worksheet for research

• Research Skills

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

Typing Tips: The How and Why of Teaching Students Keyboarding Skills

8 Ways Teachers And Schools Can Communicate With Parents

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.

 Today's Hours

• Centre College Grace Doherty Library
• ACTIVE Library Website

Information Literacy Instruction

• Exercises to Build Research Skills
• Formulate a research topic
• Find Information
• Evaluate Information
• Use Information
• Chicago/Turabian
• Citation Tools

Exercises Overview

Library instruction exercises.

The exercises below are designed for students learning to do research. They can be done in class or assigned as homework. They are in Word format so instructors who wish to use them can easily edit or adapt them. When appropriate, they contain an answer key, so instructors should look at the full handout and remove the answer key before sharing with students.

If you would like a librarian to come to your class to lead these exercises or if you would like an exercise customized for your subject area, contact your Library Liaison!

• Formulate a topic
• Find information
• Evaluate information
• Incorporate information
• Cite information
• Writing assignment formats
• Triangulating your research This exercise guides students with a broad topic to identify search terms and narrow their topic, arriving at a research question.
• Formulating a Research Question from a Broad Topic Students often begin their research (and writing) with a very broad topic. This means they waste a lot of time looking for resources that they will never use. Before they begin to research, it is ideal to have a focused question. This 10 minute assignment teaches them how to turn a very broad topic into a focused research question.
• Identifying and Refining a Research Topic Using Concept Maps This exercise is designed to help students think of words and concepts and see how they are related. They create a concept map of their topic, which may help them see ways to narrow their topic and arrive at a research question.
• Identifying and Refining a Research Topic Using Journalistic Questions Journalistic questions are a set of questions you can use to define your topic more clearly. This exercise will help student ask questions about their topic. Having specific questions to answer makes researching the topic easier when you get to that stage.
• Defining Search Terms Students will often try one or two search terms when using a database and assume there’s no information on their topic if it doesn’t work the first time. This exercise gets them thinking about synonyms and related words. This 15 minute exercise may seem simple, but I can almost guarantee that the next time they sit down at a database they will try multiple searches before giving up.
• Identifying Keywords In this exercise, students will practice identifying keywords that might be used to research their topic. The exercise has three parts. First, they will identify the keywords from sample research questions. Then they will brainstorm synonyms for those keywords, demonstrating the need to search using more than just one keyword. Finally, they will complete the exercise for their own research question.
• Information Source Comparison This activity helps students explore the strengths and weakness of Google, Google Scholar, Academic Search Complete and topic specific databases as information sources.
• Understanding Boolean Operators: AND, OR, NOT In order to apply your keywords to an effective search, you must be able to employ Boolean logic. Those operators are AND OR & NOT. The object of this exercise is to practice your use of those operators by looking at an everyday experience : Ordering food from a fast food restaurant.
• Creating Keyword Searches Using Boolean Operators In this exercise, students will practice selecting search terms and combining them using boolean operators in order to create an effective search.
• Popular, Trade or Peer Reviewed? Great hands-on exercise to teach students about the differences among the 3 types of publications. Students can read the differences in the provided example, but real learning takes place when they have to sift through the actual publications and write down differences. Can be tailored to use any three sources appropriate for your discipline.
• Analyze 4 types of sources This assignment does two things: 1) it makes students find 4 different types of sources rather than just search the Web; 2) it teaches students how to evaluate ALL information and compare and contrast different types of sources.
• Pin the News Source on the Fake News Continuum This activity asks students to research a variety of news sources and place them on a continuum to define their reliability.
• Evaluating Sources Process Cards This is a group activity in which students are given cards with a variety of sources on them. They evaluate the sources based on criteria such as "authority," "ease of creation," "time to creation" etc.
• Evaluating sources writing assignment Requires the student to answer a series of questions about a source they have found. These questions are also a good basis for writing the annotation for an annotated bibliography exercise.
• Article Analysis - upper level This exercise requires students to evaluate a scholarly article for not only its relevance to their research topic but also for its potential to help them find more sources via citation mining and keyword generation.
• Evaluating Web Resources Students choose one of three websites to evaluate. After evaluating the website they must make a judgment on whether it is good or bad for academic research and explain their decision. This assignment can be tailored to use websites related to your subject area. Just ask!

Introductory level - avoid plagiarism by properly using quotes, paraphrases and summaries.

• Evaluating quotes and paraphrases (100/200 level) Students are given a sample citation and 7 easy uses. They judge if the use is appropriate or plagiarism.
• Evaluating quotes, summaries and paraphrases Students are given a sample text and 4 summaries. They judge if the summary is legitimate or plagiarism.
• Quotes, Summaries and Paraphrases from the Purdue Owl This PDF from the Purdue Owl explains what each of these are, how to use them and concludes with a hands on exercise that requires students to summarize and paraphrase several sample original texts.
• Write your own quote, summary, paraphrase Given a single sample text, students are asked to write their own quote, summary, paraphrase for the instructor's evaluation. Can be tailored for any class.

Introductory level - how to integrate quotes, paraphrases and summaries

• Integrating quotes Given a single sample paragraph, students are asked to identify several key methods quotes are integrated into the paragraph.
• Analyzing how to integrate quotes and summaries This exercise has students analyze how and why scholarly authors have integrated quotes and summaries in order to help them learn smooth methods to use quotes and summaries in their own research.
• Analyzing supporting evidence An exercise that asks students to analyze how and why evidence is used in an existing scholarly article.

Introductory level - learning how and why to use sources

• Un-research Project This exercise helps students focus on why they choose sources to support their research.
• Is your paper well supported with evidence A quick, easy and visual exercise to help students determine if their paper arguments are well supported with evidence.

Upper level - synthesizing information

• Updating a literature review This exercise is appropriate to introduce the concept of a literature review and how to synthesize information in one.
• Mini-literature review assignment An introduction to literature reviews. Scaffolded instruction for how to approach your first literature review.
• Synthesis Matrix A beginner's matrix to help students begin thinking about synthesizing their sources.
• Advanced Synthesis Matrix A source synthesis matrix for advanced level writing assignments.

Create a list of sources with improper citations. Have the students attempt to locate the sources.  This should demonstrate to students how citations are used to track down sources and how frustrating it can be for their teachers and fellow researchers when they don’t provide adequate citations. Examples to use here could include books with multiple editions or books with very generic titles.

Breaking citations down: Develop a list of citations. Break these citations down (components: author, date, publisher, title, etc). Type or write them down on larger pieces of construction paper, cardboard, etc. You can utilize a variety of colors, shapes, sizes. Have students work as groups to assemble the parts (you can use pin boards, a wall and tape, magnetic boards, etc). This can easily be turned into a competitive game.

Selecting an Effective Writing Assignment Format

In addition to the standard essay, report or full research paper formats, several other formats exist that might give students a different slant on the course material or allow them to use slightly different writing skills. Here are some suggestions:

Journals. In-class journal entries can spark discussions and reveal gaps in students’ understanding of the material. Having students write an in-class entry summarizing the material covered that day can aid the learning process and also reveal concepts that require more elaboration. Out-of-class entries involve short summaries or analyses of texts, or are a testing ground for ideas for student papers and reports.

Letters. Students can define and defend a position on an issue in a letter written to someone in authority. They can also explain a concept or a process to someone in need of that particular information. They can write a letter to a friend explaining their concerns about an upcoming paper assignment or explaining their ideas for an upcoming paper assignment. If you wish to add a creative element to the writing assignment, you might have students adopt the persona of an important person discussed in your course (e.g., an historical figure) and write a letter explaining his/her actions, process, or theory to an interested person (e.g., “pretend that you are John Wilkes Booth and write a letter to the Congress justifying your assassination of Abraham Lincoln,” or “pretend you are Henry VIII writing to Thomas More explaining your break from the Catholic Church”).

Editorials . Students can define and defend a position on a controversial issue in the format of an editorial for the campus or local newspaper or for a national journal.

Cases . Students might create a case study particular to the course’s subject matter.

Position Papers . These projects ask students to research a topic from a variety of viewpoints, and then use that research to support their own perspective. Students can define and defend a position, perhaps as a preliminary step in the creation of a formal research paper or essay.

Imitation of a Text . Students can create a new document “in the style of” a particular writer (e.g., “Create a government document the way Woody Allen might write it” or “Write your own ‘Modest Proposal’ about a modern issue”).

Instruction Manuals . Students write a step-by-step explanation of a process.

Dialogues . Students create a dialogue between two major figures studied in which they not only reveal those people’s theories or thoughts but also explore areas of possible disagreement (e.g., “Write a dialogue between Claude Monet and Jackson Pollock about the nature and uses of art”).

Collaborative projects . Students work together to create such works as reports, questions, and critiques.

Summary papers These assignments ask students to summarize a key concept from the course, or a reading or set of readings.

Compare/contrast papers Students are asked to compare/contrast theoretical positions from key scholars, reading, methods, or procedures for completing a task, etc.

Reading responses Students are asked to respond to specific questions about course readings. These can take place in reading journals that you occasionally collect, or reading responses on a discussion forum (on Moodle or elsewhere).

Position response papers Students are provided with a position that they must then defend or refute using course concepts and outside research.

Disciplinary problem papers These projects ask students to make an argument for the best solution to a disciplinary problem.

Data analysis papers Students are provided with raw data (or asked to collect raw data themselves) that they must then analyze using a particular methodology from the course.

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Research Guide

• RESEARCH WORKSHEET
• Library Tutorial / Orientation This link opens in a new window
• APA & MLA Styles / Citations This link opens in a new window
• Search Strategies

Take notes during your research process

• Library Research Worksheet Click the link and a Word version of the worksheet will download to your computer for completing and printing.
• Library Research Worksheet Click the link and a PDF version of the worksheet will download to your computer for printing.

The Library Research Worksheet is a resource that you can print out and use to take notes during your research process. Note-taking while you research is highly recommended because it helps you organize your thoughts and findings, and it keeps you on track when you have to divide your research time into several sessions. The worksheet guides you through the steps of developing your topic, figuring out how to search for information, evaluating search results and citing sources.

See an example of the research process

This document is the Library Research Worksheet completed with an example topic to help you understand the research process a little better.

• Library Research Worksheet Example
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• Last Updated: Jan 26, 2024 12:15 PM
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Research Project Templates

Research projects are easy and fun with these templates. Students can learn about dinosaurs, states, provinces, and more. Each template guides students through the research process by asking simple questions and requiring basic drawings. Each file also has a bibliography form that students can fill out at the end of each project, as well as a rubric to help teachers with grading.

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Browse our complete collection of math worksheets. Topics include fractions, geometry, addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, graphing, measurement, and more!

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Think Like a Researcher: Instruction Resources: #6 Developing Successful Research Questions

• Guide Organization
• Overall Summary
• #1 Think Like a Researcher!
• #2 How to Read a Scholarly Article
• #3 Reading for Keywords (CREDO)
• #4 Using Google for Academic Research
• #4 Using Google for Academic Research (Alternate)
• #5 Integrating Sources
• Research Question Discussion
• #7 Avoiding Researcher Bias
• #8 Understanding the Information Cycle
• #9 Exploring Databases
• #10 Library Session
• #11 Post Library Session Activities
• Summary - Readings
• Summary - Research Journal Prompts
• Summary - Key Assignments
• Jigsaw Readings
• Permission Form

Course Learning Outcome:   Develop ability to synthesize and express complex ideas; demonstrate information literacy and be able to work with evidence

Goal:  Develop students’ ability to recognize and create successful research questions

Specifically, students will be able to

• identify the components of a successful research question.
• create a viable research question.

What Makes a Good Research Topic Handout

These handouts are intended to be used as a discussion generator that will help students develop a solid research topic or question. Many students start with topics that are poorly articulated, too broad, unarguable, or are socially insignificant. Each of these problems may result in a topic that is virtually un-researchable. Starting with a researchable topic is critical to writing an effective paper.

Research shows that students are much more invested in writing when they are able to choose their own topics. However, there is also research to support the notion that students are completely overwhelmed and frustrated when they are given complete freedom to write about whatever they choose. Providing some structure or topic themes that allow students to make bounded choices may be a way mitigate these competing realities.

These handouts can be modified or edited for your purposes.  One can be used as a handout for students while the other can serve as a sample answer key.  The document is best used as part of a process.  For instance, perhaps starting with discussing the issues and potential research questions, moving on to problems and social significance but returning to proposals/solutions at a later date.

• Research Questions - Handout Key (2 pgs) This document is a condensed version of "What Makes a Good Research Topic". It serves as a key.
• Research Questions - Handout for Students (2 pgs) This document could be used with a class to discuss sample research questions (are they suitable?) and to have them start thinking about problems, social significance, and solutions for additional sample research questions.
• Research Question Discussion This tab includes materials for introduction students to research question criteria for a problem/solution essay.

Additional Resources

These documents have similarities to those above.  They represent original documents and conversations about research questions from previous TRAIL trainings.

• What Makes a Good Research Topic? - Original Handout (4 pgs)
• What Makes a Good Research Topic? Revised Jan. 2016 (4 pgs)
• What Makes a Good Research Topic? Revised Jan 2016 with comments

Topic Selection (NCSU Libraries)

Howard, Rebecca Moore, Tricia Serviss, and Tanya K. Rodrigues. " Writing from sources, writing from sentences ." Writing & Pedagogy 2.2 (2010): 177-192.

Research Journal

Assign after students have participated in the Developing Successful Research Topics/Questions Lesson OR have drafted a Research Proposal.

Think about your potential research question.

• What is the problem that underlies your question?
• Is the problem of social significance? Explain.
• Is your proposed solution to the problem feasible? Explain.
• Do you think there is evidence to support your solution?

Keys for Writers - Additional Resource

Keys for Writers (Raimes and Miller-Cochran) includes a section to guide students in the formation of an arguable claim (thesis).  The authors advise students to avoid the following since they are not debatable. 

• "a neutral statement, which gives no hint of the writer's position"
• "an announcement of the paper's broad subject"
• "a fact, which is not arguable"
• "a truism (statement that is obviously true)"
• "a personal or religious conviction that cannot be logically debated"
• "an opinion based only on your feelings"
• "a sweeping generalization" (Section 4C, pg. 52)

The book also provides examples and key points (pg. 53) for a good working thesis.

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• Next: Research Question Discussion >>
• Last Updated: Sep 29, 2023 2:51 PM
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Research Skills Worksheets

This is a vital skill to any job or project worth having in the real world. We expect to see the concept and process of research being emphasized much more in education at all levels.

In just about any job having solid and actionable research skills make the different between being a leader and being a follower. Researching skills are now more needed than ever with all the media that we constantly and involuntarily taking in. What is real and what is fake? If you can use your skills to find out the truth, you will be in high demand in the future. These worksheets will help develop those research skills for all your students.

Answering Research Focused Questions - This is a great exercise to dive into with your students before you start working on full blown projects.

Conflicting Information - How do you weigh which is a better source? We focus ourselves on validating sources and differentiating between them.

Conflicting Viewpoints - We explore how to completely avoid this when are creating your own work.

Gather Relevant Search Information - A great section to learn how to develop a set of background information and see what has already been explored with your topic.

Grade 3 Research Projects - A good time to get your feet wet with the basics.

Grade 4 Research Projects - The focus here is on planning.

Grade 5 Research Projects - We start asking students to examine a great deal more material.

Grade 6 Research Skills - This is the first time that we are letting students completely loose on the entire project.

Grade 8 Research Projects - There is a fold over between this series and grade 7 work. This is where students begin to take flight with the topic.

Grade 9 Research Projects - These are full on projects at the high school level that we ask students to get after.

Experiential Writing - This form of writing finds itself being monumentally helpful when we are exploring the results and discussion section.

MLA Citations - This is one of the most popular forms of listed and stating the resources that were used. We explain it in entirety.

Shared Research Writing Projects - These are done by complete group and each of the participants has their own distinct set of tasks.

Shared Research and Writing Projects (Kindergarten) - These are very basic in nature and are great for getting into the spirit of inquiry.

Sorting Evidence When Writing - It is all about determining which of the facts speaks volumes to support your thesis.

Technology Assisted Writing - A must for when you are composing your final product. Yes, some people still handwrite their first draft.

Using Dictionaries and Glossaries - When you run into terms that you may be unfamiliar with. We explore the quickest method for using these tools.

Using Evidence to Support Claims - We explore how to heighten your argument so that it is practically a no brainer.

Using Multiple Sources For Writing - Where do you get them and how do you cite them?

Using Reference Tools to Find Answers - Take some time to scrutinize all the different tools that you have at your disposal.

Using Text and Search Features - This is helpful for when you are looking for specific pieces of evidence that you may discount along the way.

Validating Arguments - We approach this from many different angles and give you time to get after it.

Writing a Research Paper - We help you put it all together in this comprehensive section.

How to Improve Your Research Skills

At some point in your academic life, you will be asked to investigate and probe a specific topic. Good research skills will make your article stand out. Here are some tips that will help you in improving your investigation skills.

Ask Good Questions

This is the most important tip to improve your research skills. This is because you should be well aware of what you want to delve into before you start. You should ask yourself plenty of questions like what are you expecting out of this inquisition process. What is it exactly that you want to prove? What knowledge do you want to share? What field interests you? What sources you will opt for? All of these questions will give you a clear direction for your research. You can do it better once you are sure of what you want to do.

Think Carefully About the Sources

Research is all about providing information and knowledge on different aspects of several fields of study. When you are beginning the process, you should pay attention to the sources. This is because the sources will decide the quality of your work. Give yourself plenty of time to find out the best sources that are available. This is a big mistake that many people make, they are not patient to look at all possible sources. They should not be biased or outdated. You should also confirm the information that you get from one source. All of your information should be completely accurate.

There will be many times through out your life that you will be exploring something that is new to you. As time goes on, you will learn how to compile a great many different sources. This means that you will be getting plenty of information that you will need to sift through. To avoid getting overwhelmed with all the information, you can organize all of it. If most of your research is on the Internet, you can use bookmarks and folders to organize the data. You can also get them printed if you like things to be right in front of you.

Ideas for Middle School Projects

Middle school is the most important phase of a student's academic life since the knowledge gained during this academic year will help the student throughout high school as well as in his or her professional life. Therefore, students must work hard during this grade to be successful in their future prospects. For most of the students, eighth grade is that first academic year where they are asked to do a research project. Eighth graders encounter a little difficulty in choosing a good starting topic that is informative as well as easy. One thing that eighth-graders must keep in mind while choosing a topic is that the topic must be of their interest so that they can enjoy working on it.

Given below are some basic ideas that will help the eighth-graders in choosing a research idea that is easy and informative:

Evaluation of Languages

To do an investigative project regarding the origin and evaluation of languages is one of the best and enjoyable topics. Middle school students can include formation, history, development, and phases of their development while focusing on either their native language or any other foreign language. This idea, chosen as research project, will help the middle school students to enjoy their research project alongside learning something useful.

Literary Writers' Contributions Towards Languages

Literary writers play a vital role in the development of any language. Middle school students can highlight the contributions to any of the languages by their respective literary writers in their research project. This topic is appreciated by the literature teachers as it is a combination of two topics: personalities and evaluation of language.

Impact of Media On Language

After scholars the media, either print or electronic, also has a significant impact on the development of any language. As media is quickly changing the ways of communication, students can look in on those ways and can include them in their end projects.

How to Gather Relevant Search Information (For Research Papers)

Writing a good research paper requires a writer to gather a lot of relevant data and read it carefully to use it as a guide for his or her project as well as to be able to quote the relevant information from the published works in the paper being written to substantiate it. However, collecting the right amount and nature of data that suits our research work is not an easy task. Most of the students fail badly in their field work because of their inability to gather relevant and useful information for their topic of interest.

Here are a few tips for such students that can help them find the most relevant information for their chosen topic:

Write Your Requirements Clearly and Briefly

Searching for the relevant data on the web must be done by entering a clear command into the browser. Add precise phrases and ideas so that you can get the most relevant thoughts through to your audience. To do this, you first need to be very clear about the idea you are doing your investigation on and the relevant data you want. Once you are clear on your idea, try to search for the relevant data using the keywords search method and make sure the phrases you add in the search bar are short and clear too.

Go Through the Specific Journals

Successful research writers get published in various journals depending upon the topic they have written on and the specific niche of their study. Try to find the journal that is well known for the publications related to your topic of interest and search for your requirements in those journals.

Search for Specific Researchers

Know the most famous researchers in your field who keep on getting their works published and try to search for their papers to get accurate results.

Steps of a Research Project

A research project is an academic piece of writing the students are bound to submit and clear with good grades within the given deadline. It is based on its writer's knowledge base on a particular topic. Given below are few important steps of a research project that will help the researcher to come up with a good enquiry project easily:

Select a Good Topic

While choosing a topic, one should select a topic that is according to his or her interest so that he or she can enjoy working on it. Secondly, the selected topic should be informative and a good quantity of information, data, and facts must be gathered related to it so one can use them to come up with a good body of work.

Develop Background Information

Once you have selected your topic of research, develop background information about that topic to broaden your knowledge and to have a better understanding of information that can be added in your research.

Develop a Thesis Statement

A thesis statement provides a clear idea about the research project. The background information you have gained will help you to come up with a good thesis statement. The thesis statement will guide you throughout your project and will help you to stay focused during your investigation therefore, it must be very clear and well-written.

Create a Rough Draft

Do the preliminary research and come up with a rough draft. Include only the necessary information that will support your topic.

Write Your Paper

After organizing the information in the rough draft, start writing your paper properly. Remember to write it in an appropriate format, use strong academic language, correctly punctuate it and follow all the rules of grammar.

Add References

An important part of the research project is proper referencing and citations. Remember to cite the resources you have used over the course of your writing at the end of your project. Use APA or MLA format to cite resources.

How to Answer Research Focused Questions?

As the students grow up and reach their higher-level educational years, the focus of teacher's shifts from the course books and related material to research activities. Answering research-focused questions at that time becomes a great issue for the students who are not taught the ways to do so before. Simply defined, the research focused questions are the questions that are based on some work done by other scholars and the students have to either read those whole researches or try finding the direct answers to those questions over the internet. Some basic steps to follow to answer such questions are as follows:

Understand the Question

Being clear on the question you are being asked is the first step to answering a research-focused question correctly. You must be able to understand where the question came from, what type of previous work can be read to find out the answers to it, and what it exactly and precisely means. Once you are all clear about the question, only then you can answer it right and effectively.

Search the Internet

Most of the times, the specific research paper that has the answer to the questions given are known by the students. However, in cases otherwise, the students have to search the web using focused keywords and precise queries to know their answers. It is better to add a search query that is short but clear so that you have the answers to the questions easily.

Read the Paper and Write Your Answers

If you have got a lot of time, you should read the complete paper yourself and answer your questions. However, in case you do not have enough time, you can simply read an abstract to find the answers to the question and write your answer precisely and in an informative way.

Tips for Preparing Research Papers

A research paper is a text in academic writing that includes both theoretical and factual data. Writing a research paper might seem like a tiring exercise but it becomes easy overtime and with practice. Many students do not have enough knowledge regarding preparing a presentable research paper. Given below are some important tips that will help one to write efficient research papers easily:

Selecting a Topic

To prepare a research paper, it is very important to first select a topic that is of your accord or interest. Choosing an interesting and informative topic to conduct a research on is very helpful. It is enjoyable for one to research on the topic that is according to his or her interest.

Collecting Reliable Sources

Before beginning to write the main body of the research paper, it is advised to collect all the information, facts, figures, and other proven statistics. Collecting information before writing a research paper helps one to stay focused while writing the paper.

Writing a Rough Draft

After collecting all the necessary information, start writing a rough draft. Introduce all the ideas you want to include in the final research paper. Do care for the grammar, spellings, and punctuation marks even if it is only a rough draft because it will serve as the basis for your final paper.

Writing Main Body

During this stage, one organizes the ideas according to some sequence. Rewrite the rough draft, following the rules of grammar, using correct spellings, and punctuation marks. Also, remember to add the references of the sources used in the research paper.

Before submitting the research paper, remember to read it completely. Recheck your paper for grammatical errors, spelling errors and other literary elements. Ask an honest friend to read your paper and ask for his or her advice regarding how to further improve the document.

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These writing worksheets give students practice in research and note taking .  A research topic is given, and students use the graphic organizer to organize their notes.

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Research Writing Templates

Customize research writing templates.

If you're assigning this to your students, copy the worksheet to your account and save. When creating an assignment, just select it as a template!

What is Research?

Research is the systematic process of gathering and analyzing information to establish facts, gain knowledge, and draw new conclusions. It involves a methodical approach to collecting data from various sources and critically examining it to generate insights and deepen understanding.

When conducting research, individuals seek to explore a chosen topic or question and find relevant information to answer it. This may involve investigating existing knowledge, gathering data through surveys or experiments, analyzing statistical information, or reviewing scholarly literature. The goal is to uncover new insights, validate existing theories, or contribute to the advancement of knowledge in a particular field.

Collecting information requires careful consideration of reliable sources. These sources can include books, scholarly articles, reputable websites, and expert interviews. By utilizing trustworthy and credible sources, researchers can ensure the accuracy and validity of their findings.

Research allows individuals to go beyond surface-level knowledge and delve into a subject in depth. It involves critically examining different perspectives, analyzing data, and interpreting results to form evidence-based conclusions. Individuals can contribute to the body of knowledge, inform decision-making processes, and make meaningful contributions to their respective fields.

Utilizing Research Worksheets to Improve Research Skills and Enhance Writing Abilities

These skills are essential for students to develop a better understanding of various subjects and effectively explore topics. Our templates offer valuable guidance and resources to assist middle school students in their journey of conducting research and writing papers. They provide a structured framework that helps students navigate the process, explore different subtopics, generate ideas, and avoid plagiarism. By utilizing these worksheets, students can enhance their skills, improve their writing abilities, and gain a deeper understanding of the topics they are studying.

One of the key aspects of the research process is identifying suitable topics. Our templates offer prompts and exercises that help students brainstorm ideas and select topics that align with their interests and academic goals. By engaging in these activities, students can explore various subjects and narrow down their focus to a specific area.

Once students have chosen their topics, the templates guide them through the process of conducting research. They provide helpful tips on utilizing search engines effectively, evaluating the credibility of sources, and organizing information. Kids can use these worksheets to record their findings, take notes, and develop a comprehensive understanding of their chosen topics.

Furthermore, they cater to the unique needs of students by providing age-appropriate activities and resources. They are designed to foster engagement, critical thinking, and independent learning. By utilizing these worksheets, students can develop essential skills that will benefit them not only in their academic journey but also in their future educational pursuits.

In conclusion, research worksheets serve as valuable tools for middle school students to enhance their skills, streamline the process, and gain a better understanding of various topics. By incorporating these handouts into their learning, students can develop valuable skills, foster a deeper appreciation for education, and excel in their academic endeavors.

Examples of Classroom Activities to Use Research Worksheets

• Social Studies Exploration: Introduce students to the world of research by assigning a country project. Provide them with templates that guide them through the process of gathering information about their chosen country. These worksheets can include sections for collecting statistical information, identifying reliable sources, and establishing facts about the country.
• College-Level Research: Prepare middle school students for higher education by incorporating college research worksheets into their curriculum. These worksheets can focus on developing skills such as utilizing search engines effectively, avoiding plagiarism, and critically evaluating sources. Students can practice these skills by exploring different subtopics related to their areas of interest.
• Writing a Research Paper: Help students navigate the process of writing a research paper by providing them with specialized worksheets. These worksheets can assist them in organizing their research, outlining their paper, and citing sources. By using writing a research paper worksheets, students can gain a better understanding of the process and develop strong academic writing skills.
• Interactive Research Activities: Engage students in hands-on activities using printable country research worksheets. These worksheets can include prompts and questions that guide students in collecting specific information about a country, such as its geography, history, culture, and economy. Students can work individually or in groups to complete these activities, fostering collaboration and critical thinking.

In addition, we offer a wide selection of other educational materials to support your teaching. Our worksheet templates section provides a wealth of resources, including phonological awareness activities, making connections worksheets , and active reading worksheet templates . These resources can be seamlessly integrated into your lessons to strengthen students' understanding of cardinal directions while building essential reading and comprehension skills.

How to Make a Research Writing Worksheet

Choose one of the premade templates.

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Click on “Copy Template”

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Give Your Worksheet a Name!

Be sure to call it something related to the topic so that you can easily find it in the future.

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Click "Save and Exit"

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Frequently Asked Questions About Research Writing Worksheets

Where can i find research worksheets for different topics.

You can find a variety on Storyboard That. They offer activities and college research worksheets that cater to various subjects and grade levels.

Can I use Storyboard That for research activities?

Yes, Storyboard That offers a range of resources and tools to support research activities. We offer handouts and college research worksheets that assist students in organizing their findings, creating visual representations, and writing research papers. Additionally, their free printable country research worksheet is a helpful resource for studying and exploring different countries.

Are the research worksheets from Storyboard That suitable for college-level research?

Yes, Storyboard That offers college research worksheets that are designed to meet the research requirements of college-level students. They cover various aspects of the research process, including topic selection, gathering statistical information, using reliable sources, and drawing new conclusions. They provide a comprehensive framework for conducting thorough research and writing academic papers.

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Free Printable Research Writing Worksheets for 5th Grade

Research Writing: Discover a collection of free printable worksheets for Grade 5 Reading & Writing teachers, designed to enhance students' research writing skills and spark their curiosity.

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Research Writing worksheets for Grade 5 are an essential tool for teachers looking to enhance their students' reading and writing skills. These worksheets focus on various aspects of nonfiction writing, helping students to develop their abilities to analyze, synthesize, and present information in a clear and concise manner. By incorporating these worksheets into their lesson plans, teachers can provide their students with targeted practice in areas such as identifying main ideas, supporting details, and organizing information. Additionally, these worksheets can help students build their vocabulary and improve their grammar, ultimately leading to stronger overall writing skills. As students progress through their Grade 5 curriculum, the use of Research Writing worksheets will prove invaluable in preparing them for more advanced reading and writing tasks in the future.

Quizizz is a fantastic resource for teachers who want to supplement their Research Writing worksheets for Grade 5 with engaging and interactive activities. This platform offers a wide range of quizzes and games that can be easily integrated into the classroom, providing students with a fun and effective way to practice their reading and writing skills. In addition to quizzes focused on nonfiction writing, Quizizz also offers resources for other aspects of the Grade 5 curriculum, such as grammar, vocabulary, and comprehension. Teachers can even create their own custom quizzes to align with their specific lesson plans and objectives. By incorporating Quizizz into their teaching strategies, educators can provide their Grade 5 students with a well-rounded and enjoyable approach to improving their reading and writing abilities.

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Internet Research Skills Worksheets

These worksheets are great to help students learn more about the Internet. If you would like to test your students ability to use the Internet as a Research tool we have a great set of Internet Research worksheets .

• Acrostic Poem
• Computer Monitor
• Internet Access Bank On It! Worksheet
• Internet Word Scramble Worksheet
• Do The Research! : The Numbers
• Group Creative Writing
• The Internet and Real World Venn Diagram
• Internet Sources and Library Catalogs Venn Diagram
• Internet Wording
• Monitors Around the World
• Mouse Around the World
• Reading Comprehension
• Vocabulary List & Definitions
• Vocabulary Quiz
• Word Search
• Word Search Answer Key

Internet Research Teacher Resources

• Five Secrets for Parents to Help Encourage Responsible Use of the Internet
• Internet Acronyms Every Teacher & Parent Needs to Know
• Kids' Browsers: To Block or not to Block?
• The Internet Lesson Plans
• The Internet Teaching Theme

How to Improve Your Internet Research Skills

Research is one of the essential functions required in today's day and age. Whether knowingly or unknowingly, we research multiple things every day. Remember how your friend asked you which place to hang out next?

When you were looking for places to go in your city, that's research. Remember when your colleague asked you your opinion on a particular celebrity and their best performances, and you went to Wikipedia to look up their filmography? That's research. Of course, you already realize you have to do tons of research in school and colleges and even on your job. It makes for a major part of the research you have to do.

How the Internet Has Changed Research: Importance of Learning Internet Research

The internet's ubiquity has made research both difficult and easy at the same time. Let's look at the positives first. The internet has given us one of the complete repositories of information humanity has ever known. You can find vast armadas of information from all ages on almost all topics on the internet. All this information is accessible to us at the click of a button, and this is the most significant achievement of the internet.

Another big plus is that the Internet is accessible anywhere at any time. The previous restrictions of finding a good library, finding a book, then adhering to the times of issue and library's opening and closing times are now meaningless. Also, with the availability of interviews, tutorials, and classes online of subject matter experts, access to high-quality information has never been this easy.

On the other hand, there are also multiple challenges that the internet presents that were not present to the researcher of yesteryears.

Too much available information presents a unique task of differentiating helpful information from useless information. Skimming through all this information and separating useful from useless is a time-consuming and skill-testing task that requires much effort.

The ability to separate useful from the highly abundant irrelevant material is indeed an art and a skill in addition. Another unignorable fact is that there are innumerable instances where false and inaccurate information is displayed on the internet. These reasons make it pertinent for modern-day researchers to acquire internet research skills.

You can develop this skill like any other skill in the world. If you want to improve your internet research skills, you'll find the following five points quite pertinent. These tips will assist you in refining your research skills. If done properly, your research will be faster and require less effort. Read on to find out!

Five Essential Tips for Improving Your Internet Research Skills

1. Plan Bottom Up

There is a tendency to get first intimidated when you see the sheer quantum of information available to a user when they embark on online research. This issue is compounded by the fact that the information's authenticity is more often than not questionable. You might have to sift to separate fact from fiction and valuable from useless. In this scenario, a recommended way forward would be to break down your required research topic into sub-topics that can be researched individually.

This allows you to go into the depth of the information and leads you to accurate sources on which you can base your remaining research. It also helps you research important topics now that you have broken them down into smaller bits, and it is doable in smaller and more manageable chunks.

2. Organize Your Sources

While you will see that it is possible to research essential topics by doing so in smaller doable chunks, you will also feel that it often gets confusing once you've collected a lot of information. The key here is to organize your information so that required information is available to us when we want it without too much effort being placed into retrieving it. You can organize your internet sources in many ways. For example, you can save helpful research links by adding them to your web browser's bookmarks.

Adding useful links to bookmarks will keep a record and keep you organized. In addition, you can keep an annotated bibliography of material you require keeping for your research when you can use it at will when you require it. You can also make folders as per the subtopics of your research. Bookmark folders will help you find the source of whatever you are quoting in your research while maintaining a complete record. These tips should not be foregone at any cost, especially for an academic researcher.

3. Understand How to Use the Web Brower Properly

The first and foremost thing you need to master to improve your internet research skills is using the web browser properly. Over time, web browsers have evolved, and to be a good researcher, you must be aware of those changes and know how to handle them.

You need to know all the key shortcuts like:

- Ctrl + W or Ctrl + F4 to close the current tab - Ctrl + Shift + W or Alt + F4 to close the current window altogether - Alt + Left arrow open the last page from your browsing history

These shortcuts increase your internet searching speed and make the process easy and hassle-free.

4. Using Keywords

Using keywords is a great way to narrow down your search on the internet. Using keywords allows the internet to produce relevant hits on the search bar from which you can choose your desired search. Keywords work to limit your search and show only the related topic in the results. By enclosing the critical words with quotation marks, the search engine will streamline your search showing you the exact information you need.

Using keywords saves a lot of time and effort. It helps you avoid going off-topic or getting distracted or overwhelmed by the sheer volume of irrelevant data available on the internet.

5. Find Subject Matter Experts

The Internet has made industry leaders and subject matter experts more accessible than ever. Before the internet was widely available, people accessed their ideas through books, lectures, seminars, letters, and even in-person meetings.

While those things are still useful today, with the internet, you can search their research papers, interviews, and video lectures and join them for virtual meetings. The use of varied sources will enable your research to go to unprecedented heights and assist you in achieving your goals.

Our Concluding Thoughts

The Internet is one of the best tools available to us humans today. The scope of research has been broadened since a wealth of information is now available at a researcher's fingertips. You can overcome some challenges with the effective use of organization and ingenuity. If properly used, the internet can be the most significant assist that a researcher can ever use if they want to take his research to an optimal level.

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50+ SAMPLE Research Worksheet in PDF | MS Word

Research Worksheet | MS Word

50+ sample research worksheet, what is a research worksheet, general research tips for students and teachers, tips for designing research worksheets, how to create a research worksheet, what is a research worksheet, how do you do research in middle school, how do you teach a high school research paper.

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Step 1: screen the content , step 2: design the format, step 3: ask the questions, step 4: seek consultation, share this post on your network, you may also like these articles, 30+ sample crossword in pdf | illustrator | ms word | apple pages | photoshop.

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Research Worksheets

Research worksheets practice.

Research is the systematic investigation into and study of materials and sources in order to establish facts and reach new conclusions. Research is conducted through different ways such as on the internet, through books and magazines. Our worksheets target ways a student can research different topics through different mediums and the ways they can conduct quality research.

Here is a graphic preview for all of the Research worksheets. Our Research worksheets are free to download and easy to access in PDF format. Use these Research worksheets in school or at home.

a. Grades K-5 Research Worksheets b. Grades 6-12 Research Worksheets

Here is a graphic preview for all the kindergarten, 1st grade, 2nd grade, 3rd grade, 4th grade, and 5th grade Research Worksheets. Click on the image to display our PDF worksheet.

Research List Worksheets

How to Research on Internet Worksheet

Research Favorite Animal Worksheet

Research the Brain Worksheet

Research the Water Cycle Worksheet

Research Nelson Mandela Worksheet

Research Favorite Time Period Worksheet

Research the U.S. Census Worksheet

Research the Holocaust Worksheet

Research Child Labor Worksheet

Research Earthquakes Worksheet

Research Natural Disasters Worksheet

Research Animals Worksheet

Research Great White Sharks Worksheet

Grades 6-12 Research Worksheets

Pros and cons research worksheet.

Research a Topic on the Internet Worksheet

Research Paper Rubric Worksheet

Research Summary Worksheet

Research an Animal on Internet Worksheet

Research a Historical Event on Internet Worksheet

Research Influential Person on Internet Worksheet

Research Paraphrase Worksheets

March 29, 2024

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How to use Copilot as a worksheet maker

As an educator, you probably have a lot on your plate, and making worksheets is just one of many things that can fill up your schedule. Thankfully, you can save time by using Copilot  as an effective and convenient worksheet assistant! In this guide, we talk about how this intelligent assistant can be used to help build free worksheets for teachers.

How to write a great worksheet prompt

Your prompt is the written command you give to Copilot  to execute a certain task (in this case, creating a worksheet). So, what goes into writing a great worksheet prompt?

A great worksheet prompt should:

• Be detailed and concise. Specify your subject, topic, the number and length of your questions, as well as the academic level of your students. The more details, the merrier. 
• Specify format and guidelines. Indicate the worksheet type (for instance, multiple choice or short answer) and provide clear guidelines for completion, such as word limits and format requirements. It’s also smart to request a mix of different question types matching the different learning styles of your students.
• Use examples. To get the best results, give Copilot excellent examples of what you want. That way, Copilot can try to match a specific style, level of difficulty, and format.

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Types of worksheets to make for different subjects

Now that you have an idea of what goes into writing a good prompt, let’s look at a few examples of the types of worksheets you can make for various subjects.

Language arts

For language arts teachers, Copilot  can be a valuable tool for creating a range of exercises. You can generate a vocab worksheet for learning new words, grammar exercises, literary analysis worksheets, and more! Here are examples of prompts you can ask for each:

• Vocab worksheets. Generate a worksheet focusing on vocabulary enhancement for eighth-grade students including synonyms, antonyms, and sentence usage for fifteen advanced words suitable for their academic level. A good word example would be deceptive or articulate . Define each word provided. Also provide synonyms, antonyms, and example sentences. 
• Literary analysis. Write a worksheet for a class of eleventh graders with fifteen questions for a literary analysis of To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Focus on themes of racial injustice and moral growth. Include a mix of multiple-choice and short-answer questions that prompt critical thinking.
• Grammar exercises. Create ten grammar exercises suitable for fifth-grade students focusing on common pitfalls in English grammar, such as their / there / they’re usage, subject-verb agreement, and the proper use of commas in complex sentences. Increase difficulty with each question.

Whether it's for lab reports, reviewing concepts, or analyzing scientific data, Copilot  can inspire engaging educational materials. Guide your worksheet creation with these science worksheet prompts: 

• Experiment summary template. Generate a template for a lab report for middle school students focusing on a basic chemistry experiment. The template should include sections for the experiment's objective, hypothesis, materials used, procedure, observations, and conclusion.
• Concept review. Create a worksheet for ninth-grade biology students that reviews the concept of photosynthesis. Include ten definitions of relevant words, diagrams to label, and short-answer questions that cover the process, importance, and impact of photosynthesis on ecosystems.
• Data analysis and interpretation. Design a worksheet for high school students on interpreting scientific data using a set of provided data on temperature changes over a decade. Include questions on identifying trends, drawing conclusions, and understanding the implications of the data on climate change.

From basic practice drills to complex problem-solving exercises,  Copilot  can help design a wide array of math exercises for teachers. Check out the following math worksheet prompt examples:

• Practice and drills. Generate a series of practice worksheets for fourth-grade students focusing on multiplication and division. Offer a variety of problems, from single-digit calculations to more complex multi-digit operations, and gradually increase in difficulty.
• Conceptual understanding. Create a worksheet for seventh graders that helps reinforce the concepts of algebraic expressions and equations. Feature a mix of problems that require simplifying expressions, solving for variables, and applying these concepts in word problems.
• Problem-solving and critical thinking. Develop a set of challenging math puzzles and problems for tenth-grade students that require critical thinking and problem-solving skills. Focus on geometry and algebra, including scenarios that encourage thinking outside the box and logical thinking to find solutions.

Enhance worksheets with research and current events

You can also use Copilot  to connect worksheet content to current events or research . If you need more information or sources to design your worksheets or make them more relevant to students, try prompts like these:

• Create a list of recent news related to [topic].
• Give me academic resources for [topic].
• Find sources that answer this [question on worksheet].
• List five pop culture references related to [topic].

Copilot not only makes free worksheets for teachers; it’s an AI-powered assistant capable of saving time on countless teaching tasks. Try Copilot  today to create worksheets, lesson plans, spreadsheets, and much more.

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Substance Use Research Worksheet

Subject: Personal, social and health education

Age range: 11-14

Resource type: Lesson (complete)

Last updated

21 March 2024

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A lesson worksheet in which student swill use their on-line research skills to look up common drugs and the risks associated with them.

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