Practice research writing skills by evaluating sources, paraphrasing information, integrating evidence, and formatting citations clearly.
Read each problem carefully. Answer in complete sentences and show your thinking when needed. Use clear academic language and proper citation format when asked.
Using sources, paraphrasing, and citing evidence clearly
Language Arts - Grade 9-12
- 1
A student writes this sentence in a research paper: 'Social media affects teen sleep because many students stay awake later while using their phones.' Explain one reason the student should support this sentence with a source.
- 2
Read this source sentence: 'Researchers found that students who reviewed notes for ten minutes each day remembered information better at the end of the week.' Write a paraphrase that keeps the original meaning but uses different wording.
- 3
A student copies a sentence from a website and changes only two words before adding it to a paper. Explain why this is not an acceptable paraphrase.
- 4
Choose the stronger research source for a paper about renewable energy and explain why: Source A is an unsigned blog post from 2018. Source B is a 2023 article from a government energy agency with named authors.
- 5
Read this sentence from a draft: 'Plastic waste is a huge problem everywhere.' Rewrite it to sound more formal and research-based.
- 6
A works cited entry includes the author, title, website name, date, and URL. Explain the purpose of a works cited page in a research paper.
- 7
Read this quotation: 'Daily reading improves vocabulary growth over time.' Write one sentence that introduces the quote and one sentence that explains its importance.
- 8
A student uses information from a source but does not put quotation marks around an exact sentence from that source. Explain what the student did wrong.
- 9
For a research paper on school lunches, which source is more trustworthy and why: a peer-reviewed journal article or an anonymous social media post?
- 10
Read the claim: 'Schools should start later in the morning.' Write one piece of evidence that would strongly support this claim.
- 11
A student includes three statistics in a paragraph but does not explain any of them. Explain how this weakens the paragraph.
- 12
Write a topic sentence for a body paragraph in a research essay about the benefits of exercise for teenagers.
- 13
A source was published in 2004 and gives statistics about current smartphone use among teenagers. Explain why the date matters when evaluating this source.
- 14
Read this sentence: 'The article says recycling helps the environment.' Revise it so it refers to the source more specifically and sounds more academic.
- 15
Why is it important to cite a source even when you paraphrase instead of quoting directly?