For the Instructor
Chapter 11: Editing and Evolving the Thesis and Outline
For the Instructor
In class, have your students bring in one of the scholarly sources that they think they may use and have them read it again carefully, annotating their reading. This can be done with either a hard copy or an online version. If they are reading an online version, ensure that they are using the annotation settings on their PDF reader to makes notes as they go along.
At the end of the their reading ask them to identify:
3 definitions of key terms the author provides in the work.
3 statistics or number-based evidence the author uses.
2 key quotes that may be useful to their argument.
2 sources from the Bibliography or Works Cited that may also be useful to read.
Once they have completed that checklist, have them imagine where each piece of information might fit within their essay (i.e. where might this definition fit best? At what stage of my argument?). Remind them that they don’t have to use all the information they found, but they should at least consider it.
Once they have a rough idea where the information might work, have them write a body paragraph incorporating in one of the pieces of research that adds to and clarifies their argument.
At any point during this process, it may be helpful to have the students share with each other in small groups or pairs.