This document provides guidance on organizing research for a paper. It recommends creating folders or documents to separate information by the main points of the thesis. Sources should be cited as found. When taking notes, only include information relevant to each main point. The organized research can then be easily pulled together to draft the paper. Taking time to organize from the start pays off by making the writing process smoother.

1. OrganizingResearch
by Karen Hornberger. Palisades High School Library

2. ...So...youarefindingsomegoodarticles!!
...and good books
...and good websites
...and good videos
If you are finding many good resources, it looks as if you
have picked a good topic that you will have no problem
researching!
Great Job!

3. YouarealsoDevelopingaStrongThesisStatement
If your thesis statement is enumerative, that means that you
have three clear and unique points to support your argument
or statement.
(the following (insert any statement) is true because of A,
B, and C)
example: American popular culture greatly influences
culture, worldwide, through the production and dissemination
of video games, movies, and television shows.

4. Excitementisintheair!
At this point, you are probably happy and feeling like you
have it together.
You are right, but remember it will REALLY pay off for you if
you take some time to slow down and organize your materials
from the start and continue along the way.
(It will REALLY, REALLY, REALLY pay off!)
Please note: if you are unhappy with your thesis
statement, here is a resource to help you improve it.

5. Why????
Trust me, it can be a BIG mess for you if you don’t organize.
A lot of researchers cannot remember where they learned
pieces of information. As a result, they are likely to
produce incorrect citations. Not only is this not ethical,
but you can get caught and may have to pay the consequences
academically.
It will ultimately make you feel bad about your work (which
matters!) You want to feel proud of your work and
accomplished (and you can!)

6. How????
I’ve found that there are two ways that people prefer to
organize the information that they find and it really boils
down to whether the person researching prefers to use
electronic methods of working or to work hands-on with actual
printouts.

7. Hands-OnMethod
1. Get three pocket folders and label one Point A, another Point B, and another Point C
to identify each major subtopic within the thesis
2. Print out each article, website, or book page(s) that you are using (take notes on
any video) for information
3. BE SURE that each printout identifies the source (it doesn’t need to be properly
cited here on the printouts)
4. Designate a unique highlighter color for each of the points (Point A in pink
highlighter, Point B in green, etc.)
5. Take each print-out (one at a time) and highlight any piece of information using the
unique highlighter color that you have designated and ONLY highlight items that
support that specific thesis point
6. At a mid-point, assess whether you have enough information to support each thesis
point and seek additional information if you need to

8. Hands-OnMethod,Cont.
Example: My point A is that American video games have a global influence. Within any
article that I see that concept supported, I will highlight the passages in pink (which is
the color that I have selected for Point A).
Note: If I notice that the same article also supports a different thesis point (maybe it
also speaks of how American television has a global influence, which is my Point C), then
I print another copy of the article out and highlight with the appropriate highlighter
color that I have chosen for Point C (orange) and place that orange highlighted article
into the folder that is set for the associated thesis point (Point C).
So, yes, I will have two printouts of the same exact article - one highlighted in pink and
placed in one folder (which only has items highlighted in pink and discusses video games’
influence upon the world) and one highlighted in orange (and placed in a folder which only
has information highlighted in orange and discusses television’s influence upon the
world).
Makes sense?

9. Electronic Method#1(GoogleDrive)
Within Google Drive, you can organize your research notes using this system.
1. Create a folder in Drive to house your project notes.
2. Within that folder, create a folder for each subtopic. If you want to
keep the folders arranged in the proper order, put a letter at the
beginning of the title (my first folder would be titled A: videogame
culture; my second folder would be B: movie culture...).
3. Every time you take notes on research, save those notes to the appropriate
folder. Similar to the Hands-On Method, you will create different notes on
research for each area of your outline, even if it is from the same
resource.

10. Electronic Method#1(GoogleDrive),Cont.
Example: My point A is that American video games have a global influence. Within any
article that I see that concept supported, I will take notes on the information for ONLY
Point A and save this document into the folder that I have set up for Point A.
Note: If I notice that the same article also supports a different thesis point (maybe it
also speaks of how American television has a global influence, which is my Point C), then
I create another note taking document for ONLY Point C and place this document into the
appropriate folder that is set for the associated thesis point (Point C).
So, yes, I will have two documents from the same exact article but I have the information
isolated into different documents to help me focus only on the concepts that I will focus
upon while writing that portion of my paper.
Makes sense?

11. Electronic Method#1(GoogleDrive),cont.
1. Next, create a Google Doc within each folder and call it Outline to Text
(or whatever you’d like!)
2. On this Doc, insert a side-by-side table which has multiple rows. Within
one column, you will insert only the portion of your outline that supports
the subtopic that your folder supports. For instance, if I have my Point A
folder open (Video Games’ Global Influence) then I only have that section
of my outline copied into this document.
3. Next to each section of outline, you will insert the expert information
that you have summarized, paraphrased or quoted in your research notes and
you will arrange them, accordingly. Select a color that you will use to
identify that this is expert information.

12. Electronic Method#1(GoogleDrive),cont.
4. Be sure that every portion of expert information also identifies the
source that it comes from.
5. Following every excerpt from an expert, follow up with your own analysis
in a different text color.
6. Essentially, you should be able to match the information that supports
each of your points, put them into the order you designated in the outline,
add your own analysis (to help connect it to your thesis), and move on to the
next main point within your paper.

13. Electronic Method#2(Noodletools)
Our school subscribes to Noodletools, which offers great resources to organize
your outline and notecards.
1. In Noodletools, cite every source AS SOON as you determine it useful.
2. Go into Notecards and enter headings into the outline to mirror the main
points within your thesis statement (and eventually fill out your outline
in its entirety)
3. As you work with articles, create notecards (from one source at a time).
4. Drag those notecards into the appropriate area of the outline that the
information supports.
5. At a mid-way point during your research project, assess if you have enough
information to support each thesis point.

14. DraftTime!
While constructing your first draft, you now have all of your information arranged
perfectly. The time that you took to organize your work will help the rough draft flow
out easier. It paid off!
You can pull out that Point A folder or open all of those notes that you have saved for
Point A. If they were saved electronically, you can just copy and paste to arrange them
in the rational order that you set within your outline. If you chose Hands-On, then you
must type them into a document and put them into a rational order for your reader (most
likely as you have identified within your outline).
Don’t forget to tie the ideas that you have gathered from the experts with your own ideas
and thoughts (this is vital! While expert opinion is required for research, it is also
very important that you recognize your job of making that expert opinion support your
personal topic (the thesis statement you personally designed) and connect information that
you found together with your ideas to make it your own.
Follow with Points B and C. Then work on a strong opening and closing.

15. Writer’sBlock?
SO many times (like SO SO SO many times) I hear students comment that they are
having trouble writing.
I am a huge believer that it is best to organize and draft the main body of
the paper before you worry about how to open and close the paper with an
opening and conclusion.
It can be difficult to do right; if you have the stress lessened by having
your paper written, you will be able to consider a few opening hooks without
that panicky, awful feeling inside of you. However, a good hook is extremely
important and you want to give it the time and attention it deserves.
Remember to connect the people who are reading your paper to the topic and get
them to truly care about what you will talk about.

16. GOODLUCK!
Enjoy your research and make it count! If you are having
trouble expanding upon the quotations that you are selecting,
my slideshow, Expanding upon Quotations may help you.
Learn some things that are worth sharing with the world!