Writing a Research Report

By Anonymous (not verified), 12 March, 2026
Grade Level
Grade 6
Grade 7
Grade 8
Standards
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.6.2
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.6.4
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.6.5
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.6.7
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.6.8
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.7.2
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.7.4
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.7.5
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.7.7
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.7.8
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.8.2
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.8.4
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.8.5
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.8.7
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.8.8
Mode
Research Writing
Form
Research Report
Unit Lesson Body

Writing a Research Report

Once you finish your planning and research, you are ready to write your first draft. These activities will help you hook the reader's interest at the beginning, explain important information in the middle, and end with a strong final point.

Writing the Beginning Paragraph

Write a lead.

Read each lead-writing strategy and example and write your own.

  1. Ask a question about the topic.

    2. Did you know women couldn’t become astronauts for almost the first three decades of the space program?

  2. Start with a surprising fact or detail about the topic.

    3. Before Sally Ride, space travel was mostly a club for men.

  3. Tell a little story about the person.

    4. Sally Ride didn’t always want to be an astronaut. When she was young, going to space was not a realistic aspiration for girls.

Write your beginning paragraph.

Write your lead and then give details that lead up to your focus statement. End the paragraph with your focus statement.

Writing the Body Paragraphs

Write topic sentences.

For each body paragraph, write a topic sentence that supports the focus statement in a different way. Each topic sentence should include a topic and a specific thought.

  1. Write a topic sentence for a first body paragraph.

    2. Despite growing up in a time when science was considered a mostly male interest, the subject fascinated Ride early on in life.

  2. Write a topic sentence for a second body paragraph.

    3. Ride discovered an opportunity that would change her life and the course of space history.

  3. Write a topic sentence for a third body paragraph.

    4. Ride became the first American woman ever to fly in space.

  4. Write a topic sentence for a fourth body paragraph.

    5. Ride retired from NASA in 1987, but that didn’t stop her from making an impact on women and science.

  5. Write topic sentences for any other body paragraphs.

Write body paragraphs.

Read about in-text citations. Then write your topic sentences, and cite details and examples from sources to explain or support each topic sentence. Insert citations where needed.

In-Text Citations

In-text citations show the source of the information you use in your report. When you include an idea from a source that is not commonly known, put the author’s last name and page number in parentheses after the idea. If there is no author, use a shortened version of the source title.

  • Ride especially liked the scientific method of asking questions and testing answers (Macy 47).

  • In 1984, she served on a second Challenger space mission with her friend Kathryn Sullivan (“Sally Ride”).

Body Paragraph 1

Body Paragraph 2

Body Paragraph 3

Body Paragraph 4

Additional Body Paragraphs

Writing the Ending Paragraph

Write your ending paragraph.

Try these closing strategies. Then combine them and other details into an ending paragraph.

  1. Explain the person’s final years.

    2. Ride passed away in 2012, but her legacy lives on.

  2. Sum up why the person is important.

    3. Even though Ride’s space flight happened many years ago, it remains important today.

Ending Paragraph

Writing the Works-Cited Page

Create your works-cited page.

Read about how to create works-cited entries. Then list your sources in alphabetical order.

A works-cited page lists the sources you use in your report in alphabetical order, according to the publication information you recorded during your prewriting. Follow these guidelines to create your works-cited page.

  • Gather your list of all the sources you used to write your report.
  • List them in alphabetical order using the author’s last name first.
  • When there is no author, list the title of the book or article first.
  • Then include the publication information (publisher, date, etc.) you recorded during your prewriting.
  • Make sure you punctuate everything correctly.
  • Indent all lines after the first line of each entry.
  • Keep full Web site URLs on the same line.

Macy, Sue. Sally Ride: Life on a Mission. Simon and Schuster, 2014.

Hurwitz, Sue. Sally Ride: Shooting for the Stars Great Lives Series. Ballantine Books, 1989.

“Sally Ride.” Encyclopedia Britannica. 2014. www.britannica.com/biography/Sally-Ride

Source 1

Source 2

Source 3

Source 4

Teaching Tip

Encourage students to use at least four sources in their report, including a mix of print and online sources.

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Lesson Plan Google Links
Writing a Lead
Writing the Beginning Paragraph
Writing Topic Sentences
Writing Body Paragraphs
Writing the Ending Paragraph
Writing the Works-Cited Page
Templates
Template Name
Writing a Lead
Template Content

Student:

Date:

Write a lead.

Review each lead-writing strategy and example and write your own.

1. Ask a question about the topic.

Did you know women couldn’t become astronauts for almost the first three decades of the space program?

2. Start with a surprising fact or detail about the topic.

Before Sally Ride, space travel was mostly a club for men.

3. Tell a little story about the person.

Sally Ride didn’t always want to be an astronaut. When she was young, going to space was not a realistic aspiration for girls.

© Thoughtful Learning                From Write on Course 20-20 and the unit Writing Research Reports

Template Name
Writing the Beginning Paragraph
Template Content

Student:

Date:

Write your beginning paragraph.

Write your lead and then give details that lead up to your focus statement. End the paragraph with your focus statement.



© Thoughtful Learning                From Write on Course 20-20 and the unit Writing Research Reports

Template Name
Writing Topic Sentences
Template Content

Student:

Date:

Write topic sentences.

For each body paragraph, write a topic sentence that supports the focus statement in a different way. Each topic sentence should include a topic and a specific thought.    

1. Write a topic sentence for a first body paragraph.

2. Write a topic sentence for a second body paragraph.

3. Write a topic sentence for a third body paragraph.

4. Write a topic sentence for a fourth body paragraph.

5. Write topic sentences for any other body paragraphs.

© Thoughtful Learning                From Write on Course 20-20 and the unit Writing Research Reports

Template Name
Writing Body Paragraphs
Template Content

Student:

Date:

Write body paragraphs.

Read about in-text citations. Then write your topic sentences, and cite details and examples from sources to explain or support each topic sentence. Insert citations where needed.

In-Text Citations

        In-text citations show the source of the information you use in your report. When you include an idea from a source that is not commonly known, put the author’s last name and page number in parentheses after the idea. If there is no author, use a shortened version of the source title.

  • Ride especially liked the scientific method of asking questions and testing answers (Macy 47).
  • In 1984, she served on a second space mission aboard Challenger with her friend Kathryn Sullivan (“Sally Ride”).

Body Paragraph 1

Body Paragraph 2

Body Paragraph 3

Body Paragraph 4

Additional Body Paragraphs

© Thoughtful Learning                From Write on Course 20-20 and the unit Writing Research Reports

Template Name
Writing the Ending Paragraph
Template Content

Student:

Date:

Write your ending paragraph.

Try these closing strategies. Then combine them and other details into an ending paragraph.

1. Explain the person’s final years.

    Ride passed away in 2012, but her legacy lives on.

2. Sum up why the person is important.

Even though Ride’s space flight happened many years ago, it remains important today.

Ending Paragraph:

© Thoughtful Learning                From Write on Course 20-20 and the unit Writing Research Reports

Template Name
Writing the Works-Cited Page
Template Content

Student:

Date:

Create your works-cited page.

Read about how to create works-cited entries. Then list your sources in alphabetical order.

        A works-cited page lists the sources you use in your report in alphabetical order, according to the publication information you recorded during your prewriting. 

  • Gather your list of all the sources you used to write your report.
  • List them in alphabetical order using the author’s last name first.
  • When there is no author, list the title of the book first.
  • Then include the publication information (publisher, date, etc.) you recorded during your prewriting.
  • Make sure you punctuate everything correctly.
  • Indent all lines after the first line of each entry.
  • Keep full Web site URLs on the same line.

Sample Citations

Macy, Sue. Sally Ride: Life on a Mission. Simon and Schuster, 2014.

Hurwitz, Sue. Sally Ride: Shooting for the Stars Great Lives Series. Ballantine Books, 1989.

“Sally Ride.” Encyclopedia Britannica. 2014. www.britannica.com/biography/Sally-Ride

Source 1:

Source 2:

Source 3:

Source 4:

© Thoughtful Learning                From Write on Course 20-20 and the unit Writing Research Reports

Unit Container Label
Writing Research Reports
Unit Container D7 ID
Writing Research Reports
Lesson Weight
4