Free Training: The 5 Step Research Unit Process

Many teachers know that making time for science and social studies is difficult because of the focus put on tested subjects such as math and ELA. Let us make it easier! You can incorporate science and social studies easily with our 5-Step Research Process. Learn how with this free training from Kelsey.

By using this 5 step process, with a student-led research unit, your role as a teacher is to be a guide- to help them learn and build their research skills- so they can then discover information about science and social studies topics on their own. You will teach and model research skills, then let your students loose to actually learn about the topic.

Want to learn more about how to create these self-guided research units for your classroom or homeschool? Last summer, Kelsey did training on this very topic during Whole Teacher Eclectic-Con. Her session “The 5 Step Process for Science and Social Studies Research Units” was a huge hit!

Teachers paid $49 per ticket to attend and watch this session, but now you get to watch the training for free here! Download this worksheet to help you organize your notes from the training.

Watch the video to hear more from Kelsey about our science and social studies research units and the 5-Step Research Process.

Here’s what is covered in the video: What does the 5-Step Research Unit Process look like?

Model Research Skills

To begin, you need to explicitly show your students how to do research. For instance, teaching them how to find books in the library, how to use text features such as the table of contents and index, etc. Additionally, teaching students to do internet research safely (on kid-friendly sites) as well as how to know if a source they find online is credible.

Research Journal

Have your students keep a journal throughout the entire project. You can have them use the printable journal from one of our research units or just a special notebook. Focus on just ONE question each day, that way they can get all the information they need without being overloaded.

Written Report

Turn their research journal into a written report. They will have all the information that they need in their journal! Because the journal is divided into sections from their daily question, students can easily turn those sections into a paragraph. You can choose how long you want the report to be and how much of the writing process you want your students to go through.

Hands-On Final Project

You students will have the opportunity to show off what they have learned by doing a hands-on final project. Some ideas from our units include:

• Our Animals and Habitats Unit has students create a habitat in a shoebox.
• Our Solar System Unit has students create paper mache planets.
• Our Dinosaur Unit has students create paper mache fossils.
• Our Women in History Unit has students create a poster of their person with their traits (our Black History Unit does, too!)
• Our Life Cycles Unit has students create a model of a life cycle.
• Our Author Study Unit has students create a biography of their author (template included!)
• Our Penguins Unit has students create a life-size model of their penguin out of butcher paper (involves math for measuring, too!)
• Our Holidays Around the World Unit has students create a holiday decoration.

Show it off!

By the end of the research unit, kids will have put a LOT of time and effort into the research unit. What better way to celebrate their efforts than by having them show off their work?

Start by having students present their final projects to each other as well as what they learned.

You can even do a fair or “museum” where you invite others (such as other classes, parents and family members, etc.) to see student work!

WANT TO HAVE YOUR SCIENCE AND SOCIAL STUDIES PLANNING DONE FOR YOU?

Let us simplify the process of incorporating Science and Social Studies into your curriculum with our research units. We’ve already done the planning for you! Our units already cover the 5 step process, and they include research journals with questions all ready to go (plus editable sections to add your own questions, too!) We have units available for a variety of topics, and we will continue to add even more units as well.

Check out all of our units here. We have printable AND Google Slides versions available for each one! Or they are also available on Teachers Pay Teachers.

We’ve got you covered with our Research Bundles! When you purchase a bundle you get all current AND future research units included.

Are you ready to get started for FREE? Get our Simple Research for Kids Starter Kit delivered directly to your inbox!