You should already have a Student Project topic, an idea of what you will produce, and a rough plan. Today you set up the research log that will carry the evidence of how you get there: your sources, your checklist calls, your decisions, and any AI help you used. By the end of this period you will have a working log with your first real entry in it.

A research log is a running record of how you found, judged and used material. Dated notes, not a neat essay at the end.

Look at these two invented entries for the same topic (how young people use group chats for homework help). Do not copy either as a template.

Entry A

• Date: 12 March
• Source: "Five ways group chats help with homework" on StudyBuzz Hub (invented student blog), no named author, dated 5 March. Link saved.
• Why opened: title matched my topic; appeared near the top of my search.
• Checklist call: check it further. No named author, purpose looks like engagement not evidence, claims have no sources. Cross-check needed.
• Next step: find one school or research source on the same claim before I use any of this.
• AI help: none on this search.

Entry B

• Date: 12 March
• Source: "How group chats change homework habits" on TeenTech Daily (invented site). Link saved.
• Why opened: came up in my search and matched the topic.
• Checklist call: trust it.
• AI help: none.

With a partner: which single missing piece in Entry B would stop a marker (or your future self) following this decision? Be ready to share.

1. Look at the five headings already on the board (each has one starter bullet):
   • When and what: date, title, who made it, link or where found
   • Why you opened it: one short line
   • Checklist judgement: trust / check further / do not rely on it + short reason
   • Decision or next step: what you will do because of that call
   • Honest AI note: name any AI help, or write "no AI help yet"
2. As a class, shout one improvement or student wording tweak under any heading if a bullet feels stiff. Keep the list short.
3. Agree one extra rule together: what you will do when a source cannot be fully traced (for example: do not log a vague "a website"; either find the missing detail or replace the source).
4. Leave the agreed list visible. Copy it into the top of your log in the next step. You will use it for the whole Student Project.

Now make the log real for your own Student Project.

Before you finish, check:

• Your research log exists with your name, project title and today's date at the top, and the class log standard copied in (or kept visible beside you).
• You have recorded at least one complete source entry linked to your topic, with: date, what it is and where it came from, why you opened it, a checklist call (trust / check further / do not rely on it) with a short reason, a next step, and the AI line.
• Use the class checklist on the board (for example: who made it, purpose, evidence, date/currency). Write the call plus a short reason that answers those prompts.
• You have saved the log the class way so it is there next session.

Stretch if time: a second source, or one rejected path (terms tried, why the results were weak).

Pull back together. Hear two or three strong entries read aloud (with permission), and name what made them useful against the class list. Notice especially: a clear checklist reason, a next step, and an honest AI line.