Tips for Surviving your History Fair Research

1. Books

• Books can help you get a good sense of the time period and events surrounding your choice of topic, as well as specific information. Our catalog is available online (look under the Research Tools Tab) and includes links to Harrrisonburg High School and Massanutten Regional Library's catalogs also. (look under Quick Links)
• When searching a library book catalog:
  • Use a subject search first.
  • Try a keyword search to find materials in other books
  • Try a broad search on the time period or central concept. For example, books on Civil Rights would have good information on Martin Luther King also, and may help put his achievements into perspective.

2. Search Engines

• Search engines, such as Google may not be your best choice because they do not arrange sites by quality. Google places the most popular ones first.
• If you do use a search engine, be specific in your search.
  • Combining your search term with a word like "history" or "development" or "effects" may result in more authoritative and useful sites.
• Remember to look at who created the site.
  • Is the site created by someone at a university (edu) or a government site (.gov) or a museum? or is it a site trying to sell something (.com) or someone just like you who happens to have put a web page (.net or sites like geocities.com or aol.com). Check the qualifications of the author!
• Search engines do not all index the same information or arrange it in the same order.
  • Try your search in different search engines (check out the list on the library search page.) and you will find some different -- and possibly better -- sites.

3. Subject Directories

• The subject directories listed on the library search page only list sites which they have checked for quality.
  • (In other words, they've done some of the work for you!)
• Use a broad search term when using subject directories -- they only index the subjects, not every word on the pages (which is why using subject directories is a good way to get good sites actually ABOUT your topic)

4. Online databases

• Search engines and subject directories only cover a small part of available information. Magazines, newspaper, reference books, and encyclopedias are also great sources of information -- and these tools are also available using the Internet. Look under Research Tools on the THMS Library Home page and you will find links to:
  • Grolier Online an online encyclopedia which actually searches 3 encyclopedias, from an easy to read one (New Book of Knowledge) to a college level one (Encyclopedia Americana)
    • These can be good sources of background information on the topic. The encyclopedias often have links to magazine articles and good quality web sites also.
  • Other databases.
    • Our other databases provide full text access to magazines, newspapers, and reference books.
    • These services are arranged in order from easiest to use (least amount of information), such as Kids InfoBits to hardest to use (most information), such as eLibrary. Most of them can be used at home. If it asks for a password, use the word "schools" (don't type the quotes though).
  • FindItVa also provides access to online databases. You will need to select Massanutten Regional Library, and enter your library card number. SIRS Discoverer, eLibrary and SIRS Knowledge Source can only be opened at home through FindItVa.

5. Primary sources

• One of the requirements of the History Day project is to use primary sources. Primary sources are material written or produced in the time period you are investigating. Examples include letters, diaries, speeches, newspaper articles written at the time, photographs, tools or other items used at the time, or interviews with someone who has lived through the time period or event.
  • The National History Day Foundation provides some good places to search for primary sources on their Research Links page. Click on "Research Resources."

6. Cite your sources

• Part of the History Day Requirements is an annotated bibliography -- a list of sources with a brief note describing each source.
• If you did not create it, you must cite it! This includes pictures, music, video clips, and printed information.
• A guide to writing the entries in your bibliography can be found here.
• You might also find NoodleTools useful in creating bibliography entries.