Research in Increments
by Susan Kemmerer is a wonderful tool for your students who are learning to write a research paper. Written directly to the student, the lessons lead your child through a step-by-step process of:
- choosing a research topic
- narrowing down the topic’s direction
- using index cards to keep track of sources and information gathered
- creating a bibliography
- interviewing people
- including graphics
- creating an outline
- adding endnotes and footnotes
- and more!
Ms. Kemmerer also teaches your student how to use creative writing skills to make the research paper interesting by teaching such things as hooking the reader and adding finishing touches. In fact, she stresses to both the parents and student that a good research paper really must include not only the research skills, but creative writing as well.
I love how the book can be used in various ways. You can choose to simply read through the 17 steps and apply them as you please. Or you can go through each lesson in order and allow your child to actually write notes and rough drafts in the spaces provided in the book. Or you can even choose to follow the provided lesson plan guide – this will take 63 days, but your child should come to the end with a masterpiece!
For those children who tend to draw a blank when it comes to writing, the author has included a large list of research topics to choose from. She also does a great job guiding the ideas during each step of writing the paper.
My 8th grade daughter had never written a “real” research report before. (Mostly because I was dreading it.) This was a painless (okay, as painless as a research paper can possibly be) method to teach her the process, and it will be a great resource for her when the next paper rolls around. I chose not to allow her to write in the book, so that I can use the guide with my two sons eventually.
Great resource!
-Cindy West in an eclectically Charlotte Mason homeschooling mom of three in Central KY. You can find her blogging at Our Journey Westward and find her NaturExplorers curricula at Shining Dawn Books. Research in Increments was given to her in exchange for her honest review.
What ages / grade levels are this good for?
The program is most suited for middle school children and above.
I am using this with a co-op class right now. It is a great book!
On the cover it says “from a Christian perspective.” I was wondering about how this comes in? I’m a Christian, yet I’m a little leery of a research writing book “from a Christian perspective.” For one, a research paper is such a neutral issue that it seems like any introduction of “Christian perspective” would be a bit contrived. It’s not that I don’t want it there, but I’ve just seen it down badly done too often.
2ndly, a lot of Christian curriculum just seems like “republican values” curriculum where patriotism is almost to at level of worship and that really bothers me. So I was wondering how the Christian Perspective comes in.
Gale,
I don’t typically appreciate curriculum that awkwardly pulls in Bible lessons for the sake of making the lessons Christian in nature. However, I didn’t feel like this was awkward at all. The author talks about the importance for Christians to be full of wisdom and how research plays a big part in gaining wisdom oftentimes. She’s also quick to talk about other situations in which research is important, too.
Personally, I was thankful that my children heard from another person that even something as neutral as research can still be of great importance to God’s work.
As for preaching republican values, I don’t remember noticing anything overt. I might not be the best person to ask, though, since my husband is a politician…as a republican. LOL
You can see a decent sample at Christian Book Distributors: http://www.christianbook.com/research-in-increments-susan-kemmerer/9780975854310/pd/854313
Thank you so much! This has been so helpful to this novice homeschool mom … I am looking forward to reading a few of these myself. 😉
You’re welcome, Tina!
Does this stand alone or does it need to be paired with an English curriculum course?
Kayla, it simply teaches a step-by-step method for writing research papers. It is not a stand-alone English curriculum.