Across this course you have been asked to keep a research log: sources you checked, decisions you made, and any AI help you used. Today you turn that into a real document you can keep adding to for weeks. You will create it, name it so you can still find it in six weeks, structure it with proper headings, and write your first entries.
A research log only helps if you can still open it weeks later and see what is in it at a glance. Three things decide that:
- The file name: something like Aoife_Murphy_Research_Log_2026 still makes sense in June. A name like doc1 or stuff does not.
- Where it is saved: on the class drive or in your school cloud account, not only on one shared laptop that wipes overnight.
- Real structure: built-in heading styles (Heading 1, Heading 2), not just bigger bold text. Headings let you jump around the document, keep the layout steady when you add pages, and still make sense when someone else opens it.
Pair question (one minute): Which of these three would stop you finding your log in June? Be ready to share one answer.
Today you build the log the rest of your research will live in: sections for sources, decisions, and AI help.
Follow the guided steps on screen to create your research log. Use the path your school uses:
- Path A: Microsoft Word
- Path B: Google Docs
Each step states the shared goal first, then gives Word and Docs as separate labelled lines. By the end you should have a named, saved document with a title and three Heading 2 sections ready for entries.
Finish setting up your research log so it is ready for the rest of the course.
| Section | What to put in it now |
|---|---|
| Sources | Two dated entries, three or four lines each. Use sources you checked earlier, or invent short examples: site name, topic, and whether you would trust it. |
| Decisions | One short note about a choice you made in research or publishing — for example why you trusted one source more than another. Or write No research decisions logged yet. |
| AI help | One honest line about any AI tool you used and how you checked it. Or write No AI help used yet. |
A clearly named file, three real heading sections, two source entries, one decision note, and an AI-help line, saved the class way.
Hold up what you built. You now have a research log with a durable name, a clear place it lives, and real heading structure so you can keep adding sources, decisions and AI notes without the document falling apart. That log is the habit behind documenting your planning and research history whenever you publish work. Save it the class way before you leave so it is there next time.
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