Getting Started with Your I-Search Paper

Choosing a TopicThink about something that you want to know more about – an idea that you genuinely want to research that’s applicable to your life in some way.

What Do I Already Know about My Subject?In the paper text itself, you talk about what you already know. In some cases this may be a few paragraphs; in other cases it may be a few sentences.

Image by danahlongley, available under a Creative Commons Attribution - Share Alike- Non-Commercial License.

What Do I Want to Find Out and Why?This question is going to guide your research – once you determining exactly what you want to find out, you will then know what information you need to search for.

The Story of the SearchIn your paper text, you will discuss your actual hunt for information. How did you find your sources? What resources did you use?

FindingsWhat did you discover? This is where you incorporate quotations from your courses. This section is more like a “traditional” research paper. Don’t wait until the last minute to do your research, or you will get buried under your sources!

Image by Krista76, available under a Creative Commons Attribution - Share Alike- Non-Commercial License.

Works Cited PageYou must include an entry for each source you cite from within your paper. A Works Cited page includes only the sources that you actually incorporate into your paper through in-text citations. This is different than a bibliography or list of references.

ConclusionHow will you use

the information you discovered? How

has completing this research impacted

your life?

Image by h.koppdelaney, available under a Creative Commons Attribution - Share Alike- Non-Commercial License.

Modern Language Association (MLA)Your paper must be formatted according to MLA style. There are specific instructions for how to do your in-text citations and your Works Cited Page in the Rules for Writers handbook.

Feedback on DraftsYou will submit a draft of your Works Cited Page and I-Search paper for feedback from me and some of your classmates. I will help you with formatting your paper and shaping your content.

Additional Resources

• Purdue University Online Writing Lab (OWL)http://owl.english.purdue.edu/

• Check out the LFCC library page. Under “Student Resources” you will find excellent research suggestions.

• When in doubt, ask a librarian. They are there to help YOU find what you need. Don’t ask me for help finding sources unless you have asked a librarian first.