Carrying out a research project can be a fascinating, absorbing, and rewarding experience if you and your students are interested and involved in the purposes and the processes of the research. Your job, of course, is to get your students involved—“fired up”—so that they want to do the best job possible.

Research is hard work, and students should understand from the outset that it is hard work and that it takes time. However, skills gained, knowledge learned, and a final product are ample rewards. You can help students realize that intangible rewards can often be more satisfying than tangible ones—a valuable lesson better learned early in life.

Research is the search for existing data concerning people, places, things, eras, events, causes and effects, animals, or what works best. It can range all the way from simple fact-finding to extensive investigation. The research may be reported as facts only or the results of the research may be analyzed and interpreted. Sometimes all the facts are found, but at other times bits and pieces of vital information may elude the researcher. In fact, it is possible for the researcher to be left with many unanswered questions.

This book is divided into three main sections. The first section, Descriptive Research, provides nine research projects. Some are much more elaborate than others. All teach some basic research skills. Also included are a number of additional projects and activities involving descriptive research.

The second section, Scientific Research, includes several types of research utilizing the scientific method: experimental studies, content analysis, behavioral observations, surveys, case studies, and long-range studies. Various ways of presenting the projects are also included. The third section, At the Grass Roots Level, leads students through researching and writing about their local governments and about almost every facet of their communities. When students have finished their research and writing and have compiled the results into a book, they will have a Community Guide that not only will benefit them, but also will be a valuable resource for the community.

The activities in Projects for Young Researchers can be used in English, social studies, language arts, and humanities.

Download the Table of Contents page here.

Grades 5–9.

The lessons and activities in this book align with the following Common Core State Standards*:
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.WHST.6-8.7
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.WHST.6-8.8
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.WHST.6-8.9
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.6.4. 7.4, 8.4, 9-10.4
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.6.5, 7.5, 8.5, 9-10.5
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.6.6, 7.6, 8.6, 9-10.6
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.6.1
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.6.4
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.6.5

Conduct short research projects to answer a question (including a self-generated question), drawing on several sources and generating additional related, focused questions that allow for multiple avenues of exploration.
Gather relevant information from multiple print and digital sources, using search terms effectively; assess the credibility and accuracy of each source; and quote or paraphrase the data and conclusions of others while avoiding plagiarism and following a standard format for citation.
Draw evidence from informational texts to support analysis reflection, and research.

Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.
With some guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach.
Use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing and present the relationships between information and ideas efficiently as well as to interact and collaborate with others.

Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.

Present claims and findings, sequencing ideas logically and using pertinent descriptions, facts, and details to accentuate main ideas or themes; use appropriate eye contact, adequate volume, and clear pronunciation.
Include multimedia components (e.g., graphics, images, music, sound) and visual displays in presentations to clarify information.
Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks, demonstrating command of formal English when indicated or appropriate

*Authors: National Governors Association Center for Best Practices, Council of Chief State School Officers
Title: Common Core State Standards English Language Arts
Publisher: National Governors Association Center for Best Practices, Council of Chief State School Officers, Washington, D.C.
Copyright Date: 2010.