Sixth Grade Library Skills

6.1.3

Recognizes the characteristics of good questions.

Information to support research.

Read the following research topics.

Select the best question to use during a research project.

If you are researching bats, which is the best question to consider?

a. What do bats eat?

b. How many people are afraid of bats?

c. Have my friends ever seen a live bat? 

#1

If you are researching weather, which is the best question to consider?

a. How strong can the wind blow during a tornado?

b. What color is a raindrop?

c. How long does it take for a snowbank to melt in a rainstorm?

#2

If you are researching planets, which is the best question to consider?

a. How many stars are in the sky?

b. How many rings does Saturn have?

c. How many stars fall each year?

#3

If you are researching New York State, which is the best

question to consider?

a. How many people have cats in

New York?

b. How many cities have my classmates

and I visited in New York?

c. What is the capital of New York?

#4

If you are researching Native Americans, which is the

best question to consider?

a. Which tribe did Christopher Columbus meet?

b. How many hours do Native American sleep each night?

c. Do Native Americans like to play games?

#5

If you are researching President Obama, which is the

best question to consider?

a. Do you like spinach?

b. What type of job did you have before you became president?

c. What is your favorite color?

#6

If you are researching global warming, which is the

best question to consider?

a. Does global warming affect rainbows?

b. How much rain does Hawaii get each year?

c. What are some causes of global warming?

#7

If you are researching a country, which is the

best question to consider?

a. What is the population?

b. How many libraries are in this country?

c. When was the last rain storm in this country?

#8

If you are researching how to bake a cake, which is the

best question to consider?

a. What flavor frosting should I use?

b. What ingredients will I to bake a cake?

c. Should the frosting have sprinkles on it?

#9

If you are doing research about oceans, which is the

best question to consider?

a. How many miles can a whale swim in a day?

b. Which ocean is the deepest?

c. Do seahorses swim fast?

#10

If you are doing research about inventions, which is the

best question to consider?

a. How long will a candle burn?

b. Who invented electricity?

c. What is the recipe for cotton candy?

#11

If you are doing research about extinct animals, which is the

best question to consider?

a. How many types of dinosaurs were there?

b. Which type of snake lives the longest ?

c. Where is the Forest Park Zoo?

#12

If you are doing research about plants, which is the

best question to consider?

a. How does a bird build a nest?

b. How many ants live in an anthill?

c. How many parts does a plant have?

#13

If you are doing research about careers, which is the

best question to consider?

a. What time does the mall close?

b. How many elephants are in a circus?

c. How many years of college does a doctor need?

#14

If you are doing research about hobbies, which is the

best question to consider?

a. When is your birthday?

b. Do you like chocolate ice cream?

c. What are some of your favorite things to do?

#15

If you are doing research about poverty, which is the

best question to consider?

a. Do poor people like spinach?

b. Do students who drop out of school make less money?

c. How many people own cell phones?

#16

If you are doing research about sports, which is the

best question to consider?

a. Does Dan like tennis or ping pong better?

b. What is the most popular sport in the U.S.?

c. Who was your gym teacher in 2nd grade?

#17

If you are doing research about the Titanic, which is the

best question to consider?

a. What made the Titanic sink?

b. How many staircases did the Titanic have?

c. Did the Titanic serve good food?

#18

If you are doing research about presidents, which is the

best question to consider?

a. How many rooms does the White House have?

b. Who was the richest president?

c. Did Martha Washington like pudding?

#19

If you are doing research about tornadoes, which is the

best question to consider?

a. When was the last hurricane in Maine?

b. How long does a rainbow last?

c. What is the wind speed of the fast recorded tornado?

#20