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PROJECT - HOW TO WRITE YOUR PROJECT

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Read through the following carefully.
 

PROJECT GENERAL GUIDELINES

,. The following parts of the project will be evaluated: PROCESS; PRODUCT; PRESENTATION

Most of the work should be done in class. When we work on the Project you must bring the Work File (Portfolio), source material, dictionary and everything else you need for the project. Work in class could be: group discussions with pupils that have related topics; selecting, reading, summarizing, arranging background material;.planning next steps; writing drafts; proofreading and editing; helping each other; work on vocabulary and grammar to improve your project; teacher-pupil discussion; working on specific skills (e.g. how to write a bibliography)

 

STAGE 1 (to be submitted) - TOPIC PROPOSAL

Choose the topic you want to work on. If necessary, break down the 'BIG' topic in smaller parts, each with its own 'smaller' sub-question. Think about the topic, its various aspects and issues, what kind of information you will be needing in order to answer/support your research question, and try to generate relevant questions based on the Journalistic Questions: Who, What, Where, When, Why, How, How Many/Much, Which.  Consider possible sources of information and their accessibility. Some ideas: Internet; library (encyclopedias/ books/ magazines/ newspapers/ articles); embassies; companies, organizations, institutions and ministries; museums; pictures and graphs; statistics; quotes; expert interviews; museums; archives; field trips; Radio and TV, etc. You must come up with at least THREE (TWO for 3 points) sources of information that are relevant to your subject and which you will later quote in your paper.

 

TOPIC PROPOSAL
 
STAGE 1 (to be submitted)Choose the topic you want to work on.  If necessary, break down the 'BIG' topic into smaller parts, each with its own 'smaller' sub-question.  Think about the topic, its various aspects and issues, what kind of information you will be needing in order to answer/support your research question, and try to generate relevant questions based on the Journalistic Questions: Who, What, Where, When, Why, How, How Many/Much, Which.
 
Consider possible sources of information and their accessibility.  Some ideas: Internet; library (encyclopedias/ books/ magazines/ newspapers/ articles); embassies; companies, organizations, institutions and ministries; museums; pictures and graphs; statistics; quotes; expert interviews; museums; archives; field trips; Radio and TV, etc.
 
You must come up with at least THREE sources of information that are relevant to your subject and which you will later quote in your paper.

 

 

 

PROJECT   PROPOSAL   PAGE

 

Name: ___________   ____________ Grade: _____ Date:____________

 

My Project TOPIC (My Research Question):

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

I would like to find out the following things about this topic (more detailed questions)

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

 

My reason(s) for choosing this topic:

 

 

 

 

I will use the following sources and will list them at all times so that I can use them in the bibliography:

 

sources

information I expect to find there

Atlas

 

Books

 

Companies

 

Dictionaries

 

E-mail

 

Encyclopedias

 

Institutions

 

Internet

 

Interview

 

Magazines

 

Movies

 

Newspapers

 

Organizations

 

Questionnaires

 

TV programs

 

Other

 

 

 

 

 

 

Checked & approved on [date] ________ by [teacher] _________ [signature] ___________

 

 

STAGE 2

Start gathering the information. Photocopy / print everything and add it to your Portfolio. Start summarizing long pieces and write down KEY WORDS which you will use in your paper. Based on what information you find, you may make adjustments to your plan/sub-questions.  Write down the quotations or save/print the graphics you will use next to each subtopic. You must use at least one, but no more than three in each subtopic. This will help you focus your writing and not get lost in all the material. When you actually write your introduction you will refer to all your subtopics in the same order as in the outline

 

 

STAGE 3 (to be submitted)

This is the beginning of your writing about the information that you have found. The final product of this stage will be an OUTLINE (=an organized Writing Plan). This is like a road map that will help you organize your thoughts before you start writing your first draft.

 

Analyze,select, group, arrange, and summarize your information:

1) Read your sources again and summarize in your own words what you want to use in your project.

2) Order logically: arrange the material in such a way that it will be clear to anyone who reads it.

3) Write the outline. includina division into. chapters and paraaraphs. Here you decide on the subtopics you want to address and on the order in which you are going to address them.

 

NOTE: Any information that you find in a written source cannot be used as you find it, ie. you are not allowed to just "copy and paste". Using somebody else's words is called PLAGIARISM and doing so is a criminal act! You may use quotes, but you MUST inform the reader a) that it is a quote, and b) where it was taken from.

 

 

STAGE 4 (to be submitted) The First Draft

Introduction

Now it is time to start writing the FIRST DRAFT of the final product. Write an introduction that introduces the topic in an interesting way; include the research question, why you chose it; how you planned to find the answer(s), and you should also mention (in general) what issues you are going to address later on in your paper. Remember to use appropriate language.

 

 Body, Conclusion, Title Page, Table of Contents & Resource List (Bibliography)

 

 Write the rest of the paper and your conclusions. Your corrected OUTLINE should be of great value to help you organize your writing. The conclusions should summarize (but not repeat in the exact same words) what you said in the body of the paper plus your own personal opinion on the subject. The conclusion should, of course, answer your research question!

 

 

Below are Checklists to help you organise each stage of your work.

 

 

CHECKLIST for STAGE 1

1

I have chosen a topic

YES

NO

2

I have written a RESEARCH QUESTION

YES

NO

3

I have broken down my topic into smaller sub-questions

YES

NO

4

I have decided on enough questions to investigate

YES

NO

5

I have thought about possible sources of information

YES

NO

6

I am aware of the requirements of the project

YES

NO

7

My teacher has returned and OK'ed my project proposal

YES

NO

STAGE TWO
 
Write down all the sources of information you are looking up and using. 
 
CHECKLIST for STAGE 2

1

I have made changes/adjustments in my topic/subtopics

YES

NO

2

I have different sources of information

YES

NO

3

I have the required number of sources for my work

YES

NO

4

I have found at least 10 key words in the sources, written them down and translated them for later use

YES

NO

5

I have carefully written down where I found my information: author, title, place and date of publishing, URL (Web site address) etc

YES

NO

6

I have kept all my resources, notes and work plans so that I can start work at any time and without any problems

YES

NO

7

I have copies (and source information) of at least 4 graphics and/or quotes that I will use in the final work

YES

NO

8

I know how to summarize a text

YES

NO


STAGE THREE

 

1.  Once you have a clear idea what you want to write about you need to find answers to your questions using a variety of methods: the Internet, newspapers, libraries, interviews, etc.

2.  Write an outline for your project and divide your material into sections.

3.  When you begin to write your project you must not copy directly from another person's writing - this is called Plagiarism and is illegal.  You can use someone else's writing if you quote it using quotations marks and stating clearly where it is from.

 

CHECKLIST for STAGE 3

1

I have collected enough material to answer my research question

YES

NO

2

I have read and understood all the material I collected

YES

NO

3

I have decided what parts of the information I am going to use

YES

NO

4

I have decided on the order in which I will present the information

YES

NO

5

I have a clear idea what information I will include in each section

YES

NO

6

I know what plagiarism is, and how to prevent it

YES

NO

7

I know how to write an outline

YES

NO

 

SUMMARISING

There is an important skill which you will probably need to use when writing your project.  You will need to summarise because very often you will have too much material to put into your project.  Here is a brief description of the art of summarising.

 

This teaches you how to summarize a paragraph and gives you an exercise to check your summarizing skills.

HOW TO WRITE A SUMMARY:

The first sentence of the first paragraph of your summary should state the author's name, the title of the article and the author's purpose in writing.

Use the present tense when writing about someone else's work.

Write one sentence only for every idea that the author has written.

First find the:

main point - What is the most important thing that the author wants the reader to know about the topic?

....then the supporting point(s) - What two or three important facts does the author use to convince the reader about the main idea? If the author gives contrasting ideas
 (advantages and disadvantages of something, or comparing points of view), make sure you write down important facts for both points of view.

..... and then finally the conclusion

Use connectors
(eg. because, although, in addition, moreover) to help join the ideas together.

Check your spelling and grammar.

Now practice your summarizing skills:
Go to the Famous People Site (http://history1900s.about.com/library/misc/blpeople.htm)
 and choose one famous figure to read about.
Make a short summary about this person.

Write your summary on a page and hand it in to your teacher.

CHECKLIST for STAGE 4

1

My project contains all required parts

YES

NO

2

My project is printed in the correct format

YES

NO

3

I have written a suitable title above each section

YES

NO

4

I have divided my writing into paragraphs

YES

NO

5

Each paragraph deals with only ONE main idea

YES

NO

6

All names and all sentences begin with a capital letter

YES

NO

7

I have checked that my sentences are in the correct tense

YES

NO

8

Each sentence has a helping verb (exc. positive, Pr. & Pt. Simple)

YES

NO

9

I have paid attention to the correct word order (SVO)

YES

NO

10

I have used punctuation correctly (Beware of Run-ons!)

YES

NO

11

I have checked that my sentences are not too long

YES

NO

12

I have used sentence connectors (conjunctions)

YES

NO

13

I have used the right prepositions (at, in, to, for...)

YES

NO

14

I have checked for grammatical agreement

YES

NO

15

I have checked my paper for spelling mistakes

YES

NO

16

My paper looks presentable (neat and orderly)

YES

NO

17

I have not copied directly from someone else's material.  I know and understand that plagiarism is not allowed.

YES

NO

 

 The final draft must include

Cover page:-  which consists of Title of paper, your name, the class year, the name of your English teacher and the date.  All this must be in English

Table of Contents

Introdution

Body

Conclusion

Reflection Page

Bibliography - sources

  Appendices

 

 

Writing a Source List  - Bilbliography  (written alphabetically according to the author's name):

BOOKS: author, title, publisher, place of publishing, date of publishing, page(s) where you found the information

 

EXAMPLE: Hooper, Henry., and Gwynne, Peter., The Missing Umbrella, Harper and Row, New York, 1997, pp 120-127

 

NEWSPAPER MAGAZINE ARTICLE author, title, name of publication, date of publication

 

EXAMPLE: Anderson, Kevin., "Home Computers: Who's on Top?", Washington Post, 26 July 2002

 

WEB SITES: name of the site; name of the article; author; date written; URL (Internet Address) - .,

 

 

PLAGIARISM POLICY STATEMENT

Plagiarism is the act of taking the ideas or words of

someone else and passing them off as one's own.

The most common types of plagiarism are as follows:

1. Sections (words, phrases, sentences or paragraphs) copied verbatim without quotation marks and proper documentation;

2. Sections copied with quotation marks but without citation;

3. Language copied directly from a source with occasional substitution of words or phrases without documentation;

4. Ideas which are paraphrased or summarized without citation;

5. Failure to provide a page of works cited;

6. The use of ideas or themes in any form, including poems, short stories, essays, research, music and art without giving due credit;

7. Turning in another student's paper, or any part of it, as one's own;

8. Any other act which effectively "steals" from another source.

.

 

Plagiarism in any form is stealing.

It is our goal to prevent this type of dishonesty. Plagiarized papers should be corrected and resubmitted or given a failing grade.

Below are additional pages for you to use.

 

 

 

Reflection and Feedback Page

Please answer the following questions about the Project and add the questions with the answers to your paper.

·        Have you enjoyed working on the project?

·        Have you enjoyed working in pairs (if you worked with someone)?

·        Have you found out information you did not know before the project?

·        What new skills have you learnt?

·        What part of the project was the most difficult for you and why?

·        What part of the project was the easiest for you and why?

·        Next time you do a project what changes would you like to make?

·        In what area do you think your English has improved? (think of reading;  writing; spelling; new vocabulary; grammar; speaking)

  • In what way do you think your learning strategies have improved?

• I have become more independent.

• I am more organized.

• My partner can rely on me to do my share.

• I have more confidence in my abilities.

• I know how/where to get help if I need it.

• I have learned how to work with a partner.

• I am no longer afraid of long or difficult texts.

• I know how to use a dictionary to help me.

• I understand the importance of writing a draft first.

• I have learned to be critical about my work.

·        What part did you enjoy most?

o       Creative writing

o       Doing research

o       Reading about my subject

o       Putting the information together

o       Presenting

o       Other: ________________________________________________

Additional pages for your use.
 
TOPIC PROPOSAL
 
STAGE 1 (to be submitted)Choose the topic you want to work on.  If necessary, break down the 'BIG' topic into smaller parts, each with its own 'smaller' sub-question.  Think about the topic, its various aspects and issues, what kind of information you will be needing in order to answer/support your research question, and try to generate relevant questions based on the Journalistic Questions: Who, What, Where, When, Why, How, How Many/Much, Which.
 
Consider possible sources of information and their accessibility.  Some ideas: Internet; library (encyclopedias/ books/ magazines/ newspapers/ articles); embassies; companies, organizations, institutions and ministries; museums; pictures and graphs; statistics; quotes; expert interviews; museums; archives; field trips; Radio and TV, etc.
 
You must come up with at least THREE sources of information that are relevant to your subject and which you will later quote in your paper.

 

 

 

PROJECT   PROPOSAL   PAGE

 

Name: ___________   ____________ Grade: _____ Date:____________

 

My Project TOPIC (My Research Question):

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

I would like to find out the following things about this topic (more detailed questions)

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

 

My reason(s) for choosing this topic:

 

 

 

 

I will use the following sources and will list them at all times so that I can use them in the bibliography:

 

sources

information I expect to find there

Atlas

 

Books

 

Companies

 

Dictionaries

 

E-mail

 

Encyclopedias

 

Institutions

 

Internet

 

Interview

 

Magazines

 

Movies

 

Newspapers

 

Organizations

 

Questionnaires

 

TV programs

 

Other

 

 

 

 

 

 

Checked & approved on [date] ________ by [teacher] _________ [signature] ___________

 

LOVE LIFE AND LOVE LEARNING - BOTH ARE PRECIOUS
BELIEVE IN YOURSELF
BELIEVE IN YOUR ABILITY AND NEVER GIVE UP
GRAB HOLD OF AN IDEA AND FLY WITH IT
THE SKY'S THE LIMIT