week by week
date work

Thursday,

January 27

Discussion: Housekeeping & Introductions

(SNOW DAY; NO CLASS)

Thursday,

February 3

Exploring a Topic 1

Reading: Rebecca Edwards, New Spirits: Americans in the Gilded Age, 1865-1905

Discussion: Selecting a Research Topic

First, list six themes that appear in New Spirits. Second, using the text, choose three topics in Gilded Age history that interest you. For your short paper, briefly report on your topics and list four questions (4) about your topics that might lend themselves to a research paper. Your paper should be 1–2 pages.

ASSIGNMENT #1: GILDED AGE THEME 1 DUE

Thursday,

February 8

LAST DAY TO DROP WITH NO TUITION PENALTY

LAST DAY TO ADD

Thursday,

February 10

Exploring a Topic 2

Reading: Development of the Industrial United States

Discussion: Selecting a Research Topic

Using your page from the Teach Docs website (assigned in class), summarize the topics on your page. Of the topics, which one is most interesting to you? Find and list ten (10) additional primary documents from the Teach Docs site that pertain to your topic.

ASSIGNMENT #2: GILDED AGE THEMES 2 DUE

Thursday,

February 17

Secondary Sources: Electronic Databases & Bibliography

(Meet in Fenwick Instruction Rm 214-A)

Using the America: History & Life database or one of the other online databases available from the GMU libraries, select three articles (secondary sources) pertinent to your topic, read them, and write a brief annotation for each to include in your paper. Print these out. Go to the library and select two books pertinent to your paper; bring both the books and articles to the instruction room. This session will also include instruction in the use of Zotero.

ASSIGNMENT #3: SECONDARY SOURCES DUE

Thursday,

February 24

Primary Sources: Electronic Databases & Bibliography

(Meet in Fenwick Instruction Rm 214-A)

GMU's databases are also valuable resources for primary documents. Using the HarpWeek database or one of the other online databases available from the GMU libraries, select four (4)primary pertinent to your topic, read them, print them, and write a brief annotation for each to include in your paper.

ASSIGNMENT #4: PRIMARY SOURCES DUE
Friday,
February 25

LAST DAY TO DROP CLASSES WITH NO TUITION PENALTY

LAST DAY TO ADD CLASSES

Thursday,

March 3

Topic & Thesis

In a very short, one-page paper, write one sentence in which you name your topic; in a second sentence, write your provisional thesis. Remember: a thesis is a proposition or a summary statement of an argument. We will spend the class period, going over the topics and thesis statements.

ASSIGNMENT #5: TOPIC & THESIS

Thursday,

March 10

Field Trip to Library of Congress/National Archives

Thursday,

March 17

NO CLASS (SPRING BREAK)

Thursday,

March 24

Bibliography

By this point, you should have your bibliography fairly finished and in acceptable format. As a rule of thumb, it should contain at least three—preferably more—primary sources or groups of primary sources (3), five to seven articles from scholarly journals (5–7), and two to three books (2–3). These should be sources that you intent to quote from or paraphrase from and simply not bib filler. We will spend class time going over the bibliographies as well as quotation and footnote format.

ASSIGNMENT #6: BIBLIOGRAPHY

Thursday,

March 31

NO CLASS–RESEARCH & WRITING

Thursday,

April 7

FIRST DRAFT DUE

Thursday,

April 14

Individual Conferences–Research Progress
(Wednesday, Thursday, Thursday)

Thursday,

April 21

NO CLASS (Revison)

Thursday,

April 28

Oral Presentations (Group #1)

Thursday,

May 5

Oral Presentations (Group #2)

Thursday,

May 12

FINAL PAPER DUE

SELF-EVALUATION DUE