THE INFORMATIONAL RESEARCH PAPER Mrs Kinney English 12

THE INFORMATIONAL RESEARCH PAPER Mrs. Kinney, English 12

What is an Informative Paper? I’m sure you can figure out that when writing an informative essay you need to inform your audience about a topic. Of course, there’s more to it than that.

You need to give your readers enough information so they fully understand what you’re writing about. You need to assume your readers don’t know much (if anything) about your topic. This is why you’re informing them. (Makes sense, right? )

An example Let’s say you’re into skateboarding, and you’re trying to tell a friend all about it. You can’t just start using terms like dropping in, heelflips, and half-pipes. You need to explain the lingo and provide enough information so your friend actually understands the words you’re using! The same is true for an informative essay.

How Do I Choose a Good Informative Essay Topic? A good informative essay topic is a topic that isn’t too broad (like the meaning of life) or too narrow (like the best place to take a nap on campus). A good informative essay topic needs to be interesting to both you and your audience. Remember, the history of the universe might be interesting to you, but not necessarily to your audience. In this case, it’s your job to make it interesting by engaging your audience.

One final note about choosing informative essay topics check your assignment guidelines! If you need to do some research about the topic, then you most certainly need to get researching. Now that you have the basics about how to choose an informative essay topic, let’s dig into some great ideas! Check out the following topics to get your paper started.

Possible Topics 1. Caffeine Addiction: Need a few cups of coffee or a Big Gulp to get through the day? If you’re a caffeine addict like me, think about how miserable you feel without your caffeine fix. Have you ever tried to quit and felt even worse? You might start your paper by informing readers why you live on caffeine and why you’re hooked. You might also include a discussion of how it has affected you or maybe even your struggles to break your addiction.

2. Domestic Violence: Because this is such an important issue, make sure to provide readers with statistics and facts to help drive home the importance of helping prevent domestic violence and helping victims. 3. Poverty: You might narrow this broad topic to discuss poverty in your community or a specific region. Informing people of the effects of poverty can help educate and also help people understand how to solve the problem.

� 4. Plastic Surgery: Plastic surgery has grown in popularity in recent years, and many teens are even lining up for surgery. How young is too young to go under the knife? You might want to include a brief history of plastic surgery and why it has become so popular.

5. Stress: I’m guessing that, like procrastination, this is a word than most students can relate to. Especially if your audience is made of fellow students, an essay explaining how to beat stress will be both informative and useful. 6. Procrastination: This is something most students can relate to. If you decide to inform readers about procrastination, you might try a more unconventional approach and tell your audience how procrastination can actually work to your advantage.

7. Winning the lottery: Most of us have had dreams of hitting it big, and we have a long list of ideas of how we’d spend that much money. But have you ever watched those TV shows that explain how winning the lottery actually ruined someone’s life? An informative essay about winning the lottery could easily explain both the positive and negative outcomes of winning such a large sum of money. 8. Your favorite rock/country band: We all have that favorite group/singer we just can’t get enough of. Tell your readers about them. Where did they get their start? Who influenced them? Why do you like them so much? Be sure to inform your readers about the reasons you believe they are so great.

9. Your favorite hobby: Maybe you like motorcycles, or maybe you are a Mopar enthusiast. Maybe you like to cook, or maybe you are addicted to Flip or Flop. Discuss your hobby with your readers. Be sure to discuss the reasons why it appeals so much to you, as well as the history of the hobby. 10. Illegal immigration: While illegal immigration easily lends itself to a historical discussion, keep in mind that immigration is also a current topic with plenty of arguments surrounding immigrants and their status within the U. S.

� 11. Racism: Although racism can be a touchy subject, it’s important to educate your readers about both the causes and effects (and of course solutions). Because it’s such a big topic, you’ll want to narrow your paper down to a specific angle. For example, discuss the newest forms of racism (reverse racism, Black Lives Matter, police vs. race).

12. Tattoos: For years, adults hated tattoos and rebellious teens and young adults loved them. The tide has shifted, though, and seemingly everyone has a tattoo now. What has caused this societal shift? Why are tattoos now mainstream? 13. Tanning: The tanning industry argues that tanning beds are safe, yet doctors report that the beds are a clear link to skin cancer. Examining both sides of the issue can help your readers form their own opinions.

� 14. Teen Pregnancy: Some point to a lack of parental supervision as the reason behind high teen pregnancy rates. Others point to media and social pressures. Still others think TV shows, such as “Teen Mom” are actually decreasing rates of teen pregnancy. Your essay might include the reasons for teen pregnancy and discuss the current rates of teen pregnancy and possible solutions.

15. Violence on college campuses: This topic lends itself to a discussion of current violent attacks on campus and the debate on whether or not people should be allowed to openly carry firearms on campus. You might even change the topic a little to school violence and the debate on teachers carrying firearms. 16. Homelessness: Because this is such a broad topic, you might try focusing your paper on your local community and community resources. Write about why the problem of homelessness exists in your community and possible solutions.

17. Childhood obesity: People point to many causes for childhood obesity, including fast-food, video games, and a lack of physical education in schools. You might focus your paper on one of these causes, or you might try to address aspects of several arguments (if you have enough time and space). 18. Prison overcrowding: Many argue that legalizing drugs is the simplest solution to overcrowding in prisons. Others argue for decreased mandatory minimum sentences for nonviolent offenses. You may also want to examine the effects of prison overcrowding on staff and inmates.

19. Music censorship: Do you love it when your favorite song comes on the radio but are ready to scream when the station plays the edited version? Should music be censored, or does censorship violate freedom of speech?

20. Cyber-security: Ever try to use your debit card only to find out your account is locked because of “suspicious activity”? If so, then you certainly have a personal connection to cyber-security. Of course, your paper might also include a discussion of widespread security breaches, such as those at Target or Lowes. 21. A topic of your choice. This one must be approved by me. I will also help you with narrowing down the topic once it is approved.

Putting It All Together Like a mad scientist who throws a dash of this and a pinch of that together to create some evil concoction, now’s that you’ve chosen your topic from these informative essay topics, it’s time to throw in the other ingredients to create your genius essay. Add a dash of introduction, a clear thesis statement, a few good hook sentences, a healthy portion of information about your topic, and a pinch of conclusion, and you’ve got a recipe for a killer informative essay! We will breaking down the assignments (sections) to make it a little easier for you.

Requirements Your paper must be: � Typed, double-space, with 1 inch margins, in Times New Roman font, 12 point � 3 -5 pages � Turned in on the due dates (these will be announced) It must include: � A title page � An outline � A works cited page � Parenthetical citations � Use of at least 3 sources and at least 10 note cards � MLA format

Works Cited Inez, Susan M. "21 Informative Essay Topics to Inform Your Next Essay - Kibin Blog. " Kibin Blog. N. p. , 17 Feb. 016. Web. 07 Aug. 2016.