How to Teach a Young Child to Write a Research Paper

Researching and writing a research paper is an acquired skill that requires practice to perfect.Children in first grade can learn to write an effective research paper. Read on to learn how to teach a young child to write a research paper.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. Find research material that is aimed at your child's reading level. There are many online resources for children, and Google can be set in "safe mode" to keep inappropriate listings from showing.

2. Photocopy all of the research material so that your child can mark up the paper.

3. Help your child identify the information they want to include in their paper. Use a highlighter to mark the passages.

4. Initially, children should work on simply rewording the highlighted information into their own words.

5. As your child becomes better at retelling the researched information, work on moving like information together. Have your child identify the major ideas of his or her research and separate it into paragraphs.

6. Add details to each paragraph, stretching them out to four or more sentences each.

7. Once your child has mastered the body of a research paper, it is time to add an opening paragraph and a conclusion. You now have a well rounded research paper, and your child has learned the steps needed to complete papers on his own.

Tips & Warnings

• A family trip to the library is not only a special treat for children, but also an important aspect of researching their topic.
• Don't forget a bibliography. Even though teachers may not require one in the early schooling years, they are important and will eventually be mandatory.
• For young children, locate safe Internet sites for them then allow them to do the research.