Introduction

There are several ways in witch to proceed with writing a report. The circumstances
under witch a a report is to be written dictate to a large extent the way in witch the
writer begins.
If a report is to be written as a class argument ,there will likely be at least two
constraints on the report writer. These are (1)size, very often , teachers ( or
instructers) will assign a report that is to fall within a specified size range (for
example ,ten to twelve typewriter pages ); and (2) content :the student report writer
is most often required to either write on a assigned topic or a topic specifically
related to a given field of study.
Reports written for business purposes generally do not have size restrictions,
although in some cases a client may specify that progress reports and the size are
not to exeed a given number of pages . the content of business reports of course is
dictated by the circumstances . thus ,the writer never has to decide what to write
about .
Reports written for social fraternal ,or similar organizations probably have the
fewest constraints this type of report is not usually evalulated in terms of grading or
business communication . as a result ,the length is seldom specified and the content
re3flects the needs of the organization.
Of the three above mentioned varieties of reports , those assigned in school are in
many ways the most difficult . the limits that are often set for the student create an
almost artificial situation unique to such reports . The 6task of arriving at a suitable
scope for a report , as discussed below, creates a frustrating Ssituation as does the
job of finding sufficient while not overwhelming reference material . however it
would be unfair to say that such exercises are not without a great deal of value .
such demands on research ,organization and writing skills certainly improve ansd
polish existing abilities
Square one selecting the topic
the first step obviously , is applicable only to those situations in witch one may or
must select the subject of the report. there are a number of factors that bear upon a
decision .the following paragraphs explain some of these factors.
scope . if the student is to select a topic that relates to material discussed in an
american history class and the report is to be between 15 and 20 typewriter pages
long, scope is a critical factor .the writer would not ,for example , attempt to treat
the civil war in 20 pages or less ;such an undertaking would at least result in an
outline of events. A more practical approach would be to select narrower ,though
significant ,aspect of that was that could of developed to a meaningful extent within
the limited numbers of pages prescribe.
Interest
The student report may or may not have the luxury of selecting a subject of intent ;
however interest in the subject of the report will make the exstensive research and
writing involved more enjoyable .One fairly failsafe way to accomplish this is two
spend some time knowing through different sources . like windows shopping , this
process often makes a person aware of something they like

Availability of reference material

There would be no point in deciding to report shermans march to the sea if these
were not enough resource material with witch to develop the subject . this is where
the writer must begin to use the research skills .after examining the encyclopedia
history tests ,and current periodicals (such as natural history ,national geographic
magazines , Smithsonian ), with the help of the card catalog