handbook.  Look at page 11 for tips for writing an inviting introduction. 

March 28 Writing a conclusion paragraph will be the focus of today's work.  Our discussion about thesis statements from yesterday will be helpful while writing the conclusion.  The purpose of the conclusion is to summarize your main points, refer to your attention getter, and restate your thesis statement. 

http://watertown.k12.sd.us/schools/srhigh/academics/Language_Arts/writing_handbook.pdf This is a link to the Writing Handbook.  Look at page 11 for tips on writing a satisfying conclusion. 

March 29 Class time today will be used to finish writing your rough draft.  After you have completed your rough draft, please print a copy that is triple spaced.  We will use this copy for the revising and editing activity planned for tomorrow. 
March 30 Revising/Editing Activity--to be explained in class.
April 2 Today's class time will be used to add the revisions to your research paper. 
April 3 Documenting the sources you used when writing your research paper will be the focus of today's work.  A helpful sight for doing this is http://citationmachine.net/ Mrs. Zebroski will walk you through the process. 
April 4 By the end of class period today, you should be ready to turn in your final draft of your research paper.  Congratulations, you are finished with the research unit!