The Big 6 Research Process

1. The Big 6 Research Process Write the answers to these questions. Each question will have multiple answers and there is more than just one right way to answer.

2. Task Definition • Your class is studying life in Colonial America. You decide to make something that George Washington might have eaten for breakfast. What questions do you start with?

3. Information Seeking • Your latest assignment is to write a poem. Your teacher has asked you to think about these terms while you write: syllables, foot, line, stanza, meter, and rhyme. Where might you find information about these terms?

4. Location and Access • Your assignment is to make up an Olympic Medal for the sport of your choice. You can even invent a new sport if you want. How will you locate the information you need such as examples of other medals?

5. Use of Information • Now that you have located a few resources, you will need to determine if the information you need is contained in it. What things in a book might help you decide if it is going to help you or not?

6. Synthesis • You have found in your research the history of the Olympic Games from their beginnings in Ancient Greece to today. What are some of the things you might create on paper for your published product that use the major events and dates? • Example: crossword puzzle

7. Evaluation • You were supposed to write a four page paper about tigers. Some of the questions you answered were about their physical characteristics, their habitat, their diet, their speed and their size. You used the answers to create a report, a map, an illustration of a tiger, and a graph. What should you do now to evaluate your research?

8. Bonus-Extra Credit • Your assignment is to write a poem. Here is what you have on the table in front of you: a handout from the teacher that shows you examples of poems, a rhyming dictionary, a book of poems that you like, a blank piece of paper and pen, and the “J” encyclopedia. Which thing on the table is the LEAST helpful resource?