3rd Grade - Making a plan for research

A student is writing a research report about poison ivy. Read the sentences from the report.

Poison Ivy can be hard to spot because many other plants have similar looks. You can use a few clues to help you. Poison ivy leaves are compound, which means there are three leaflets on each leaf. The leaves are green during the spring and summer, but they turn red in the fall. The stems of poison ivy plans can be red or fuzzy.

Which source would most likely give the student more information about what is written?

• a video that shows how to keep poison ivy from growing in a backyard

• a lawn care company's website that lists the cost for getting rid of poison ivy rashes

• a books with a list of creams and lotions that help with poison ivy rashes

• a website with photographs of the leaves of poison ivy plants

A student is writing a research report about frogs. Read the sentences from the report.

Frogs change throughout their lives. Frogs start out as tiny eggs. Mother frogs lay thousands of jelly-coated eggs together in clumps. After the eggs hatch, tadpoles swim out. Tadpoles breathe using gills, like fish. Over a few weeks, the tadpoles begin to grow legs and lungs, becoming froglets. Once the froglets lost their tails and come onto dry land, they are frogs.

Which source would most likely give the student more information about what is written?

• a painting of a frog using its tongue to catch a fly

• a website with information about how to care for pet frogs

• a diagram with pictures that show the life of a frog

• a map with information about where different types of frogs live

Doctors use pacemakers for people with certain heart problems. A pacemaker keeps a heart beating steadily. In the 1950s, the U.S. engineer Wilson Greatbatch made a mistake when he was making an electrical circuit to measure heartbeats. The circuit pulsed, and then it was quiet for a moment. Greatbatch realized it was like a heartbeat. He had created a pacemaker, which was first used in humans in 1960.

What would be the best resource to use to find out how pacemakers work?

• an interview with two people who have pacemakers

• an encyclopedia article about pacemakers

• a dictionary entry for pacemakers

• a photograph of a pacemaker

A student is writing a research report about Thomas Edison. Read the sentences from the report.

Thomas Edison developed many devices that influenced life around the world. He invented the phonograph, the motion picture camera, and the long-lasting light bulb. He was also one of the first inventors to mass produce products. Thomas Edison began his career as an inventor in New Jersey. The first invention that made him well-known was the phonograph in 1877. People thought it was magical.

Which source would most likely give the student more information about what was written?

• dictionary that has the meanings of the words "devices" and "careers"

• a chapter called "The Creator of the Light Bulb" in the book Famous Inventors

• a magazine article called "Buying Records for Your Phonograph"

• a book called New Jersey: The Third State

A student is writing a research report about hot air balloons. Read the sentences from his report.

The hot air balloon was the first technology to carry humans into the air. The first hot air balloon flight was in Paris in 1793, more than 100 years before the first airplane flight. During the 1950s, people began experimenting with onboard heat sources to fuel the balloons. The first modern hot air balloon flight took place in 1960.

Which source would most likely give the student more information about what he has written?

• a tourism company’s website that lists the schedule for available hot air balloon flights

• a timeline that shows the important dates in the history of hot air balloons

• a book with photographs of hot air balloons that have interesting designs or patterns

• an owner’s manual for a hot air balloon that gives important safety warnings

A student is writing a research report about Thomas Jefferson. Read the sentences from her report.

As one of America’s founding fathers, Thomas Jefferson was the author of the first draft of the Declaration of Independence. In his writing, Jefferson declared that America would no longer be ruled by England. It took Jefferson 17 days to write the first draft. After he was finished, he and the other founding fathers worked on revisions until the final draft was passed on July 4, 1776.

Which source would most likely give the student more information about what she has written?

• a magazine article that describes the paper used for the Declaration of Independence

• a website that has pictures of all of America’s founding fathers

• a chapter called “Drafting the Declaration” from a biography of Thomas Jefferson

• a diary entry that Thomas Jefferson wrote when he was a child growing up in Virginia

A student is writing a research report about Louis Armstrong. Read the sentences from her report.

Louis Armstrong was one of the most famous jazz musicians in history. Born to a poor family in New Orleans, Louisiana, he began playing music at a young age. He began with the cornet, which is a brass instrument that is similar to a trumpet. Other musicians recognized Armstrong’s talent, and he began playing professionally when he was just a teenager. Armstrong moved to Chicago and continued playing music. He became one of the most popular musicians in America. People who had never before been interested in jazz liked his music.

Which source would most likely give the student more information about what she has written?

• a dictionary that has the meanings of the words “jazz” and “cornet”

• a chapter called “Louis Armstrong” in the book American Musicians

• a magazine article called “How to Play the Trumpet”

• a book called New Orleans: A Visitor’s Guidebook

A student has made a plan for research. Read the plan.

Research Report Plan

Topic: Dolphins

Audience: my teacher and classmates

Purpose: to inform

Research Question: How do dolphins speak with one another?

The student has found these sources. Which source would most likely have information needed to answer the research question?

• a newspaper article that shows a map where dolphins are usually found

• a magazine article called "Echolocation: How Dolphins Use Their Hearing to Find Food"

• a webpage that allows users to view live dolphins swimming in the ocean

• a chapter called "Communcation" in a book titled Dolphins: Social Animals

A student has made a plan for research. Read the plan.

Research Report Plan

Topic: penguins

Audience: my teacher and classmates

Purpose: to inform

Research question: How do penguins use their wings?

The student has found these sources. Which source would most likely have the information needed to answer the research question?

• a webpage called "The Birds That Cannot Fly: How Penguins Use Their Wings Instead"

• a chapter called "A Penguin's Diet" in a book titled Emperor Penguins

• a magazine that shows photographs of different species of penguins

• a magazine article that shows a map of where penguins are most endangered

A student is writing a research report about George Washington Carver. Read the sentences from her report.

George Washington Carver was a scientist and inventor. Born into slavery in Missouri, he is most famous for thinking of many different ways to use the peanut. He also invented farming techniques that allowed farmers to grow more crops on smaller plots of land.

• a chapter called "The Peanut's Pal" in a book titled American Inventors

• a dictionary that has the meanings of the words "techniques" and "plots"

• a magazine article called "The Best Modern Farming Techniques"

• a book called Peanuts: A Guide to Living with Food Allergies