A Great Pet? Quick Research for Younger Students

One of the things I like about Common Core ELA Standards is the emphasis placed on quick research assignments! One of the things I struggled with in doing research projects was how long they could drag out. I love the idea that we get in, enjoy, and get out! It leaves us with a better attitude about research and encourages us to inquire again and again!

I wanted to share a lesson that my students enjoyed recently. It covers many AASL standards, and one day I'll attach the lesson plan so you don't have to reinvent the wheel. Here's the nutshell version for now. My second graders worked in pairs to complete this assignment. Their topic was "Would a _____ make a great pet?"

1. With the students watching, I set out grade level non-fiction books about wild animals. The pairs of students quietly discussed which one they'd like to research. Then one member of each pair came up to get the book they needed and take it back to their partner.

2. They were given three index cards (old card catalog cards), to use for the following purposes.

• Card 1: Names of students and a topic question (ex. Would a zebra make a great pet? by Mark and Malachi). They also noted the title and author of their source.
• Card 2: "Pros" - They wrote a "+" at the top of this one.
• Card 3: "Cons" - They wrote a "-" at the top of this one.

3. I modeled reading a sample book and stopping occasionally to see what I'd learned and to determine if it would be a pro or a con in deciding if this animal would make a great pet. I also modeled paraphrasing and using bullets to take notes on the cards.

4. Once students had taken adequate notes, they deliberated the answer to their question and then presented it to the class. 

This lesson could stand an infusion of technology, in both the selection of sources and the presentation of findings. I have a few ideas, but I'd love to read yours, too!

I'm always looking for fun research ideas, and I keep up with them on my Pinterest boards. Please consider checking them out and following any that might interest you.

Yours happily ever after,

FREE Kindergarten Research Organizer

After spending over an hour trying to find the printable so many are using for those cute "All About" research projects, I gave up and made my own. You can find it by going to this link or by clicking on the image. I wanted to offer it to you, so you wouldn't have to suffer like I have. "Ain't nobody got time for that!"

UPDATE
I used this with my kindergarten classes this week as part of a research project I completed to model the Super 3 for them. It was extraordinarily simple and equally effective, I think. I plan to post the complete lesson plan in the future, but, in a nutshell, it went like this...

Lesson 1: "Plan"
I told them I wanted to learn what bats were like. We discussed what they already "knew" and why none of that information could be included because my facts needed to come from other sources. WE talked about the different formats in which sources come, and I told them that I'd only use books for this project. Then we looked at four bat books and discussed the characteristics of each (facts, fantasy, photographs, illustrations, etc.). We then categorized them into "fact books" and "imagination books," concluding that for my needs, I'd use the fact books.

Lesson 2: "Do"
I posted a poster of this chart and then completed the name and date. For the topic, I asked them what question I was trying to answer, and wrote "What are bats like?" We went ahead and wrote "books" in the source box - simple, but we're going to complete three of these this year, and I plan to ease into writing titles. I them read selected sentences from the bat books and asked them what facts I could write. After writing three (in our "own words"), I drew an illustration in the illustration box.

Lesson 3: "Review"
This is what we'll be doing next week. I plan to ask them, "How can I tell if I did a good job?" This will lead into a review of my research question, the sources I used, and the way I presented my information.

Super simple, but I think it is the beginning of my students being able to independently and effectively research topics in the future. Enjoy!

Yours happily ever after,