Getting Organized
Nuts and Bolts: Getting organized in as few as 6 steps
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Step 1: Create a project folder in Google Drive. Be sure to title it something related to your project! (Ex. Climate Change).
Step 2: You can create a sub folder within this folder for your more specific research articles, or your graphic organizers.
Step 3: Choose a template you would like to use. Try the Working Document Template or slides organizer.
Step 4: Move this file to the research folder you just created (Click the File option, then Make Copy, then click and drag it into your new research folder.)
Step 5: If your teacher has requested it, find the shareable link for your folder (right click, share). Make sure the settings are "Nashoba Regional High School" and "has commenting access".
Step 6: Bookmark the high school library website! You'll need it as you continue your research.
Move beyond physical files and organize your information
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As you find more and more reliable articles, it can be tough to put them into any order that makes sense for your project. Organizing your information, whether physically or online, will keep you from becoming overwhelmed. There are many ways to organize, but here are a some tried and true methods to help you along.
Marking a text while reading to highlight key information and to record questions you have.
Structured notes where the main ideas are closest to the left margin of the page and you indent subtopics or connected ideas.
Use index cards to record and organize information. This method makes it easy to change the order of info; you just simply shuffle the cards.
Represent your key ideas visually. A flow-chart, Venn diagram and family tree are examples of concept mapping.
Divide your paper into four sections: topic/date, notes, key ideas/questions, and summary. Begin by filling in the topic/date (#1). While you're listening, reading or viewing, you take notes in the main section (#2). After you're done taking notes, take a few minutes to go back and pull out key points, main ideas and dates (#3). Then write a summary (#4). Use paper, or make a copy of this template to use in your Drive.
Taking notes should be more than just copying what you see
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In addition to the basics you jot down about your topic from books, websites and videos, you should also add your own ideas and opinions about the information. Through the school databases, you can download articles to your Drive and move them to your project folder. This gives you the ability to take notes and annotate directly onto the documents. If you're not into the digital note-taking, you can also print the article and mark it up on the paper.
Try it For Yourself!
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Use one or more of these methods for your research.
