teaching research skills middle school

Teaching Students How to Research

Discover how the SLICE method can help students find, critically evaluate, and cite sources.

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Teaching research skills to students is one of the most important jobs of an educator, as it allows young people to take a much more proactive role in their own learning. Good researchers know how to learn , a skill they can use in school and beyond.

It is essential that students become adept at finding and evaluating sources, vetting arguments, and learning how to navigate both print and digital media. The SLICE method of teaching research, which I devised, is a simple, memorable way for teachers and students who want to better understand the research process. SLICE stands for Sources, Library, Integrity, Citation, and Evaluation.

What’s the difference between a dictionary, encyclopedia, journal, newspaper, and magazine? Students often don’t know these differentiations, and analyzing the types of sources is an important first step for the novice researcher.

I suggest bringing in physical examples of the sources. Show students hard copies of dictionaries and encyclopedias (which they may not have ever seen). Discuss how many of these resources have migrated to the internet, such as Encyclopaedia Britannica , The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy , and Oxford Research Encyclopedias . 

Next, discuss with the students the different parts of any source (i.e., title, author, publication information, pagination, or abstract in the case of a journal article). This is the anatomy of sources, about which I have written before . Students should know the parts of both books and articles in order to maximize their research efficiency.

Understanding the components of sources allows them to access information quickly via the index or table of contents. While many students rely on citation-generators, it is helpful for them to understand how to write a works-cited page or bibliography without the aid of a website. Knowing the parts of their sources can help them with this.

Another key element of any discussion about sources is delving into the variety of digital sources now available. First, I like to teach them how to use Wikipedia wisely , as it is an online source that many young people turn to first. Demonstrate to students how much of the research has already been done for them on Wikipedia (i.e., through the references, sources, and external links). Then, we look at open-access databases online, such as medical websites ( PubMed , Trip medical database ), journals ( Nature Portfolio , JSTOR ), reputable polling sources ( Pew Research , Gallup , 538 , The Quinnipiac University Poll ), Google Scholar, and others. Talk to your librarian about open-access websites.

Library 

Being a good researcher means knowing how to navigate a library, be it a public library, academic library, or school library. There’s simply no way around that— especially with the staggering breadth of information in our society. Libraries are more important than ever, and it is critical that students become confident and proficient library users. 

First, teach students the role of libraries in organizing, disseminating, and, in many cases, preserving valuable digital and physical information. Some students may have never even visited a library!

Next, present a lesson on the different library classification systems, such as the Library of Congress system or the Dewey Decimal System. Couple this with a visit to your own school library or a field trip to a public or academic library . Take a tour of a library, getting students to explore its physical space and offerings. Additionally, invite a librarian to speak to your class, and make sure they review the digital resources and electronic databases offered through their library. A librarian would be glad to help students register for library cards, too.

I review with students the integrity of the source. Teach students, for instance, the definition of “peer review,” the peer review process, and how a peer-reviewed source often represents the gold standard of sources. A few examples of high-quality, peer-reviewed journals are Science , The New England Journal of Medicine , American Historical Review , and American Sociological Review .

Then, I usually transition to the integrity of using those sources. Here is where I introduce students to the philosophy and purpose of proper citation. We cite sources to be honest and transparent with our readers, as well as provide “bread crumbs” to readers and other scholars who wish to further examine our topic. 

What’s more, I have discovered that students often don’t realize that they need to cite more than just a direct quote.

Next up, I delve into different types of citation methods, making clear that certain citation guides are used for certain fields of study: MLA ( Modern Language Association ) for the humanities, APA ( American Psychological Association ) usually for medical or scientific fields, and The Chicago Manual of Style for business, history, and the arts).      

Citation, I explain, is also a road map for students to discover further research. If they read something helpful or compelling in a book or journal article, they can find its source by delving into the citations. I implore students to raid footnotes, endnotes, and bibliographies to find more sources.

Lastly, I try to have students assess sources critically. The CRAAP method— Currency, Relevancy, Authority, Accuracy, and Purpose—is one of various techniques educators can use.

Ask the students, “How does the source fit into your research project?” Thinking about this early on can help students plan ahead. Annotated bibliographies can be one way that students answer this important, but often overlooked, question. 

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50 Mini-Lessons For Teaching Students Research Skills

Please note, I am no longer blogging and this post hasn’t updated since April 2020.

For a number of years, Seth Godin has been talking about the need to “ connect the dots” rather than “collect the dots” . That is, rather than memorising information, students must be able to learn how to solve new problems, see patterns, and combine multiple perspectives.

Solid research skills underpin this. Having the fluency to find and use information successfully is an essential skill for life and work.

Today’s students have more information at their fingertips than ever before and this means the role of the teacher as a guide is more important than ever.

You might be wondering how you can fit teaching research skills into a busy curriculum? There aren’t enough hours in the day! The good news is, there are so many mini-lessons you can do to build students’ skills over time.

This post outlines 50 ideas for activities that could be done in just a few minutes (or stretched out to a longer lesson if you have the time!).

Learn More About The Research Process

I have a popular post called Teach Students How To Research Online In 5 Steps. It outlines a five-step approach to break down the research process into manageable chunks.

This post shares ideas for mini-lessons that could be carried out in the classroom throughout the year to help build students’ skills in the five areas of: clarify, search, delve, evaluate , and cite . It also includes ideas for learning about staying organised throughout the research process.

Notes about the 50 research activities:

• These ideas can be adapted for different age groups from middle primary/elementary to senior high school.
• Many of these ideas can be repeated throughout the year.
• Depending on the age of your students, you can decide whether the activity will be more teacher or student led. Some activities suggest coming up with a list of words, questions, or phrases. Teachers of younger students could generate these themselves.
• Depending on how much time you have, many of the activities can be either quickly modelled by the teacher, or extended to an hour-long lesson.
• Some of the activities could fit into more than one category.
• Looking for simple articles for younger students for some of the activities? Try DOGO News or Time for Kids . Newsela is also a great resource but you do need to sign up for free account.
• Why not try a few activities in a staff meeting? Everyone can always brush up on their own research skills!

• Choose a topic (e.g. koalas, basketball, Mount Everest) . Write as many questions as you can think of relating to that topic.
• Make a mindmap of a topic you’re currently learning about. This could be either on paper or using an online tool like Bubbl.us .
• Read a short book or article. Make a list of 5 words from the text that you don’t totally understand. Look up the meaning of the words in a dictionary (online or paper).
• Look at a printed or digital copy of a short article with the title removed. Come up with as many different titles as possible that would fit the article.
• Come up with a list of 5 different questions you could type into Google (e.g. Which country in Asia has the largest population?) Circle the keywords in each question.
• Write down 10 words to describe a person, place, or topic. Come up with synonyms for these words using a tool like  Thesaurus.com .
• Write pairs of synonyms on post-it notes (this could be done by the teacher or students). Each student in the class has one post-it note and walks around the classroom to find the person with the synonym to their word.

• Explore how to search Google using your voice (i.e. click/tap on the microphone in the Google search box or on your phone/tablet keyboard) . List the pros and cons of using voice and text to search.
• Open two different search engines in your browser such as Google and Bing. Type in a query and compare the results. Do all search engines work exactly the same?
• Have students work in pairs to try out a different search engine (there are 11 listed here ). Report back to the class on the pros and cons.
• Think of something you’re curious about, (e.g. What endangered animals live in the Amazon Rainforest?). Open Google in two tabs. In one search, type in one or two keywords ( e.g. Amazon Rainforest) . In the other search type in multiple relevant keywords (e.g. endangered animals Amazon rainforest).  Compare the results. Discuss the importance of being specific.
• Similar to above, try two different searches where one phrase is in quotation marks and the other is not. For example, Origin of “raining cats and dogs” and Origin of raining cats and dogs . Discuss the difference that using quotation marks makes (It tells Google to search for the precise keywords in order.)
• Try writing a question in Google with a few minor spelling mistakes. What happens? What happens if you add or leave out punctuation ?
• Try the AGoogleADay.com daily search challenges from Google. The questions help older students learn about choosing keywords, deconstructing questions, and altering keywords.
• Explore how Google uses autocomplete to suggest searches quickly. Try it out by typing in various queries (e.g. How to draw… or What is the tallest…). Discuss how these suggestions come about, how to use them, and whether they’re usually helpful.
• Watch this video  from Code.org to learn more about how search works .
• Take a look at  20 Instant Google Searches your Students Need to Know  by Eric Curts to learn about “ instant searches ”. Try one to try out. Perhaps each student could be assigned one to try and share with the class.
• Experiment with typing some questions into Google that have a clear answer (e.g. “What is a parallelogram?” or “What is the highest mountain in the world?” or “What is the population of Australia?”). Look at the different ways the answers are displayed instantly within the search results — dictionary definitions, image cards, graphs etc.

• Watch the video How Does Google Know Everything About Me?  by Scientific American. Discuss the PageRank algorithm and how Google uses your data to customise search results.
• Brainstorm a list of popular domains   (e.g. .com, .com.au, or your country’s domain) . Discuss if any domains might be more reliable than others and why (e.g. .gov or .edu) .
• Discuss (or research) ways to open Google search results in a new tab to save your original search results  (i.e. right-click > open link in new tab or press control/command and click the link).
• Try out a few Google searches (perhaps start with things like “car service” “cat food” or “fresh flowers”). A re there advertisements within the results? Discuss where these appear and how to spot them.
• Look at ways to filter search results by using the tabs at the top of the page in Google (i.e. news, images, shopping, maps, videos etc.). Do the same filters appear for all Google searches? Try out a few different searches and see.
• Type a question into Google and look for the “People also ask” and “Searches related to…” sections. Discuss how these could be useful. When should you use them or ignore them so you don’t go off on an irrelevant tangent? Is the information in the drop-down section under “People also ask” always the best?
• Often, more current search results are more useful. Click on “tools” under the Google search box and then “any time” and your time frame of choice such as “Past month” or “Past year”.
• Have students annotate their own “anatomy of a search result” example like the one I made below. Explore the different ways search results display; some have more details like sitelinks and some do not.

• Find two articles on a news topic from different publications. Or find a news article and an opinion piece on the same topic. Make a Venn diagram comparing the similarities and differences.
• Choose a graph, map, or chart from The New York Times’ What’s Going On In This Graph series . Have a whole class or small group discussion about the data.
• Look at images stripped of their captions on What’s Going On In This Picture? by The New York Times. Discuss the images in pairs or small groups. What can you tell?
• Explore a website together as a class or in pairs — perhaps a news website. Identify all the advertisements .
• Have a look at a fake website either as a whole class or in pairs/small groups. See if students can spot that these sites are not real. Discuss the fact that you can’t believe everything that’s online. Get started with these four examples of fake websites from Eric Curts.
• Give students a copy of my website evaluation flowchart to analyse and then discuss as a class. Read more about the flowchart in this post.
• As a class, look at a prompt from Mike Caulfield’s Four Moves . Either together or in small groups, have students fact check the prompts on the site. This resource explains more about the fact checking process. Note: some of these prompts are not suitable for younger students.
• Practice skim reading — give students one minute to read a short article. Ask them to discuss what stood out to them. Headings? Bold words? Quotes? Then give students ten minutes to read the same article and discuss deep reading.

All students can benefit from learning about plagiarism, copyright, how to write information in their own words, and how to acknowledge the source. However, the formality of this process will depend on your students’ age and your curriculum guidelines.

• Watch the video Citation for Beginners for an introduction to citation. Discuss the key points to remember.
• Look up the definition of plagiarism using a variety of sources (dictionary, video, Wikipedia etc.). Create a definition as a class.
• Find an interesting video on YouTube (perhaps a “life hack” video) and write a brief summary in your own words.
• Have students pair up and tell each other about their weekend. Then have the listener try to verbalise or write their friend’s recount in their own words. Discuss how accurate this was.
• Read the class a copy of a well known fairy tale. Have them write a short summary in their own words. Compare the versions that different students come up with.
• Try out MyBib — a handy free online tool without ads that helps you create citations quickly and easily.
• Give primary/elementary students a copy of Kathy Schrock’s Guide to Citation that matches their grade level (the guide covers grades 1 to 6). Choose one form of citation and create some examples as a class (e.g. a website or a book).
• Make a list of things that are okay and not okay to do when researching, e.g. copy text from a website, use any image from Google images, paraphrase in your own words and cite your source, add a short quote and cite the source. 
• Have students read a short article and then come up with a summary that would be considered plagiarism and one that would not be considered plagiarism. These could be shared with the class and the students asked to decide which one shows an example of plagiarism .
• Older students could investigate the difference between paraphrasing and summarising . They could create a Venn diagram that compares the two.
• Write a list of statements on the board that might be true or false ( e.g. The 1956 Olympics were held in Melbourne, Australia. The rhinoceros is the largest land animal in the world. The current marathon world record is 2 hours, 7 minutes). Have students research these statements and decide whether they’re true or false by sharing their citations.

Staying Organised

• Make a list of different ways you can take notes while researching — Google Docs, Google Keep, pen and paper etc. Discuss the pros and cons of each method.
• Learn the keyboard shortcuts to help manage tabs (e.g. open new tab, reopen closed tab, go to next tab etc.). Perhaps students could all try out the shortcuts and share their favourite one with the class.
• Find a collection of resources on a topic and add them to a Wakelet .
• Listen to a short podcast or watch a brief video on a certain topic and sketchnote ideas. Sylvia Duckworth has some great tips about live sketchnoting
• Learn how to use split screen to have one window open with your research, and another open with your notes (e.g. a Google spreadsheet, Google Doc, Microsoft Word or OneNote etc.) .

All teachers know it’s important to teach students to research well. Investing time in this process will also pay off throughout the year and the years to come. Students will be able to focus on analysing and synthesizing information, rather than the mechanics of the research process.

By trying out as many of these mini-lessons as possible throughout the year, you’ll be really helping your students to thrive in all areas of school, work, and life.

Also remember to model your own searches explicitly during class time. Talk out loud as you look things up and ask students for input. Learning together is the way to go!

You Might Also Enjoy Reading:

How To Evaluate Websites: A Guide For Teachers And Students

Five Tips for Teaching Students How to Research and Filter Information

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10 Replies to “50 Mini-Lessons For Teaching Students Research Skills”

Loving these ideas, thank you

This list is amazing. Thank you so much!

So glad it’s helpful, Alex! 🙂

Hi I am a student who really needed some help on how to reasearch thanks for the help.

So glad it helped! 🙂

seriously seriously grateful for your post. 🙂

So glad it’s helpful! Makes my day 🙂

How do you get the 50 mini lessons. I got the free one but am interested in the full version.

Hi Tracey, The link to the PDF with the 50 mini lessons is in the post. Here it is . Check out this post if you need more advice on teaching students how to research online. Hope that helps! Kathleen

Best wishes to you as you face your health battler. Hoping you’ve come out stronger and healthier from it. Your website is so helpful.

Comments are closed.

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As the research skills you teach middle school students can last them all their lives, it’s essential to help them develop good habits early in their school careers.

Research skills are useful in nearly every subject, whether it’s English, math, social studies or science, and they will continue to pay off for students every day of their schooling. Understanding the most important research skills that middle school students need will help reach these kids and make a long-term difference.

The research process

It is important for every student to understand that research is actually a process rather than something that happens naturally. The best researchers develop a process that allows them to fully comprehend the ideas they are researching and also turn the data into information that is usable for whatever the end purpose may be. Here is an example of a research process that you may consider using when teaching research skills in your middle school classroom:

• Form a question : Research should be targeted; develop a question you want to answer before progressing any further.
• Decide on resources : Not every resource is good for every question/problem. Identify the resources that will work best for you.
• Gather raw data : First, gather information in its rawest form; do not attempt to make sense of it at this point.
• Sort the data : After you have the information in front of you, decide what is important to you and how you will use it. Not all data will be reliable or worthwhile.
• Process information : Turn the data into usable information. This processing step may take longer than the rest combined. This is where you really see your data shape into something exciting.
• Create a final piece : This is where you would write a research paper, create a project or build a graph or other visual piece with your information. This may or may not be a formal document.
• Evaluate : Look back on the process. Where did you experience success and failure? Did you find an answer to your question?

This process can be adjusted to suit the needs of your particular classroom or the project you are working on. Just remember that the goal is not only to find the data for this particular project, but to teach your students research skills that will help them in the long run.

Research is a very important part of the learning process as well as being useful in real-life once the student graduates. Middle school is a great time to develop these skills as many high school teachers expect that students already have this knowledge.

Students who are well-prepared as researchers will be able to handle nearly any assignment that comes their way. Finding new ways to teach research skills to middle school students need will be a challenge, but the results are well worth it as you see your students succeed in your classroom and set the stage for further success throughout their schooling experience.

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Tagged as: Engaging Activities ,  Middle School (Grades: 6-8)

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Teaching Research Skills to K-12 Students in The Classroom

Research is at the core of knowledge. Nobody is born with an innate understanding of quantum physics. But through research , the knowledge can be obtained over time. That’s why teaching research skills to your students is crucial, especially during their early years.

But teaching research skills to students isn’t an easy task. Like a sport, it must be practiced in order to acquire the technique. Using these strategies, you can help your students develop safe and practical research skills to master the craft.

What Is Research?

By definition, it’s a systematic process that involves searching, collecting, and evaluating information to answer a question. Though the term is often associated with a formal method, research is also used informally in everyday life!

Whether you’re using it to write a thesis paper or to make a decision, all research follows a similar pattern.

• Choose a topic : Think about general topics of interest. Do some preliminary research to make sure there’s enough information available for you to work with and to explore subtopics within your subject.
• Develop a research question : Give your research a purpose; what are you hoping to solve or find?
• Collect data : Find sources related to your topic that will help answer your research questions. 
• Evaluate your data : Dissect the sources you found. Determine if they’re credible and which are most relevant.
• Make your conclusion : Use your research to answer your question! 

Why Do We Need It?

Research helps us solve problems. Trying to answer a theoretical question? Research. Looking to buy a new car? Research. Curious about trending fashion items? Research! 

Sometimes it’s a conscious decision, like when writing an academic paper for school. Other times, we use research without even realizing it. If you’re trying to find a new place to eat in the area, your quick Google search of “food places near me” is research!

Whether you realize it or not, we use research multiple times a day, making it one of the most valuable lifelong skills to have. And it’s why — as educators —we should be teaching children research skills in their most primal years. 

Teaching Research Skills to Elementary Students

In elementary school, children are just beginning their academic journeys. They are learning the essentials: reading, writing, and comprehension. But even before they have fully grasped these concepts, you can start framing their minds to practice research.

According to curriculum writer and former elementary school teacher, Amy Lemons , attention to detail is an essential component of research. Doing puzzles, matching games, and other memory exercises can help equip students with this quality before they can read or write. 

Improving their attention to detail helps prepare them for the meticulous nature of research. Then, as their reading abilities develop, teachers can implement reading comprehension activities in their lesson plans to introduce other elements of research. 

One of the best strategies for teaching research skills to elementary students is practicing reading comprehension . It forces them to interact with the text; if they come across a question they can’t answer, they’ll need to go back into the text to find the information they need. 

Some activities could include completing compare/contrast charts, identifying facts or questioning the text, doing background research, and setting reading goals. Here are some ways you can use each activity:

• How it translates : Step 3, collect data; Step 4, evaluate your data
• Questioning the text : If students are unsure which are facts/not facts, encourage them to go back into the text to find their answers. 
• How it translates : Step 3, collect data; Step 4, evaluate your data; Step 5, make your conclusion
• How it translates : Step 1, choose your topic
• How it translates : Step 2, develop a research question; Step 5, make your conclusion

Resources for Elementary Research

If you have access to laptops or tablets in the classroom, there are some free tools available through Pennsylvania’s POWER Kids to help with reading comprehension. Scholastic’s BookFlix and TrueFlix are 2 helpful resources that prompt readers with questions before, after, and while they read. 

• BookFlix : A resource for students who are still new to reading. Students will follow along as a book is read aloud. As they listen or read, they will be prodded to answer questions and play interactive games to test and strengthen their understanding. 

• TrueFlix : A resource for students who are proficient in reading. In TrueFlix, students explore nonfiction topics. It’s less interactive than BookFlix because it doesn’t prompt the reader with games or questions as they read. (There are still options to watch a video or listen to the text if needed!)

Teaching Research Skills to Middle School Students

By middle school, the concept of research should be familiar to students. The focus during this stage should be on credibility . As students begin to conduct research on their own, it’s important that they know how to determine if a source is trustworthy.

Before the internet, encyclopedias were the main tool that people used for research. Now, the internet is our first (and sometimes only) way of looking information up. 

Unlike encyclopedias which can be trusted, students must be wary of pulling information offline. The internet is flooded with unreliable and deceptive information. If they aren’t careful, they could end up using a source that has inaccurate information!

How To Know If A Source Is Credible

In general, credible sources are going to come from online encyclopedias, academic journals, industry journals, and/or an academic database. If you come across an article that isn’t from one of those options, there are details that you can look for to determine if it can be trusted.

• The author: Is the author an expert in their field? Do they write for a respected publication? If the answer is no, it may be good to explore other sources.
• Citations: Does the article list its sources? Are the sources from other credible sites like encyclopedias, databases, or journals? No list of sources (or credible links) within the text is usually a red flag. 
• Date: When was the article published? Is the information fresh or out-of-date? It depends on your topic, but a good rule of thumb is to look for sources that were published no later than 7-10 years ago. (The earlier the better!)
• Bias: Is the author objective? If a source is biased, it loses credibility.

An easy way to remember what to look for is to utilize the CRAAP test . It stands for C urrency (date), R elevance (bias), A uthority (author), A ccuracy (citations), and P urpose (bias). They’re noted differently, but each word in this acronym is one of the details noted above. 

If your students can remember the CRAAP test, they will be able to determine if they’ve found a good source.

Resources for Middle School Research

To help middle school researchers find reliable sources, the database Gale is a good starting point. It has many components, each accessible on POWER Library’s site. Gale Litfinder , Gale E-books , or Gale Middle School are just a few of the many resources within Gale for middle school students.

Teaching Research Skills To High Schoolers

The goal is that research becomes intuitive as students enter high school. With so much exposure and practice over the years, the hope is that they will feel comfortable using it in a formal, academic setting. 

In that case, the emphasis should be on expanding methodology and citing correctly; other facets of a thesis paper that students will have to use in college. Common examples are annotated bibliographies, literature reviews, and works cited/reference pages.

• Annotated bibliography : This is a sheet that lists the sources that were used to conduct research. To qualify as annotated , each source must be accompanied by a short summary or evaluation. 
• Literature review : A literature review takes the sources from the annotated bibliography and synthesizes the information in writing.
• Works cited/reference pages : The page at the end of a research paper that lists the sources that were directly cited or referenced within the paper. 

Resources for High School Research

Many of the Gale resources listed for middle school research can also be used for high school research. The main difference is that there is a resource specific to older students: Gale High School . 

If you’re looking for some more resources to aid in the research process, POWER Library’s e-resources page allows you to browse by grade level and subject. Take a look at our previous blog post to see which additional databases we recommend.

Visit POWER Library’s list of e-resources to start your research!

Tips for Teaching Research Skills to Middle School Students

As an educator, you know how important it is to teach your students research skills like critical thinking and tracking down credible sources. That’s why research essays are such an important part of science education! They allow students to delve into a topic and become experts in that field. They also help develop critical thinking and communication skills.

As part of my Cellular Respiration and Metabolism unit, I like to incorporate a research paper assignment focusing on infections and diseases. I feel like this is a perfect opportunity to teach research skills to my middle school students but also offer them a bit of independence in choosing their own topics of interest. Broadly, I ask them to research an infection or disease, preferably one that affects 1 of the 3 organ systems we study during this unit (digestive, respiratory, or cardiovascular) and I do offer them a selection of science research topics to choose from, but students are given a bit of freedom to choose topics based on their interests and I think that helps with the overall success of the assignment.

During this unit, students will explore the question “ how do organ systems operate in order to reconstruct food and air molecules into new forms that provide energy for the living body?” The paper they research and write asks the question in a slightly different way: “What infections and diseases might prevent the body and organ systems from reconstructing molecules to create energy?” I think this is an interesting way for students to explore the Next Generation Science Standard MS-LS1-7 : Develop a model to describe how food is rearranged through chemical reactions forming new molecules that support growth and/or release energy as this matter moves through an organism. Of course, the paper doesn’t have to be used as part of the unit, but I find it be a perfect place to build in time for teaching research skills.

Ultimately students will select just one disease or infection to report on, but I like to give them time during the first day of this activity to explore as many of the options as they would like. While I encourage better research practices later on, during this portion of “taste-testing” the research options, I let students rely on the summary box that often comes up at the top of their favorite research engine. I don’t like to spend more than 20 minutes on this portion, so it’s not time for a deep dive just yet. After exploring their options, they’ll narrow down to 4 top choices and begin brainstorming ideas for their final report using the graphic organizers I provide. I do let students offer up their own topic ideas, so long as they are an infection or disease affecting the human body and preferably one that effects the body systems we will focus (though I give some leeway here). Most of the topics on my suggestion list have a direct effect on the body’s metabolism as well, though not all of them do, so there is definitely some room for flexibility. Ultimately, the body is a system of smaller systems and if one part isn’t functioning properly for whatever reason, the larger system will be affected.

I will note that this is a place in my instruction where I approach with even more sensitivity than usual. Often times, students who want to explore a disease outside of the suggested list do so because someone they know has been affected by the disease. If students want to research something because they feel a personal connection to it, I let them. But I’m also sensitive to the fact that there might be other students who have been affected by disease in one way or another and may not be comfortable sharing or even researching about it. In building my class culture, I stress that we will be looking at the science aspect of these diseases, but we shouldn’t forget the human aspect either.

Since this assignment is an opportunity to explicitly teach research skills to my middle school students, I spend a good deal of time doing just that. I like to start with a Research Search Engine Guide , a worksheet that encourages students to think through their internet search before they head online. By completing this step, students avoid the frustration they can sometimes face when online searches yield limited results. Instead, they will be armed with different word variations on their topic, leading them to a more robust search. I also take the time to teach some of the tricks to navigating search engines, such as how to include or exclude certain words from your search results. Most importantly though, I like to focus on teaching students how to discern credible and valid information.

To do this, I use the Steps to Ensure Credibility and Validity handout. If you’re like me, you’ve had the experience of watching your students simply click on the first link that pops up in the search engine without even stopping to ask if it’s a credible and valid source. The steps to credibility handout is a great resource for students as it teaches them 5 simple questions they should ask before selecting their source. It encourages them to slow down and think about the information they are uncovering by looking at the domain source, the perspective and background of the author or group, and the sources used by the website. It also teaches them to read the information with a critical eye. Sometimes those first results on the search engine page are credible and valid, but not always. My goal is to teach students the skills necessary to discern the difference.

Finally, it’s time for students to conduct their research. For this, I like to use the Research Matrix which is designed to help students collect information in an organized manner while also collecting citation information about their sources. As part of the skills I am teaching my students during this assignment, I want them to practice collecting citation information and being able to cite credible sources. Depending on the level of my students, or the amount of instructional time we have, I might teach them to construct a bibliography or include in-text citations as part of the final paper but even if we don’t get that far, I feel comfortable knowing they have the citation information available as part of the Research Matrix.

The other thing I like about the Research Matrix is that the space for writing notes is small, forcing students to take notes rather than copy word for word what is written in their source. I find that this reduces and discourages plagiarism but quite a lot. In fact, even though I have a digital version of the Research Matrix available, I seldom use it. It is far too easy for students to copy and paste at that point. Students will often complain about this, but I remind my students that this is a note-taking guide, much like what we would use to take notes from a reading or lecture in class. The difference is that it has the added bonus of helping us organize our information for easier writing later on and it allows us to keep track of our sources properly.

Once students have completed their research using the Research Matrix, they are ready to begin writing, and most find the actual writing process is pretty easy thanks to all the time they spent researching in an organized manner. We use the Research Essay Outline worksheet to get started, transferring our well-organized information from the Research Matrix to the outline. I often advise students to begin with the body portion of the essay, leaving the introduction and conclusion for last. This may seem awkward, but the research students have been working on naturally fits into the body of the essay. After students have fit their research into the body paragraphs, they can go back and work on the introduction and then finally the conclusion.

Using the outline, students can now write a well-organized paper! Students are encouraged to write from their outline, following the flow they have created and turning bullet points into complete sentences.  I love this assignment. I really feel that giving students direct, explicit instruction on research skills is so important, and the science classroom is an ideal place for that to happen. If you’d like to check out the resources I mentioned here and see how they might help you teach research skills in your classroom, check out the entire lesson packet here.

K-12 Internet Resource Center

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50 Mini-Lessons For Teaching Students Research Skills

This post outlines 50 ideas for activities that could be done in just a few minutes (or stretched out to a longer lesson if you have the time!). You’ll find a  PDF summary below too! This post shares ideas for mini-lessons that could be carried out in the classroom throughout the year to help build students’ skills in the five areas of:  clarify, search, delve, evaluate , and  cite . It also includes ideas for learning about  staying organised  throughout the research process.

Today’s students have more information at their fingertips than ever before and this means the role of the teacher as a guide is more important than ever. Posted on  February 26, 2019 by  Kathleen Morris

Attributes: 4-5 6-8 Lesson Plan

Resource Link:  https://www.kathleenamorris.com/2019/02/26/research-lessons/

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Research Activities For Middle School: Discussions, Tips, Exploration, And Learning Resources

February 6, 2024 //  by  Josilyn Markel

Learning to research effectively is an important skill that middle-school-aged students can learn and carry with them for their whole academic careers. The students in question will use these skills for everything from reading news articles to writing a systematic review of their sources. With increased demands on students these days, it’s never too early to introduce these sophisticated research skills. 

We’ve collected thirty of the best academic lessons for middle school students to learn about sophisticated research skills that they’ll use for the rest of their lives. 

1. Guiding Questions for Research

When you first give a research project to middle school students, it’s important to make sure that they really understand the research prompts. You can use this guiding questions tool with students to help them draw on existing knowledge to properly contextualize the prompt and assignment before they even pick up a pen. 

Learn More: Mrs. Spangler in the Middle

2. Teaching Research Essential Skills Bundle

This bundle touches on all the writing skills, planning strategies, and so-called soft skills that students will need to get started on their first research project. These resources are especially geared towards middle school-aged students to help them with cognitive control tasks plus engaging and active lessons. 

Learn More: Pinterest

3. How to Develop a Research Question

Before a middle school student can start their research time on task, they have to form a solid research question. This resource features activities for students that will help them identify a problem and then formulate a question that will guide their research project going first. 

Learn More: YouTube

4. Note-Taking Skills Infographic

For a strong introduction and/or systematic review of the importance of note-taking, look no further than this infographic. It covers several excellent strategies for taking the most important info from a source, and it also gives tips for using these strategies to strengthen writing skills. 

Learn More: Word Counter

5. Guide to Citing Online Sources

One of the more sophisticated research skills is learning to cite sources. These days, the internet is the most popular place to find research sources, so learning the citation styles for making detailed citations for internet sources is an excellent strategy. This is a skill that will stick with middle school students throughout their entire academic careers! 

Learn More: Educator’s Technology

6. Guided Student-Led Research Projects

This is a great way to boost communication between students while also encouraging choice and autonomy throughout the research process. This really opens up possibilities for students and boosts student activity and engagement throughout the whole project. The group setup also decreases the demands on students as individuals. 

Learn More: The Thinker Builder

7. Teaching Students to Fact-Check

Fact-checking is an important meta-analytic review skill that every student needs. This resource introduces probing questions that students can ask in order to ensure that the information they’re looking at is actually true. This can help them identify fake news, find more credible sources, and improve their overall sophisticated research skills. 

Learn More: Just Add Students

8. Fact-Checking Like a Pro

This resource features great teaching strategies (such as visualization) to help alleviate the demands on students when it comes to fact-checking their research sources. It’s perfect for middle school-aged students who want to follow the steps to make sure that they’re using credible sources in all of their research projects, for middle school and beyond!

9. Website Evaluation Activity

With this activity, you can use any website as a backdrop. This is a great way to help start the explanation of sources that will ultimately lead to helping students locate and identify credible sources (rather than fake news). With these probing questions, students will be able to evaluate websites effectively.

10. How to Take Notes in Class

This visually pleasing resource tells students everything they need to know about taking notes in a classroom setting. It goes over how to glean the most important information from the classroom teacher, and how to organize the info in real-time, and it gives tips for cognitive control tasks and other sophisticated research skills that will help students throughout the research and writing process. 

Learn More: Visualistan

11. Teaching Research Papers: Lesson Calendar

If you have no idea how you’re going to cover all the so-called soft skills, mini-lessons, and activities for students during your research unit, then don’t fret! This calendar breaks down exactly what you should be teaching, and when. It introduces planning strategies, credible sources, and all the other research topics with a logical and manageable flow. 

Learn More: Discover Hub Pages

12. Google Docs Features for Teaching Research

With this resource, you can explore all of the handy research-focused features that are already built into Google Docs! You can use it to build activities for students or to make your existing activities for students more tech-integrated. You can use this tool with students from the outset to get them interested and familiar with the Google Doc setup. 

13. Using Effective Keywords to Search the Internet

The internet is a huge place, and this vast amount of knowledge puts huge demands on students’ skills and cognition. That’s why they need to learn how to search online effectively, with the right keywords. This resource teaches middle school-aged students how to make the most of all the search features online. 

Learn More: Teachers Pay Teachers

14. How to Avoid Plagiarism: “Did I Plagiarize?” 

This student activity looks at the biggest faux pas in middle school research projects: plagiarism. These days, the possibilities for students to plagiarize are endless, so it’s important for them to learn about quotation marks, paraphrasing, and citations. This resource includes information on all of those and in a handy flow chart to keep them right!

Learn More: Twitter

15. 7 Tips for Recognizing Bias

This is a resource to help middle school-aged students recognize the differences between untrustworthy and credible sources. It gives a nice explanation of sources that are trustworthy and also offers a source of activities that students can use to test and practice identifying credible sources. 

Learn More: We Are Teachers

16. UNESCO’s Laws for Media Literacy

This is one of those great online resources that truly focuses on the students in question, and it serves a larger, global goal. It offers probing questions that can help middle school-aged children determine whether or not they’re looking at credible online resources. It also helps to strengthen the so-called soft skills that are necessary for completing research. 

Learn More: SLJ Blogs

17. Guide for Evaluating a News Article

Here are active lessons that students can use to learn more about evaluating a news article, whether it’s on a paper or online resource. It’s also a great tool to help solidify the concept of fake news and help students build an excellent strategy for identifying and utilizing credible online sources. 

Learn More: Valencia College

18. Middle School Research Projects Middle School Students Will Love

Here is a list of 30 great research projects for middle schoolers, along with cool examples of each one. It also goes through planning strategies and other so-called soft skills that your middle school-aged students will need in order to complete such projects.

Learn More: Madly Learning

19. Teaching Analysis with Body Biographies

This is a student activity and teaching strategy all rolled into one! It looks at the importance of research and biographies, which brings a human element to the research process. It also helps communication between students and helps them practice those so-called soft skills that come in handy while researching. 

Learn More: Study All Knight

20. Top Tips for Teaching Research in Middle School

When it comes to teaching middle school research, there are wrong answers and there are correct answers. You can learn all the correct answers and teaching strategies with this resource, which debunks several myths about teaching the writing process at the middle school level. 

Learn More: Teaching ELA with Joy

21. Teaching Students to Research Online: Lesson Plan

This is a ready-made lesson plan that is ready to present. You don’t have to do tons of preparation, and you’ll be able to explain the basic and foundational topics related to research. Plus, it includes a couple of activities to keep students engaged throughout this introductory lesson.

Learn More: Kathleen Morris

22. Project-Based Learning: Acceptance and Tolerance

This is a series of research projects that look at specific problems regarding acceptance and tolerance. It offers prompts for middle school-aged students that will get them to ask big questions about themselves and others in the world around them. 

Learn More: Sandy Cangelosi

23. 50 Tiny Lessons for Teaching Research Skills in Middle School

These fifty mini-lessons and activities for students will have middle school-aged students learning and applying research skills in small chunks. The mini-lessons approach allows students to get bite-sized information and focus on mastering and applying each step of the research process in turn. This way, with mini-lessons, students don’t get overwhelmed with the whole research process at once. In this way, mini-lessons are a great way to teach the whole research process!

24. Benefits of Research Projects for Middle School Students

Whenever you feel like it’s just not worth it to go to the trouble to teach your middle school-aged students about research, let this list motivate you! It’s a great reminder of all the great things that come with learning to do good research at an early age. 

Learn More: Thrive in Grade Five

25. Top 5 Study and Research Skills for Middle Schoolers

This is a great resource for a quick and easy overview of the top skills that middle schoolers will need before they dive into research. It outlines the most effective tools to help your students study and research well, throughout their academic careers. 

Learn More: Meagan Gets Real

26. Research with Informational Text: World Travelers

This travel-themed research project will have kids exploring the whole world with their questions and queries. It is a fun way to bring new destinations into the research-oriented classroom. 

Learn More: The Superhero Teacher

27. Project-Based Learning: Plan a Road Trip

If you want your middle school-aged students to get into the researching mood, have them plan a road trip! They’ll have to examine the prompt from several angles and collect data from several sources before they can put together a plan for an epic road trip. 

Learn More: Appletastic Learning

28. Methods for Motivating Writing Skills

When your students just are feeling up to the task of research-based writing, it’s time to break out these motivational methods. With these tips and tricks, you’ll be able to get your kids in the mood to research, question, and write!

29. How to Set Up a Student Research Station

This article tells you everything you need to know about a student center focused on sophisticated research skills. These student center activities are engaging and fun, and they touch on important topics in the research process, such as planning strategies, fact-checking skills, citation styles, and some so-called soft skills.

Learn More: Upper Elementary Snapshots

30. Learn to Skim and Scan to Make Research Easier

These activities for students are geared towards encouraging reading skills that will ultimately lead to better and easier research. The skills in question? Skimming and scanning. This will help students read more efficiently and effectively as they research from a variety of sources.

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10 Ways To Develop Research Skills in Middle School Students

Helping students develop research skills in middle school is useful and necessary for students to thrive later in life. In this blog post, Marypat Mahoney from Just Add Students and I explore practical ways to guide students in their journey to develop research skills through various methods. 

From determining citation methods and scaffolding each skill to embracing information literacy and integrating hands-on experiences, the post offers a comprehensive roadmap for educators to encourage and educate students on their research journey. 

Whether through prewriting activities, interview practice, small-scale exercises, or the analysis of primary sources, these strategies aim to equip students with the tools they need to navigate the research world confidently.

Get The Librarian Involved (Kristy)

If your school is fortunate enough to have a school librarian or media specialist, get them involved in helping your students develop research skills. School librarians can show the students what resources the school and/or the school board or district have and use hands-on activities to engage them in the research process. 

In this blog post, 12 Ways a School Librarian Can Help Teachers , Barbara Paciotti, retired School Librarian and Science teacher, shares how school librarians can be an asset to classroom teachers.

Determine How You Want Students To Cite Sources (Marypat)

Before even jumping into research skills, decide how you want students to cite their sources.  This can be as simple as students creating a list with clickable links or as complex as a works cited list that is in compliance with the MLA’s 9th edition .  

If you want a combo of the two, teach your students how to create an annotated works cited list.  This is a great way to get students thinking about why they are choosing sources and what the sources have to offer. 

Scaffold Each Skill (Kristy)

When seeking to develop research skills in middle school students, it is important to start with a small research project and work towards bigger, more independent projects. These mini-research projects help students develop the key skills needed for more intricate and self-directed assignments. 

Once students are ready for more independence, it is still important to break down larger assignments into smaller, manageable tasks. Guide students through the process of selecting topics, conducting research, and presenting findings. I love to work on each step as a class and then give students more independence once they have demonstrated they are on the right track. 

For an example of how I scaffold for my students, check out this Article of the Week framework . 

Student Driven – Use The Scientific Method – Start With A Question (Marypat)

Students will be more engaged and excited about starting a research project when they are curious and invested in the topic. And, even more importantly, when they can choose their own topic. 

But helping students choose that topic can be a challenge. One thing that helps is using the scientific method . This starts with asking a question. The more questions students ask, the easier the research topic will be to choose. Students will end up with a list of questions they want to know more about. 

Teach Information Literacy (Kristy)

In today’s digital world, not everything is as it seems online. Focus on teaching students how to evaluate sources, spot bias, and differentiate between reliable and unreliable information/sources – this can be a key element when striving to help students develop research skills. 

Emphasize to students that going beyond surface-level acceptance of digital content is key. Teach them how to analyze information and think critically about the content they consume. The goal is to nurture students to be capable of confidently navigating the digital world.

If you want help with lesson ideas on these topics, read my posts, Why Teach Fake News in the Middle School ELA Classroom? – 2 Peas and a Dog and Engaging Middle School Digital Citizenship Lessons – 2 Peas and a Dog . 

Generate Prewriting Ideas (Marypat)

Prewriting is often a quickly completed activity, but with research, prewriting can help students flesh out ideas, generate more questions, and dig into deeper research.

Encourage students to “follow the questions” they have about their topic by generating more questions that they want answered. A simple graphic organizer like a KWL chart is a good place to start. But don’t stop there. Offering multiple prewriting activities helps students not only get excited to get started but they’ll develop a plan forward.     

Interview Practice (Kristy)

Conducting primary research is a key skill that some people require in their careers. It does not have to be formal research conducted by a university or a think tank. People need to acquire information by talking to other people and then making informed decisions. 

Teach students basic interview techniques and have them conduct interviews with school staff, local experts, or community members, then present their findings to their peers. When I taught Grade 6 Social Studies, students had to interview someone who had immigrated to Canada from another country. 

They could interview a family member or a friend of the family. They were also permitted to get the story from their parents if no direct contact could be made with the relative who immigrated to Canada. This helped students learn how to talk to adults and gather information that they made into a presentation to share with the class. 

A project that will help students learn the interview process and further develop research skills is my Biography Symbolism Assignment . Student can create a life map outlining the important events in their chosen interviewee’s life. It doesn’t have to be huge, but something to get students heading in the right direction when it comes to the interview process. 

How can you incorporate interviews into your lessons? Check out this list of 32 Fun Project Ideas That Aren’t Overused For Middle School Students to think of different ways to change up your lessons.  

Small Scale Practice With Note Taking, Summarizing, And Quoting (Marypat)

Once students have their idea and their research sources – the next big step is recording information. Summarizing material is often challenging for students.  Make this easier by using texts that students are already familiar with: fairy tales, fables, popular movies, or even songs. 

Take out the writing aspect and allow them to share a short summary with a partner. Can they do this in less than 30 words? You’ll be able to add new texts as students build confidence. Use this summarizing skills freebie to help you get started .

Analyze Primary Sources (Kristy)

Another way to develop research skills is to introduce historical primary sources (letters, diaries, speeches) and guide students in interpreting and analyzing these documents.

This is something I try to do with my students in my Canadian history lessons as well as when I am teaching a novel if I can find sources that align with the concepts or events. Students need to understand that not all content comes from secondary sources. Sometimes, they can use primary sources as a way to gather information. 

Create a sharing wall (Marypat)

Provide a “Did You Know?” wall for students to share information about their topic that they think is interesting. Sometimes, students find information that doesn’t quite fit into their research topic, but it is still interesting to them.  A sharing wall is the perfect spot for that random information.  As a side benefit, students are sharing their research!

The journey to help students develop research skills can be a collaborative effort that involves educators, librarians, and the entire school community. Developing these skills is not a one-size-fits-all process but rather a multifaceted approach that encompasses citation methods, scaffolding, information literacy, and hands-on experiences. 

By incorporating strategies like prewriting, interview practice, small-scale exercises, and the analysis of primary sources, educators can empower students to confidently navigate their research. I hope you can use some of these ideas to develop research skills in middle school students.

Marypat has been a classroom teacher for over fifteen years and a  mentor teacher for over ten.  Her experience ranges from fourth grade to college, but the majority of her time has been in middle school teaching ELA. She created Just Add Students to support busy teachers who may be struggling with teaching reading and writing to upper elementary and middle school students. She also sells teaching resources on Teachers Pay Teachers and on her website .

Kristy has taught ELA and other subjects to middle school students for over 17 years in the Greater Toronto Area of Ontario, Canada. She is guilty of always having a book in her hand – even at the dinner table! She shares teaching content on her website, 2 Peas and a Dog , and sells middle school education resources on Teachers Pay Teachers or Shopify .

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Teaching Middle School Research Skills

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Have you ever assigned your Middle School students a research project and realized they didn’t have the knowledge or skills to find the information they needed?  This happened to me a lot my first few years teaching, so I often just defaulted to lecturing about topics instead of having students do their own research.

It can be easy to just tell your students what you want them to know.  Doing this can fill your student’s brains with knowledge, but it doesn’t really teach them what they need to know, which are the skills to find out the answers for themselves.  Students today have access to more information than ever, so it is our job as teachers to help them sift through that information and help them make sense of it.

Much of my curriculum is set up to have students in expert groups researching a topic that they will learn about and then teach their classmates.  For years, I have used a very structured research method with my middle schoolers to help them think critically about a topic and ask strong research questions.  In an age where students will inevitably be using AI to answer a lot of their questions, coming up with the right questions is an important skill.

I loop with my students and teach them in 6th, 7th, and 8th grade.  It takes a long time to teach and reinforce these skills in 6th grade, but by the time they are in 8th grade, they are absolute pros.  They know how to ask a strong research question, where to look to find the answer, how to organize their research, and how to turn the information that they find into a writing piece or project to share their knowledge with others.

Here are the steps I use to teach and reinforce strong research skills with my middle school social studies students:

Step #1 : Create Curiosity with a Hook Activity

Kids are naturally curious. One of the best ways to help your students research is to get them to buy into the research process.  I like to get students thinking about what they might research by showing them small bits of information in chunks that are easy to digest and leave them wanting more information.  Check out this blog post for a few of my favorite hook activities.

Step #2 Ask “Thick” Questions

I find that when students get to choose their own research questions, they are more likely to be invested in finding the answer.  Instead of giving students a list of questions to answer, I have them come up with their own.  After participating in a hook activity, I ask students to create their own questions.  We look at the difference between “Thick” and “Thin” questions, and then students get to create a research question about whatever topic their group is studying.  I use a checklist help students make sure that their question has everything that they need to get started on their research project.

Step #3 Provide Resources

After years of practice, you can let older students loose to do their own research, but I find that younger middle schoolers need lots of guidance and practice of where to look to answer their questions.  I like to give them a step by step guide of where they should look first.  After they have exhausted each resource, they can move to the next one.

1. Textbook- The book has helpful maps, images, and captions. It highlights and defines keywords and organizes information into easily digestible chunks that are written at grade level.

2. Classroom library- If you have access to resources, keep your classroom stocked with lots of fun books that are specific to the topics that you teach. These books often go one step further than the textbook and look at topics more in-depth. If you don’t have many resources in your classroom try visiting your local library to temporarily add to your collection.

3. Provided websites- If your students have access to devices, give them links to curated websites that I have chosen.

4. Internet search- If kids are struggling to find information about their question from the first three options, or they want a challenge to add more research, they can move on to a Google search or AI search. I teach my kids how the identify reliable websites (a lesson for another day). I try to explain that there is nothing wrong with using Google. It is an amazingly powerful tool, but I don’t always want it to be their default tool.

Step #4 : Record Research

Once students start finding information from their resources, they record what they are finding in a graphic organizer.  In order to make sure they are fully answering their question, the graphic organizer includes space for who, what, where, when, why, outcome, and supporting details. In my classroom we call it a wwwwwo chart (pronounced woooooo! because what middle schooler doesn't like to say woooo! in class?)

This information checklist serves many purposes.  It helps students process what they are reading and make decisions about where it fits best on the graphic organizer.  It also helps them put information in their own words.  It is difficult for them to plagiarize or let AI do the writing for them when they have to record their research by hand.  It also acts as a checklist.  When they go to write the answer to their question or create a project, they can use the checklist to make sure they have included the most important information in their final product.  

Step 5: Share Research

At this point in the process, students know enough to share what they have learned with others.  There are a variety of different ways that I have students tell one another about what they know, including jigsaws, mini-lessons, menu projects, and Q&A writing assignments.  Information about these is a blog post for another day.  Until then, check out my Social Studies Skills Handbook that includes all of these research resources, plus several other activities to help your students build important skills in your classroom.

Follow me on Instagram for more ideas about teaching Middle School Social Studies!

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