Part 3 Putting It All Together Writing the I-Search Part 3 Putting It All Together

Write Your Thesis Statement The Bottom Line Your thesis is the main idea of your report. It is your research question stated as an assertion. It is no longer a question but an answer. The writer who began with the research question Can I manage my asthma so that I can lead a full, active life? found through research that the answer to his question was “yes.” He could lead a full and active life if he carefully managed certain factors that had a direct bearing on his asthma. He began with an affirmative answer to his question and then briefly summarized what he found in his research as his thesis. Use the Thesis Plan from the website to complete this.

Develop an Informal Outline Make a Fluid Plan An outline for a writing project is like a map to a traveler. Good outlines and good maps give guidance and keep people going in the right direction but leave them free to change their plans. Outlines also guide the organization of your ideas. I-Search papers are organized into three basic divisions: the story of the search, the results of the search, and reflections on the search. Your search journal contains the information you need for the story of your search. Your research results—the answers to your research questions—are in the notecards you made from your sources. Pull together all the forms you done for this process (research journal, question generator, research notes, etc.) and create a simple plan for what you are going to write. See the sample on the next page (the Asthma Paper)

If you have not yet read the sample I-Search paper, do it now. The paper is a great model. If you write yours like the sample, you are guaranteed a high grade and a great learning experience. Write your first draft now Use all the support materials provided—all your notes and pre-writes Use the framework provided on slide 5 Use the model paper for quality and format guidelines We will work on final documentation and works cited page next.