How to Write an Essay- Research

I've written some pretty good essays in my time as a student. As writing is my strong point and I take a lot of English classes as electives, I typically get good grades on them. I'm going to be posting a little guide on writing an essay, one piece at a time, whenever I get the time to write up a post. Here's the first one on research:

Research
For me, this has always been the hardest part of writing an academic essay. Not only do I have to find several sources on my topic, but they have to be what the teacher considers reliable as well. This typically means no Wikipedia, .gov/.org/.edu over .com, and fully citable. Often more than one type of source is required, such as book, Internet, and article. These are the things I keep in mind while looking for sources:

1. Finding Sources- When looking for sources, always consider the amount of time you have to work on the project. If you only have a week, a few articles will probably benefit you more than a dozen thick books. Obviously the first places to check for sources are Google (always make sure any Internet sites are reliable and citable; don't just assume that the first link on the list is the best!) and the library (honestly not every book is fully reliable either, but most teachers are far more willing to accept these without a second glance...). Other possible sources change with the topic, but some examples are newspaper articles, scholarly journals, and historical documents. If you find a source that doesn't have enough information or isn't citable, check to see if it has a bibliography that can provide you with more sources.
2. Creative Sources- It's probably a good idea to check with your teacher before you use these, but I don't think they should have a problem with it. These can be fun and add a bit of flare to both your essay and your bibliography. Some ideas are: museums, advertisements, old pictures (these can actually provide a lot of info. Just make sure they aren't fake), interviews, movies, zoos/aquariums, old letters or diary entries, and historical artifacts.
3. Citation- Every teacher will have different requirements on how much information is required to make a source citable. I've had some want only a title and author, while others want that plus publisher, date, location, associated organizations, and link (if available). The first kind is easy, but the latter set can be almost impossible to find on the Internet. Even most government websites, which many of my teachers have considered total wins for my bibliography, will not have that much information available. Books are generally the best option in this case as they provide all the copyright and publishing information. If you're not certain whether you have enough information for your source, either ask your teacher or (if you're turning in a rough draft) just go with it. The teacher will likely mark your lack of information so that you can fix it before you turn in a final copy. I know this sounds like the lazy way, but I generally feel uncomfortable talking to my teachers about such things unless they can be contacted through email, and it's always worked for me.

There are my ideas for finding and citing sources. If you have any questions, feel free to email me at propheciesofshadow@yahoo.com or post a comment on the Arriah Dreamscribe Facebook page. Next time I'll be posting about getting started on the paper. I hope this is helpful!

Pretty Cool

So there's this thing I saw this morning. There's apparently a way to be a great boyfriend/girlfriend that 224,910/240,124 people agree with! That's over 93%!

I don't want to give too much away before you see it, but I was listening to the leading expert on this method talk about it. Not only is it what everyone should do, it's what everyone wants. Truly, I think this has changed my dating life forever. And when I'm married, now I know how to be the greatest wife ever! :)

You should really check it out. Just click here.

Oven Flow Chart

For those people. You know who you are. :)

Breaking News!

It was reported recently that certain school districts will be implementing a new grading method in the upcoming years. The new system: everyone will get A's!

The person in charge of designing the system, Ed O. Hair, stated, "We know that this is an alarming change for some people. People worry about things like progress, like knowing how to improve. Students will get private evaluations from their instructors, ones that no one else is allowed to look at, so they know what they need to work on . . . Overall, we're confident that this will lead to improvement." He looks forward to seeing the changes this inspires, in students, parents, and teachers.

One such change they predict is improved relations between these three groups. Parents will no longer have to scold their children for failing classes, friends feel no more resentment for grade differences, and students will not have to deal with teachers failing them. The expected change in attitude and conduct is expected to be seen within three months after the new system is implemented. "My girl wasn't going to graduate," said Anna D. Woods, mother of sixteen year old Julia. "She just has a hard time with doing work, you know? But now she can get her diploma when she's eighteen! I'm just so grateful." Many students will be feeling the same gratitude come the fall of 2013, when this is going to be put into action.


Teachers are excited for the upcoming change as well. "I used to spend hours pouring over papers to find every little error," Wayne N. O. Moore recalled. "But now I won't have to. They'll all recieve A's, and that will be a big help come final week." Teachers will get to take less time for grading in exchange for more time helping their kids or doing things they actually want to do. Even the students will have many extra hours for social and personal activities.

"We just want everyone to feel like a winner. Everyone should be able to feel good about themselves and their academic life," Ed O. Hair explained.

An official list of the school districts planning to participate has yet to be released. If you are concerned or wish to know more, contact your local school board.

Written by reporter Edward Sillyhands.