Organizing and Evaluating your Note Cards
� Sort your note cards into stacks having the same heading
� Evaluate your sources- this will not take nearly as much effort if you evaluated them well before you took your notes
o Be selective- if you have too much information for one topic use only the best information
o Fill in the gaps- If there is not enough information in some areas go back to the library or DISCUS, find more sources, and take more notes
o Revise your outline- eliminate topics for which you have not found enough information
o What’s this doing here??? If you have no idea why a note card made it into that pile, move it into one that makes sense. You may even create a pile for possible discards.
� You should end up with a stack of note cards for each heading and subheading in your working outline. If you don’t have at least two cards for each section of the outline, you may not have enough information.
Unity
� Make sure that all of your information fits the scope of your paper
� Information that strays from the chosen topic destroys the unity of your paper
Coherence
� Arrange the information in a way that readers will understand. Three possible ways are as follows
o Chronological- time order
o Spatial- used to describe a place or object
o Importance- used to explain or persuade
� Talk to a partner or small group and ask for feedback on if your outline flows well.
Audience and Purpose
� Audience- the manner in which you express your thesis statement and the way you focus your paper depend in part on your audience
o Audiences vary by what they want or need to know
o Can you make your research available to a different audience as well? For example, publish findings in the school paper, present to the school board, etc.
� Purpose- are you attempting to entertain or persuade? Comparing and contrasting, analyzing cause and effect, or proposing a solution to a problem? Interpret or evaluate?
Thesis Statements
� Draft a working thesis statement that tells what you will cover in your paper.
� What is a thesis statement?
o Thesis Statement- identifies your topic, limits your focus, and suggests what the body of your paper will cover
o A single declarative sentence, not a question. If you have phrased your research topic as a question, your thesis statement answers that question
o A preview of what the paper is about. States the topic and the writer’s focus on the topic.
� Do NOT begin with “The purpose of my paper is…” or “In this paper, I will write about…” (sic)
� Simply say whatever you need to say
o Suggests, but does not state, your conclusions- save these for the end of your paper!
o Should have a confident tone- sound like you know what you’re saying! Avoid using “hedge” words such as probably, might, I think, seems, apparently, in seems to me, etc.
Titles
� Draft a working title that reveals your topic and your narrowed focus
� This is your first chance to communicate with your reader!
� Be straightforward but get attention- don’t just leave your reader thinking, “What was that about?”
� A colon is helpful. You may write the topic first, then the colon, then your limited focus
� The title should not be stated as a complete sentence, although it might suggest a question
