5E Lesson Plan #1 TITLE OF LESSON: Research 101

AUTHOR’S NAME: Cyndel Campbell

DATE OF LESSON: Week 2; Tuesday

LENGTH OF LESSON: One, 50 minute class period

NAME OF COURSE: 10th Grade English II

SOURCE OF THE LESSON:

This lesson is not in any resource book; can be found in the ENGLISH II Google Drive

TEKS ADDRESSED:
➢ (b.21) Research/Gathering Sources. Students determine, locate, and explore the full
range of relevant sources addressing a research question and systematically record the
information they gather.
➢ (b.22) Research/Synthesizing Information. Students clarify research questions and
evaluate and synthesize collected information.

ELPS ADDRESSED:
Not applicable

CONCEPT STATEMENT:
● In this lesson, students will gain insight on how to properly find reliable resources and
cite said resources. After an introduction to research and a moment to openly ‘think’ with
their peers, students will begin discussing collecting evidence with the “Is It Credible?”
handout. Here they will learn about the importance of keywords, exact phrases, and
domains. Understanding what a reliable source is is important not only for the students’
upcoming project but also for future endeavors in education. Students will learn what a
reliable resource looks like and how to properly cite it during today’s lesson.

PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVES:
● Students will be able to:
o Analyze the reliability of internet sources.
o Synthesize important ideas from multiple sources
o Properly cite all resources used

RESOURCES:
● Student laptop (each student is assigned one by the district)
● Google drive
● Google docs

SAFETY CONSIDERATIONS:
There are no safety concerns for this lesson.

SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIALS, HANDOUTS:

● Is it Credible? Handout (1 per student) (handout information is owned by Cyndel
Campbell)
● Research/Citations sheet (digital; can be found in their Schoology classroom)

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ENGAGEMENT
What the Teacher Will Do
Ask students to explain, in their
own words, what is a reliable
resource.
Review with the students the Is
it credible? handout. During
this time make sure they are
understanding the concepts that
are being discussed. Students
should be taking notes as they
go.
The Five-E Tables
What the Students will do
Students will share their
thoughts with people seated
near them.
Listen to instruction and
taking notes when needed.
Time: 15 minutes___
Probing Questions/Expected
student Responses
What is a reliable resource?
Answers will vary but should
revolve around the idea of A
resource that can be proven. A
resource that is believable. A
resource that is trustworthy.

EXPLORATION Time: 20 minutes_

What the Teacher Will Do
Tell the students that they will
be practicing finding credible
resources for the chosen topic
of their dystopian society.
Students will need to find 10
different credible sources, with
their groups, before the end of
class
Show the students how to
access citationmachine.com.
Briefly go over how to use the
website to properly cite
resources.
Instruct each group to open the
document titled
Research/Citations worksheet
in their Schoology classroom.
Give the students 20 minutes to
search for reliable sources for
their chosen dystopian topic.
What the Students will do Probing Questions/Expected
student Responses
Listen to directions
Students will follow along
while the teacher is showing
her example on the
Promethean board. They will
mimic what the teacher is
doing on their own laptops.
Students should dictate who You may want to try a “certain
will search for what for their website” if you are looking for a
group. “topic”
Students should work This comment will vary depending
together to find 10 credible on what the group is researching
resources for their dystopian
world.

Suggest different websites and As they find reliable sources,

options as you observe the
students working through the
search process.
students will cite the resource
using citationmachine.com
and copy the proper MLA8
citation over to their group
Research/Citations worksheet.
Since this is a live document,
students will see in real-time
what their teammates are
adding to the page.

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EXPLANATION
What the Teacher Will Do
While students are finishing up
their citations, walk around the
room and assist groups that
seem to be struggling.
Take time to ask each group
about their chosen resources
for their project
If a group seems to have not
grasped the meaning of a
reliable resource, take this
time to clarify the students’
understanding and point them
in the right direction.
ELABORATION
What the Teacher Will Do
The teacher will wrap up the
class by asking closing
questions that allow
connections to real-world
applications.
EVALUATION
What the Teacher Will Do
What the Students will do
Students share their chosen
websites and why they chose
that website.
Students will explain why they
deem it to be an important
resource for their project.
Listen to feedback from the
teacher.
What the Students will do
Listen to the questions given.
Respond with feedback.
What the Students will do
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Time: 10 minutes_
Probing Questions/Expected
student Responses
Some questions that the teacher may
ask are:
How do you know that this is a
reliable source? I used my Is Is
Credible? handout to determine that
it is reliable. I know it is credible
because the website is an
(educational or government) site.
What is the most important part of
this resource? The most important
part of this resource is…
Answers for this question will vary
depending on the groups’ chosen
problem.
How does this resource support your
chosen problem? Answers for this
question will vary depending on the
groups’ chosen problem.
Time: _5 minutes
Probing Questions/Expected
student Responses
How can finding reliable sources
be applied in your other classes?
Answers will vary. You may have
some responses like: in science, I
can use reliable resources in order
to support my hypothesis for
experiments. In history, I can use
reliable resources to support my
reasoning for being for or against
laws that have been created.
What about in the real world?
Answers will vary. Students may
make connections with dealing with
internet trolls who don’t support
their reasoning. They might bring up
how it could affect their future jobs
or college life.
Time: _0 minutes__
Probing Questions/Expected
 student Responses
The teacher will look over the
students’ Research/Citations
sheet to determine if the
students were able to identify
and cite credible resources.
Remind students that if they
didn’t finish they will need to
complete their citations for
homework.

Is it Crediable?
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 Credible = reliable, believable, trustworthy

JUST THE KEY WORDS

● Start by picking out the KEY words you want to search for.
○ For example, instead of smoking is unhealthy try smoking health.
○ And instead of smoking damages our environment with pollution try smoking
pollution
○ Avoid using short words like a, the, an, is, etc.

GETTING THE MOST HITS

● Sometimes, the term you are looking for can be in another form. For example, you
searched for ‘running,’ but there are more results on the word ‘run.’
● You may want to use the shortest version of the word, such as the root word.
● You may want to consider searching for related words.
○ For example, if the word is run, you could also search for marathon, race, jogging,
etc.
● If you word has another meaning, you may need to be more specific to get the results you
need.
○ For example, run could also mean govern, conduct, operate, supervise, control,
etc

EXACT PHRASES
● If there is an exact phrase you want, you can put it in “double quotes”.
○ For example, instead of Abraham Lincoln, which will give you hits about anyone
named Abraham and even the Lincoln car company, try “Abraham Lincoln”
which will only give you hits that contain those exact words together.

SEARCHING A SPECIFIC SITE

● Sometimes, you know you want an article from a specific website, but that site doesn’t
have a search engine. You can use a browser to help you find what you need by typing
the term you are looking for, then site:www.website.com
○ For example, if you want an article about energy drinks from the Food and Drug
Administration, you can search: energy drinks site:www.fda.gov

NOT THAT ONE…

● If there is a phrase you don’t want to show up in your results at all, put a subtraction sign
in front of the word.
○ For example, if you want to search effects of smoking, but you don’t want any
results about cancer, type smoking effects-cancer

QUESTIONS TO ASK...
1. Is it on topic? Does it actually address what you are looking for?
2. Is it current, and does that matter?
3. Is the author an expert on this topic? How do you know?
4. Consider the author’s purpose or goal in writing the piece. Is their goal simply to inform you
of the issues? (They may have a hidden agenda or ulterior motive, such as to promote, sell,
entertain, or persuade)
5. Does the article use credible sources AND cite (reference) its sources?
6. Is the website mainstream or well-known? Is it well-established, meaning it’s been around
for a while?
7. Does it match other websites, or what you know to be true about this topic?
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 KEEP IN MIND
● Blogs can be credible if the author is an expert and/or if the sources are cited and
credible.
● The domain name (.com, .gov, etc.). This may or may not be an important factor.
● If it is news:
○ Remember that news companies MUST print the facts - it is illegal for them to
knowingly print something false.
○ BUT news companies also want to entertain. They may embellish, add opinions
or ‘spin’ the story.
○ Some articles are editorials. This is someone’s opinion, not an official report.

IS THIS A GOOD SITE?

DOMAIN MEANING CAN I TRUST IT?

.gov Government websites Government websites tend to be factual and research based, so many
people trust them. They are produced and funded by the federal
government.

.edu Educational websites, For the most part, educational websites are also factual and credible.
Kindergarten through Some student-created websites, however, also end in .edu
college

.org Organizations. Usually Organizational websites, such as non-profits like the American Red
owned/operated by non- Cross, generally include factual information that isn’t biased. However,
profit groups these websites also have a specific purpose they hope to achieve, and
you may want to consider whether the website is overemphasizing or
ignoring certain information or points of view.

.com Commercial websites. Commercial websites are for business use; this means that someone is
Owned/operated by a trying to make some money. This may or may not alter the perspective,
business types of information, and credibility of what is presented on a .com
website.

.net Networking website. Used Network websites are a grab-bag of any kind of website. Be very careful
by service providers and with these websites, and consider the purpose, goal, and authors when
some businesses deciding whether or not to use the information.

There are also domains that are specific to the country in which they are used/created

.us United States Is it okay to use websites of other countries? It depends on your
purpose. For example, if you are trying to prove the need for banning
.uk United Kingdom smoking in the United States, it may not be the best idea to use health
information from another country.
.ca Canada

Group Name:
Group Members:

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 Research/Citations

Resource #1
Website Group Member

Citation

Why did you select this

resource? What information
are you planning on using?

Resource #2
Website Group Member

Citation

Why did you select this

resource? What information
are you planning on using?

Resource #3
Website Group Member

Citation

Why did you select this

resource? What information
are you planning on using?

Resource #4
Website Group Member

Citation

Why did you select this

resource? What information
are you planning on using?

Resource #5
Website Group Member

Citation

Why did you select this

resource? What information
are you planning on using?

Resource #6
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 Website Group Member

Citation

Why did you select this

resource? What information
are you planning on using?

Resource #7
Website Group Member

Citation

Why did you select this

resource? What information
are you planning on using?

Resource #8
Website Group Member

Citation

Why did you select this

resource? What information
are you planning on using?

Resource #9
Website Group Member

Citation

Why did you select this

resource? What information
are you planning on using?

Resource #10
Website Group Member

Citation

Why did you select this

resource? What information
are you planning on using?