Multigenre Research Paper

English 9
Miss Ahlquist & Mrs. Navetta

A multigenre research essay is a collection of pieces written in a variety of genres, in-
formed by your research on a particular subject (in this case your historical fiction novel)
that presents one or more perspectives on a research question.

Genre:


Objectives:

Research the time period of your chosen historical fiction novel

Practice literary research skills through finding, accessing, and evaluating information

Design creative elements through multigenre work and apply knowledge from historical
fiction novel and research

Incorporate elements of traditional expository writing, including parenthetical citations,

integration of quotations, thesis statement, etc.

Compile all research and writing into a single multigenre project.

Steps to writing your MGP:
I. Preparing to research
A. Pick a historical fiction novel--okay it with me.

Title:______________________ Author:______________________
Era/Time Period:___________________
B. Complete preliminary research on your time period. Some questions to consider:
1. What was happening during this time period?



2. What major events might you expect to see appear in your novel?



C. As you read, mark/highlight/sticky note/etc. the historical parts of your book.
Historical fiction is a fictional account of things that really happened; you need to
identify the what really happened
parts from the fictional parts.
D. Read the whole book!!

II. Begin your research
A. Using your sleuthing skills, research
the history or "what really happened"
parts of your novel. So, if your novel is
about a young girl in Denmark during
the 1940's, the historical part would
be WWII.
B. Research requirements
1. 5 unique sources. 1 should be your
book, and Wikipedia DOES NOT
count as a source.
2. 5 or more bullets of information from each individual source (so, at least 25
bullets total). This could include dates, quotes, important events, information
about society or historical people, but should not be repetitive from source to
source (I.e., not five sources about Winston Churchill during WWII)
3. Take note of any similarities and difference between the actual historical event/
time period and the book's fictional portrayal of that event/time period. Also
note how the time period influences/affects the main character.
4. Develop a thesis statement and okay it with me.

III. Writing the 5 paragraph essay (No first or second person pronouns like I or you!)
A. Introduction - 1 paragraph
1. Books title and author
2. Thesis statement (last sentence)
B. Summary of the book - 1 paragraph
1. Include setting, plot, and characters
2. Dont tell the whole story!
C. Similarities between your book and the
time period (how the book was accurate
at depicting the time period) - 1 paragraph
D. Differences between your book and the
time period (how the book was inaccurate
at depicting the time period) - 1 paragraph
E. Conclusion - 1 paragraph

IV. Multigenre artifacts
A. Diary/Journal entry written by the main character describing how the time peri-
od/event has influenced him/her
B. Article describing the time period/major event
C. Free choice! Some options are...


V. The final product
A. Cover page
1. Paper title
2. Your name
3. Class
4. Period
5. Due date
B. Table of contents
C. 5 paragraph essay
1. Introduction
2. Summary of novel
3. How your novel is similar to the time period
4. How your novel is different from the time period
5. Conclusion
D. At least 3 multigenre artifacts
1. Description of the time period
2. How the time period/event influenced the main character
3. One is up to you!
E. Works cited page
F. Outline
Newspaper article Op/Ed Letter to the editor Advice column
Song lyrics Poem (haiku, free
verse, sonnet, etc.)
Short story Advertisement
Cartoon/comic strip Artwork (drawing,
painting)
Interview Play/Script/Dialogue
Letter from character Found poem Speech Myth/fairy tale

Outline Example
I. Title (should be the same as your paper)
II. Introduction
A. Attention grabbing lead (quote, statistic, anecdote, question)
B. Thesis statement
III. Summary of book
A. Setting and characters
1. Where and when did your story take place?
2. Who were some of the main characters in this story, and what were their rela-
tionships to one another?
B. Plot
1. Generally describe the most important elements of the plot (things necessary
to understand whats happening in the story). Consider the terms that we use
when we discuss plot (rising action, climax, resolution, etc.)
2. Dont give away the ending!
IV. Summary of historical event (note: you will be turning this into a multigenre piece)
A. What historical event/time period is this book based around?
B. What was significant about this event/time period?
C. What were the outcomes of this time period/event?
D. How was life different than it is now during this time?
V. How your book was similar to the historical event (you should have 3 similarities if
your thesis states that this is a strong representation of the time period. If it states
that this is a weak representation of the time period, you only need 1.)
A. Similarity 1
1. What was the factual event that is discussed in the book, what happens in the
story?
2. Find a bit of research that supports this happening in real life--explain how
they fit together.
VI. How book was different from the historical event (you should have 3 differences if
your thesis states that this is a weak representation of the time period. If it states
that this is a strong representation of the time period, you only need 1.)
A. Difference 1
1. Describe a historical event that was misrepresented in your book, describe
what happened in the book and what actually happened in the past.
2. Find a bit of research that proves this is factually inaccurate, use a quote to
illustrate your point.
VII. How the historical event influenced the character(s): explain how this time period
influenced the life or doings of the main character in your story. How would his/her
life been different if s/he had lived in a different time? (note: you will be turning this
into a multigenre piece)
VIII. Conclusion
A. Restate your thesis (in a different way, not word-for-word)
B. Answer the questions, so what? and, why? What can readers today still learn
from the lives of the characters or the research stated in your paper? Why is this
knowledge important?

HISTORICAL FICTION RESEARCH PAPER GRADING RUBRIC

_____ Title Page (6 Points)
d ___ Paper Title - 1
d ___ Your Name - 1
d ___ Date - 1
d ___ Class/Teacher - 1
d ___ Period 1
d ___ Pages numbers on each page -1

_____ Outline (5 points)
d ___ Roman Numerals For Paragraphs - 2
d ___ As, Bs, 1s, & 2s for info - 2
d ___ Summarized information - 1

_____ Introduction 1
st
Paragraph (10 points)
d ___ Begins with attention getter - 5
d ___ Introduces the idea of historical fiction and time period information 2
d ___ Has a focused properly placed thesis statement 3

_____ Book Summary 2
nd
Paragraph (12 points)
d ___ Summarize setting/plot/characters of your book 10
d ___ includes appropriate citation, IN PROPER format 2

_____ Historical part of book 3
rd
Paragraph (12 points)
d ___ Identify/Explain the historical period/event of your book 10
d ___ includes appropriate citation, IN PROPER format 2

_____ Similarities to historical event/period 4
th
Paragraph (24 OR 12 points)
d ___ Similarities between what actually happened and your book 10
d ___ includes appropriate citation, IN PROPER format 2

_____ Differences to historical event/period 5
th
Paragraph (24 OR 12 points)
d ___ Differences between what actually happened and your book 10
d ___ includes appropriate citation, IN PROPER format 2

_____ How historical event/period influenced main character(s) 6
th
P. - (12 points)
d ___ How was the main character influenced by the period/event? - 10
d ___ includes appropriate citation, IN PROPER format 2

_____ Conclusion (12 points)
d ___ Restated thesis, properly placed - 2
d ___ Answers Why and So What what is important about this information to read-
ers today 10

_____ Works Cited (15 points)
d ___ Proper MLA format 5
d ___ 5 minimum entries in works cited section -10
TOTAL _______ /120