Research Skills — Answer Key
Part A: Multiple Choice
Circle the best answer for each question.
1. Anika is writing a report about butterflies. She found a fact in a book. What must she do before using it?
A) Change the fact so it sounds different.
B) Write down the book title and author so she can cite it.
C) Ask her friend if the fact sounds right.
D) Ignore the fact and use her own ideas instead.
Before using a fact from a book, Anika must record the title and author so she can cite the source in her report and give proper credit.
2. Which detail does NOT belong in a bibliography entry for a book?
A) The title of the book
B) The name of the author
C) Your favorite part of the book
D) The year the book was published
A bibliography entry includes facts like the title, author, and publication date. Your favorite part of the book is a personal opinion, not a detail that helps someone find the source.
3. Carlos found a website about planets that was last updated ten years ago. Why might this be a problem?
A) Old websites always have wrong information.
B) Scientists may have discovered new facts since then.
C) Websites never change once they are posted.
D) Only books can have outdated information.
Science changes as researchers make new discoveries. A website that is ten years old may be missing important facts scientists have learned since then.
4. What is the BEST first step when starting a research project?
A) Write the report paragraph right away.
B) Pick a topic and think of a question you want to answer.
C) Go to the library and grab any book you see.
D) Ask a classmate to do the research for you.
Picking a topic and forming a question first gives your research a clear direction, so you know what to look for when you start gathering sources.
Part B: Fill in the Blank
Write the correct answer on each line.
1. A primary source is written by someone who was there when an event happened.
A primary source is created by someone who witnessed the event, like a letter from a person who lived through a storm, making it firsthand information.
2. Quotation marks go around words you copy exactly from a source.
Quotation marks show that you copied the exact words from a source, letting readers know those words belong to the original author.
3. Scanning a page means looking for key words that match your research question.
When you scan a page, you look for key words related to your topic so you can quickly find the section that answers your research question.
4. A heading is a short summary of what a chapter or section is about.
A heading is a short title at the top of a section that tells you what that section is about, helping you decide if it has the information you need.
5. Facts can be checked and proven, but opinions are personal beliefs that cannot be proven.
Opinions are personal beliefs like "Pizza is the best food," which cannot be proven true or false, unlike facts that can be checked with evidence.