The Benefits of Researching a Writing Project For School

The Benefits of Researching a Writing Project For SchoolAs a teacher, I always encourage my students to take some time to research something to write about for school. When we are presented with this seemingly simple task, we sometimes worry about the depth of our own research, but in the end we are relieved that we did not research everything that could be relevant to our current projects. Students often ask why they should spend so much time researching something to write about for school, and I think the answer to that question is, really, anything and everything.The Internet is a great resource. It can be a wonderful source of information, especially if you do your research properly. You may find a great resource that would otherwise remain untapped. If you have to do a Google search, you will be amazed at what you find. In addition, most of the best websites are free and open to the public.Researching what you think people might be interested in doing or have done is another pla ce to look. There are probably tons of things that you may have never even heard of. Things like secret societies, conspiracy theories, politics, fringe religions, and other topics that might be of interest to your students.Sports can also be a great way to research a topic to write about for school. In many cases, you will get far more results than just general information. Often, you can uncover sources that are quite specific to the topic that are not available to the general public. For example, if your students are interested in the history of football, they can check out the online archives of newspapers and other resources for examples of great games that were played in various parts of the world.Don't research just any topic though. You want to do what is appropriate for your student's class. If you research too much, they will feel as if you are reading about them all the time. If you do not research enough, they will not be motivated to learn about any new items that come their way.Let's say you are planning to do a project on the history of sports, and a great way to research this topic is to start with something that they are already interested in. If you are teaching history of science, the world may be your oyster. Maybe they are big into sports, maybe it is history, but there is a great opportunity to dig up all sorts of information on all sorts of subjects. You may find a great story in history that you never knew was already being told.Maybe you would rather use the traditional classroom approach to studying but still get the most out of the opportunity. Students love the opportunity to be a part of a collaborative project. They will be so excited to talk about their findings and discuss them with you and the rest of the class. You will soon realize that you will be able to cover a lot more ground than you ever thought possible. However, the challenge lies in finding these gems, as there are certainly plenty of places to look.Of course, whatev er topic you decide to research for your writing project, do not get too bogged down in the research. Remember that students love the ability to be involved and brainstorming is very important. You can even hold a research meeting or small seminar for your students after the project is complete, to share some of the information you have uncovered and give them a chance to discuss the findings with you.