Week 1
Lesson 1
AN INTRO TO HISTORICAL RESEARCH
Students will learn how to get organized for historical research. Students will learn the difference between primary/secondary/tertiary sources. Teachers give students a list of topics, and they can choose what they want to study. They can come up with their own ideas as well, but their teacher must approve their topic, so they will have success and be able to finish their essay without weeks of research. This is an introduction to historical research so that they learn the process. We start wit
Lesson 2
HISTORICAL RESEARCH & NOTE TAKING
Students learn how to choose a reliable source and how to explore their topic further, answering basic questions about their topic. This includes how to search smart and how to evaluate sources for bias and reliability. During class time, students will find two more sources. Then, they will learn reading strategies and tips on how to read their sources while taking notes. Avoiding plagiarism, they will take effective notes, cite sources, and paraphrase their information. They will work to deciph
 Week 2
Lesson 3
Teacher-Supported Workshop
Workshop Day is when students have their instructor to guide them along in the hard work of research. Once we implemented workshop days, we saw a nearly 100% student completion rate with their essays.
Lesson 4
Teacher-Supported Workshop
Workshop Day is when students have their instructor to guide them along in the hard work of research. Once we implemented workshop days, we saw a nearly 100% student completion rate with their essays.
 Week 3
Lesson 5
HISTORICAL CONTEXT
Students will research the important people involved with the topic, create maps, and construct a timeline. Students understand what historical context is and begin studying the historical context of their topic using accurate and appropriate references to the time period by specifying the political, economic, social, and cultural influences—events, ideas, people, places, and objects. They gain a historical perspective and begin to think about the causes and consequences of an event or the relat
Lesson 6
Teacher-Supported Workshop
Workshop Day is when students have their instructor to guide them along in the hard work of research. Once we implemented workshop days, we saw a nearly 100% student completion rate with their essays.
 Week 4
Lesson 7
DEEP RESEARCH
The instructor teaches the importance of doing balanced research, where they look at all sides of an issue to understand other opinions, points of view, and controversies. For example, they will ask questions such as: who suffered? Who benefited? What about women? Children? Men? People from other racial, ethnic, or socioeconomic groups? What about people in other geographical areas, those with different values and motivations? They will choose the strongest point of view and then write a paper c
Lesson 8
Teacher-Supported Workshop
Workshop Day is when students have their instructor to guide them along in the hard work of research. Once we implemented workshop days, we saw a nearly 100% student completion rate with their essays.
 Week 5
Lesson 9
Teacher-Supported Workshop
Workshop Day is when students have their instructor to guide them along in the hard work of research. Once we implemented workshop days, we saw a nearly 100% student completion rate with their essays.
Lesson 10
ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION
This is when students begin asking and answering “why?” and “how?” questions on their topic to think deeper and discover more. Students will explore the historical impact on a deeper level and write the rest of the essay. They will research and communicate answers to these questions: How did your event impact history over time? Why is this event important in history? Third, they will begin to develop their historical thesis statement. Students will write multiple body paragraphs that support the
 Week 6
Lesson 11
Teacher-Supported Workshop
Workshop Day is when students have their instructor to guide them along in the hard work of research. Once we implemented workshop days, we saw a nearly 100% student completion rate with their essays.
Lesson 12
Teacher-Supported Workshop
Workshop Day is when students have their instructor to guide them along in the hard work of research. Once we implemented workshop days, we saw a nearly 100% student completion rate with their essays.
 Week 7
Lesson 13
THE INTRO & CONCLUSION
Students learn how to write the introduction & conclusion, and they do it in class with teacher guidance and support.
Lesson 14
THE ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY
Last, they learn to create a separate annotated bibliography page and how to revise and edit their entire essay. For homework, they fine-tune their essay and turn them in for final teacher feedback.