Research reports are common assignments for students everywhere, and you will probably write your first research report in elementary school. If you learn the steps for writing a quality research report while you are in elementary school, the skill will serve you well in the rest of your educational journey.


Step 1

Define a topic to research. If the teacher assigns a basic theme, choose a related topic that interests you. For instance, if your major theme is the Civil War and medicine interests you, you might decide to research medical treatment given to soldiers during the Civil War. Choose a theme that is broad enough to find research on, but narrow enough that you will not be overwhelmed with too much information.

Step 2

Make a list of questions to ask and resources to use. Possibilities for research resources include the Internet, encyclopedias, newspapers and personal interviews.

Step 3

Make note cards. On each note card, write a fact you have learned through your research. The number of note cards you need to make will determine the length of your research paper.

Step 4

Organize your note cards into topics. For instance, with a Civil War medical theme, you might group them into types of medicine, types of injuries and disease and injury statistics.

Step 5

Write your paper. Write an introductory paragraph giving general information about your topic. Use each stack of note cards to write a paragraph about that topic. End with a concluding paragraph where you summarize what you learned.

Step 6

Edit your paper for grammatical errors, run-on sentences and other problems. It is helpful to have a parent or older sibling read your paper, since they may notice things that you might not.