Bonus Assignment:
Research Paper
What is the first thing that comes to mind when you hear research paper? Stacks of library books, pages and pages of information and notes, boring hours of sifting through information? That all could be a part of writing a research paper, but we are going to focus on learning how to write an organized, thoughtful and above all a purposeful essay that reflects your careful research and conveys a specific and meaningful message to your reader. To prepare to do this assignment, we are going to revisit many of the basics of paper writing. I understand much of it will be review, but I think it’s important to return to and solidify the essence of paper writing. We are going to discuss (and practice) outlining, structure of a paper including intro, body and conclusion and the thesis statements. We will learn to conduct research on a specific topic, organize information in an outline, write a draft, construct a strong thesis statement, revise our essays and create a works cited.
As our focus of study right now is the American Civil War, you will choose a topic related to the Civil War. You may choose to discuss the significance of one battle or perhaps the role the institution of slavery played in the Civil War. You may discuss the life of one man or woman involved in the conflict, or you may discuss the differences between the Northern and Southern armies as a whole. You may also revisit the outbreak of the war and research in more depth the causes that instigated this bloody conflict. You may choose any of these ideas, or think of one on your own. It’s your choice! We’ll discuss our topics in class.
Thesis Statements: The thesis statement is the single most important part of your entire essay. It is a single sentence, located at the very end of the introduction, which clearly and strongly states the whole purpose of the entire paper. By just reading the thesis statement, your reader should be able to see clearly the main points the essay will discuss and how the author will handle them. To put it simply, your thesis statement says: “Here is what I am going to be discussing in this paper.” If your paper will reflect a strong opinion or argument, your thesis statement presents this argument and then your paper proves it. Tips for Thesis Statements: (1) Place your thesis statement as the last sentence of your introduction. (2) Make sure it clearly and strongly reflects the whole “point” of your essay. (3) Make sure your paper reflects the order of your thesis statement, whichever order you present your main points in your thesis statement will be the order you use in your paper.
Assignment Details:
Length: 5-7 pages
Format: 1inch margins, double spaced, any academic font
Structure: Must display clear intro, body and conclusion format. Must have a strong thesis statement that clearly states the purpose and point of the paper and use topic sentences in each paragraph.