Benchmark #05: Research Notecards

due 10/25–26

A history researcher is at first a reader. In order to become an expert on your topic, so that you may teach others about it, you must read a lot about your topic. When you sit down to write your research paper, you are synthesizing what you have learned from your reading and adding your own critical interpretations which inform someone who reads your paper.

How do you keep track of all you have read? By taking notes on it. And one of the best methods for research notetaking is using notecards.

For the Moving Voices IRP, you are required to use index note cards to record your research. The notecard research system is time-tested and proven for a number of reasons, mainly:

Notecards make it easy to organize your research.
Notecards help the researcher to avoid the mistake or temptation of plagiarism.

Due date: October 25–26 (depending on your block)
On this date, you must have the following:

At least 125 notecards that observe the required format.
(“A” papers may have more than 200 cards.)
A table of contents for your notecards.
A complete, updated, annotated bibliography in MLA format.

Checkpoints along the way: Meet these deadlines and you will stay on schedule

Thurs.–Fri. 10/11–12: Tools check – You must bring to class

at least 100, lined, 3×5 index cards
a container for your notecards
dividers for your notecards

Monday 10/22: Notecard Table of Contents

a rough outline of the structure of your paper

Thurs.–Fri. 10/18–19: At least 50 notecards