WORD SEARCH PROJECT
RESEARCH
1. From the list of words on the board choose one word.
2. Complete the following activities in any order. You may use the
exact sources listed, or if you find a source not listed that is similar, you may use it.
3. Keep a bibliography of each source that you use, including the
reference books and the indexes.
- Look up your word in an unabridged dictionary. Copy the
word's etymology and its first definition. Photocopy or hand copy the
remaining definitions.
- Look up your word in a thesaurus. Copy the synonyms. You
might need these synonyms as substitutes for your word if you run into
difficulty finding your original word in some of the sources.
- Look up your word in the Concordance to Shakespeare. Find
the reference to a passage in one of his plays which contains your word.
Then look up the play and find the complete passage. Copy the entire
speech which contains your word and the speech before and after it.
Include the speaker's name, the act, scene, and line number.
- Look up your word in a book of quotations. Copy a quotation
in which your word appears, including all identifying information about
the original source.
- Look up your word in the Readers' Guide to Periodical
Literature (the paper copies). After finding your word in the index,
find the magazine the contains the article. Read the article and
summarize the article. Make a photocopy of the article.
- Look up your word in the Oxford English Dictionary or a
facsimile. Copy the first paragraph for your word, then photocopy or
hand copy the rest of the entry. Summarize in your own words the
history of your word and describe the changes it has gone through over
the years and pinpoint some interesting aspect of your word. In
addition, comment on the reference book itself.
- Look up your word in a concordance to the Bible. Find a
verse which contains your word, then look up that verse in the Bible.
Copy the verse and the verse before and after it, identifying the book,
chapter, and verse.
- Look up your word in Granger's Index to Poetry. When you
locate a source that contains the word, go to the shelves and find the
volume of poetry. Copy the poem that contains the word.
- Using one electronic source in our library on the CD-ROM,
search for your word. Make sure that you keep a record of your search
and the results of that search.
- Using any one of the search engines on our Internet or your
home version, search for your word and then locate the source and make a
copy of it. Be sure to keep a record of your search.
- Using either of the magazine electronic sources, do the same
as E.
WRITING THE PAPER FOR THE WORD SEARCH
This paper is more about the process of discovering your word and the
aspects of your search as it is about your word itself. Feel free to
use "I" in this paper, as it is your paper. I encourage you to choose
an organization method which best "shows off" the information you have
gathered and allows you to integrate that information with your
interpretation, personal insights, and experience with this search into
an effective paper. However, all parts listed should be covered in the
order in which they are listed. Remember, it is your voice which will
unify the whole.
INTRODUCTION
Paragraph 1: Open the paper with your overall impressions of the project
and the most interesting thing you discovered about your word itself.
Paragraph 2: Tell the story of your overall search for information about
your word. Be sure to describe any difficulties you encountered in
making your search and your evaluation of research.
BODY
Paragraphs 3-13: Write one or more paragraphs on each source, including
your summary of the information, your interpretation of that
information, your personal comment on what you found, and your journal
comments on the process of finding the information. In each paragraph,
be sure to include the name of the source which you consulted.
CONCLUSION
Final Paragraphs: Write your response to this project. Overall, what
did you learn? Did you like the method? Were you frustrated? Did you
amaze yourself with your ability to handle reference books and write
such an impressive paper? Be sure to be thorough and detailed in this
discussion.
WORKS CITED AND CONSULTED
Using the MLA Style Manual, complete a list of the works used in your
paper, remember to include not only the final sources, but the reference
sources as well.
SUBMITTING THE FINAL PAPER
When you submit this project, you should include all of your notes,
photocopies and the final copy of your paper. Submit your
notes, etc., in a mailing envelope in the order in which they are used
and mentioned in your paper.