Research Building Blocks: Organize This!

Children are naturally curious—they want to know "how" and "why." Teaching research skills can help students find answers for themselves. In this minilesson, students organize the information they have compiled through the research process by using sentence strips. Students first walk through the process using information on Beluga whales as a model. Students match facts written on sentence strips to one of four categories: appearance, behavior, habitat, and food. Sentence strips are color-coded to match each category. The sequence of notes (sentence strips) under each category are placed in an indented outline form, and regrouped so that similar facts are placed together. Next, the appropriate Roman numerals and letters are added to the outline. Finally, students use the same process to create outlines for the research topics they are working on.

Standards & Objectives

Learning objectives: 

Students will:

  • create and use graphic organizers. 
  • work with students to brainstorm category labels. 
  • generate categories and subheadings. 
  • sort note cards into categories or subheadings. 
  • practice outlining skills.

Lesson Variations

Blooms taxonomy level: 
Applying

Helpful Hints

Materials and Technology:

  • Colored paper (four different colors)

Printouts:

  • Example Outline Format
  • Sample Outline for Beluga Whale

Websites:

  • Graphic Organizers

References

Contributors: