•7th Language Arts

ntResearch articles for How to (Process) Genre 
Lightning
Electricity

1/7/11 Non-fiction Power Point Project
Remember that not all websites have reliable information! Your research is only as good as the source you got your information from. For access to reliable articles or websites, you must use the JCPL Databases. Also these articles have the citation already done for you so it will make it easier on you when you go to do 

Click on the following link to:  JCPL Databases.
Go to the purple tab "Research Tools" and then click on the "Subscription Databases A-Z". Then just click on letter that the database starts with. 
For most of the databases you will have to use your  own library card or use the Everitt card #    Name: Everitt        Barcode#: 260026000. 

For your Non-fiction project, I recommend the following general databases:
Science Online  (the citation is right below article)
Middle Search Plus   (click on the HTML or PDF Full article and the citation is to the right---just click on "cite")
Kids Info Bits  (the citation is at the top of the article)
Global Issues in Context (click on Citation Tools on the right and download the citation in MLA 7th edition version)

To find reliable websites, go to the the purple "Research tools" tab and scroll down to the "Subject Guides" section.
Find the subject that is most like your topic. In this case your are looking at articles on the Environment so try clicking on the "Environment" subject guide. If you were going to research "recycling," then scroll down to find the websites on recycling. Another Subject Guide you may want to use is "Natural Disasters and Emergencies." Click on it and scroll down to the sites that are most relevant to your topic. 

If you choose to use a website that is not listed in the JCPL site then remember to check the reliability of the websites. Ask yourself the following questions to see if this is a site you should use:  
        What type of domain does it have? (.edu, .com, .org, .gov?)
        Who wrote the information in the website and is he/she an expert?
        When was this website written and has it been updated recently?
        Why do you think this website was set up? Does it have a bias? 
Remember to check the information on one website with other sources, if they agree then it is probably good information to use.

Citing  Pictures
In general, put the citation underneath the picture label it as  Figure (usually abbreviated Fig.), give it a number, and then put in the full citation.  You use the following information in the order it is here:  the artist's name, title (usually underlined) and the institution or individual who owns the work. Include the picture's date of creation after the title(if you have it). For a picture you viewed online, end your citation with your date of access and the URL. If you only have a URL, then copy and paste the URL underneath the picture. It can be a very small font if the URL is really long.

When citing an image, the caption underneath the picture should be labeled as Figure (usually abbreviated Fig.), assigned a number, and then put the rest of the citation after. 

Example:
                                                     
                                                                  Fig 1. Nichols, Michael. Elephants in India. 2011. 
                                                     Nichols Photography at National Geographic. 
                                                     Electric Tree House.Google Images. Web. 17 October 2011.
                                                     <http://electrictreehouse.com/category/to-learn/conservation>

On your Works Cited Page a picture from on online source should be done like this this:

Artist’s last name, first name. Title of artwork. Year. Name of institution/private collection housing artwork. Title of database or website. Publisher/sponsor of database or website. Medium consulted. Date of access. <URL >.

Example:

Moore, Albert. A Garden. 1869. Tate Britain. Art Project. Google. Web. 1 June 2011.

            <http://www.googleartproject.com/museums/tate/a-garden-152>.


ALWAYS REMEMBER! 
If you get stuck doing your citation or can't find good articles when you search your topic, make sure you ask for help!



























4/1/2010
Research Project: 
  1. You will need to know your Jefferson County Public Library card number in order to use most of the databases for your research. You should save your library card number to "My Documents" so that you will always have access to it. To do this, you can open a Word document Type in the name on your card and the number. Then choose Save As (click on the the big button on the upper left of the menu at the top). Save as "JCPL library card" and put it in "My Documents".
  2. There are a some great databases at JCPL that will be helpful for finding Pros and Cons on your subject. Click on the following link to:  JCPL Databases. 
  3. Go to the purple tab "Research Tools" and then click on the "Subscription Databases A-Z"
  4. Go to O "Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center."  This database has many articles on social issues. You can type in your topic or scroll down and choose from the huge list of topics.
  5. Go to T "Teen Health and Wellness" this database has articles on diseases, drugs, alcohol, nutrition, fitness, mental health, diversity and family life. These articles are geared for teenagers.
  6. Go to is G for "Grolier Online" The user name is: jcpl and the password is: jcpl This is an encyclopedia that has articles you can access which give the pros and cons on an issue. First type in your topic in the box under "Find It Fast". Click on Go. Then go to the News Feature Stories tab at the top and click on it. Start clicking on the articles that seem to be most interesting. Some of the articles will have a red Debate box on the left upper corner. These have Introduction, Pro, Con and Conclusion sections to the article. 
  7. Go to P "Primary Search" This database contains articles that are easier to read for middle school and elementary students on many subjects. Just type in your topic in the bar at the top.
    Once you find an article you like, then copy the parts that you like onto a Word document. Title the document Research for and the topic you chose. Save it to "My Documents." Make sure you have also copied the MLA citation after each article. Most of these databases have the citation already done. If there is no citation already done for your article then you can go to one of the citation maker sites that are listed under the "Citation Maker Sites" button in the Sidebar to the left. Make sure if you print, you do not have more than 5 pages. You can also email this research to yourself so you have it at home to look at.