Researching Topics

Overview

Students select an appropriate persuasive topic by considering purpose, audience and feasibility. They begin researching school-based needs and priorities to identify what facilities could be improved and why.

Learning intentions

• Students will be able to choose a persuasive topic that is relevant to their school community.
• Students will gather and organise information about a school facility need using simple research methods.
• Students will explain how facts and evidence will support their future persuasive writing.

Success criteria

• I can choose a topic that clearly matches a persuasive purpose and a specific audience (students, staff or parents).
• I can record at least three facts from reliable sources and connect them to my topic.
• I can describe what facilities are needed and provide reasons using evidence.
• I can show my topic is feasible by identifying what information or next steps I still need.

Curriculum links

• Language: building meaning through planning, drafting and refining ideas for persuasive texts.
• Literacy: using research processes to locate, interpret and organise information.
• Comprehension and composition: selecting information that is relevant to purpose and audience.
• Writing: using structured ideas and evidence to support an argument.

Lesson structure (30 minutes)

1. 2 min – Focus and goals

• Teacher briefly revisits Unit focus: persuasive power comes from clear claims supported by evidence.
• Students share one school issue they notice (e.g. shade, bins, toilets cleanliness, safe crossing, quiet spaces).

2. 5 min – Model: choosing a persuasive topic

• Teacher models a decision using two examples: one too broad (“We need better facilities”) and one clearer (“More shade near the playground so students can stay comfortable during lunch”).
• Students identify what makes the second topic better: specific facility, clear need, and identifiable audience.

3. 8 min – Topic brainstorming: quick sort

• In pairs, students generate 3–4 possible facility topics at their school.
• They then sort using teacher prompts on the board: “specific”, “who is affected”, “what evidence could we find”, “can we realistically research/argue for it?”

4. 8 min – Research start: information hunt

• Teacher introduces a simple research routine: ask a question, look for facts, write notes in dot points.
• Students choose one topic and use one prepared information source set (print and/or teacher-provided pages) such as:
• school newsletter excerpts, student survey results (if available), simple whole-school data displays
• short fact sheets about common facilities and student wellbeing
• Students record at least three notes: what, who, why it matters (with one sentence each in their own words).

5. 5 min – Share and refine: evidence check

• Two or three pairs quickly share their topic and one fact they found.
• Class gives “Evidence Check” feedback: Is it relevant? Does it match the facility need? Is it suitable for persuading the intended audience?

6. 2 min – Exit ticket: readiness to write

• Students complete a quick exit slip (teacher collects):
• My persuasive topic is…
• The facility needed is…
• One evidence fact I will use is…
• My next research step is…

Resources

• Teacher-prepared topic question prompts (purpose, audience, feasibility, facility type)
• Prepared source set for student research (2–4 short texts/print pages per topic)
• Student research note sheet with sections: Topic, Facility needed, Evidence notes, Reasons
• Highlighters or coloured pencils for sorting “specific” vs “too broad”
• Pencils, erasers, clipboards (optional), access to class device/offline files if available
• Timer for short activities
• Exit ticket slips or half-page paper
• Anchor chart: “Good topic features for persuasive writing”

Assessment

• Teacher observation during partner sorting and the research start (relevance and specificity).
• Review of research notes: at least three accurate, paraphrased facts connected to the facility need.
• Exit ticket evidence check: topic clarity, facility focus, and a next step for further research.

Differentiation

• Support: provide a sentence starter bank for note taking (e.g. “This facility matters because…”, “Students need…”, “A reason is…”) and offer teacher small-group guidance for choosing a feasible topic.
• Support for English language learners: allow copying key factual phrases from provided sources into a guided template, then add one owned sentence to explain the reason.
• Extension: challenge students to identify potential counterpoints (e.g. cost, space, maintenance) and note one question they could research to address them next lesson.
• SEN: offer a reduced research requirement (two high-quality notes) with clear structure; allow structured partner roles (reader, note-taker, checker).