National History Day
Documentation Using Noodletools
NOTE: If you need any other information sheets to assist with creating a National History Day project, please see Mrs. S. at school or during an after school meeting.
SETTING UP A SCHOOL ACCOUNT (FREE) ... You must do this new every year, not just open an old account.
1. Go to your school Google Drive.
2. When the icons appear, go down to the “more” button.
3. Find the Noodletools icon and click on it.
4. If you already have a Noodletools account, log in. If not, follow the directions and create an account using your same password as you do for accessing Chromebooks at school if it asks.
5. Choose “Walnut Spring” for your school.
6. Choose “MLA” for the citation style and “Advanced” for the citation level if asked to choose.
CREATING A PROJECT
1. Once you are logged in, notice a “New Project” tab (colored olive green). Click this.
2. Give your project a title, but don’t use their suggestion, Instead do the following:
NHD_LastnameFirstinitial_2018
Example = NHD_JonesG_2018
3. Choose “MLA” for the citation style and “Advanced” for the citation level
4. Click “Submit.”
ADDING DOCUMENTATION
1. When it shows up, click on the project title you are working on. This will activate your “Dashboard” for this project. At this time, you do not need to fill in anything on your Dashboard page.
2. Go to the tab titled “Sources” and click on it to start documenting sources you find.
3. Click the “Create New Citation” tab (colored olive green).
4. A box will pop up. In the box choose the best option for the type of source you used and
double click on it to bring up elements you need to fill in.
5. Fill in the “Annotation” box at the bottom as the directions on page three will describe.
6. Scroll down to the bottom and click the green “Submit” button
DESIGNATING AS PRIMARY OR SECONDARY
1. When the new citation shows up on your Works Cited list, go to the left side and check the source.
2. Next scroll down to the bottom of the page
3. Click on the down arrow on the button titled “Select an attribute”
4. Choose primary or secondary
5. Click on “Apply” (Do this for all your sources.)
CREATING NOTECARDS
1. Go to back to the top tool bar and click on “Notecards.”
2. Click on the “New” tab (colored in olive green).
3. Fill in all the components you can at the top.
4. Click on the “Copy, paste, and annotate” box on the left. Use this to copy information from internet sources and pictures from internet sources that you think is really useful. Do not simply copy entire articles. This should be important pieces of articles only.
5. Click on the “In your own words” box on the right. Use this box to take notes that you intend to use or refer to in your project.
6. Click on the “Original thinking” box. Use this box to identify what element(s) of your project this source is covering. This will help you when you begin to organize what you say in your final project. Use the following underlined words for this box:
1. background (What the situation was that called for a stand)
2. reason involved (Why the person or group took a stand)
3. actions taken (What was done to take the stand)
4. influences (How or what the stand influenced)
5. historical connections (How the stand still affects history)
6. analysis (Was the stand helpful or not, positive or not)
7. You do not need to use the “Tags” to type in photo or document to help organize information later.
SHARING YOUR PROJECT
1. Go to the “Dashboard” at the top
2. Scroll down until you see the box on the left side titled “Sharing with a project inbox.”
3. Click on it and choose: “NHD 2017 Walnut Springs 7th Grade” dropbox. (This is not yet set up.)
4. Click done.
5. You will only need to share your project once. Your teachers will be able to see all changes and
additions you make as you work on your project after it has been shared.
ANNOTATIONS
1. If you did not include an annotation for each source when you documented it, you need to go back and do this.
2. Go back to your project’s “Sources” tab on the top tool bar.
3. On the right side of each source is an “Options” tab. Click on it and select the “Edit” option.
4. After adding annotations or editing, go to the bottom and submit again.
5. Follow these directions for all annotations you write:
a. Use full sentences and correct grammar
b. Explain all annotations in past tense. This means you need to write these as though your project is finished. So, think of how you will use each source as you continue your research.
c. All annotations should be two to five sentences. Judges look over this to remind them about what was included in the project.
d. Include this information in each annotation:
i. What type of source was used (website, book, newspaper, original letter, photo, magazine, interview, etc.)
ii. General information about how this source helped your research
iii. How you used the source in your final project
BEFORE EACH GROUP OF FOUR SOURCES DUE DATE, DO THE FOLLOWING:
1. Double check to see that you have followed all directions for annotations and citations.
2. Double check to see that you have made and filled in all notecards for your sources.
3. Double check that you linked your notecards to your sources.
4. Double check to make sure you have correct sentences, grammar, tense, and punctuation.
Have a parent check this as well.
CHECKING FOR TEACHER COMMENTS AND MAKING CORRECTIONS
1. After the teacher announced that sources have been checked. Go back an read the comments made and fix any issued.
PRINTING YOUR ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY (This won’t be until the final project is ready.)
1. Click on “Bibliography” on the top functions tool bar
2. Go to the “Sort” box on the right and click on the arrow by the work “alphabetic”
3. Choose “Primary, secondary”
4. Go to the left “Print/export” button and click on the arrow
5. Choose either “Print/export to Word” or “Print/export to Google Docs”
6. Click on “open”
7. Change the words “Works Cited” to “Annotated Bibliography”
8. Save this as “NHD_Annotated Bib” on a flash drive or Google Doc.
9. Print copies from the file you saved
REMEMBER…
1. If you are having trouble finding a primary source site, check the resource tab on
www.WSMSHistory.weebly.com
2. When a set of resources are due, that means the citations, annotations, and notecards!