Case File · L3-C5
CONFIDENTIAL
🚀 Level 3 · Advanced 📘 Chapter 5 ⏱️ 17 minutes

Case File: Research & Fact-checking

Great researchers do not just collect answers. They test them. Learn to ask strong research questions, judge your sources and check what Claude tells you.

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🔁 Remember: 🎭 Role 🎯 Task 📌 Details 📐 Format New rule: Claude is a guide, not a source.
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Important: Research with a parent or teacher nearby. Use child-safe websites and your school books. Never share personal details with any website, and tell a grown-up if something online makes you uncomfortable. Claude can be wrong, which is why this whole chapter is about checking.
🎯 IN THIS CHAPTER

Your case plan

🧠 MIND MAP

Chapter 5 at a glance

5.1 Research questions ❓ One big question 🧩 Split into small ones 🗝️ Find the keywords 5.2 Know your sources ⭐ Textbooks, official sites 🟡 Blogs, videos: care 🤖 Claude is a guide 5.3 Fact-check Claude 🚩 Spot red flags 2️⃣ Check with 2 sources 🤷 Ask “How sure?” 5.4 Cite sources 📝 Keep a source list ✍️ Own words 📚 Give credit 🔍 Level 3 · Ch 5 Research
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5.1 Start with a strong question

🎯 Goal: turn a big topic into questions you can research
  • A topic like “Space” is too big. A question like “How do rockets leave Earth?” gives direction.
  • Split your big question into 3 or 4 small questions you can answer one by one.
  • Ask Claude for keywords and where to look (books, official sites), not for “the answer”.
  • Write down what you find, with where it came from.

🌳 One big question, many small ones

❓ How do rockets leave Earth?
What force pulls things down?
How does a rocket push upward?
Why do rockets have stages?
How fast must it go to reach orbit?

🌍 Real-life examples

🌿 Science projectAsk Claude: “Help me turn ‘Plants’ into 4 research questions for Class 7.”
🗺️ HistoryAsk: “What keywords should I search to learn about the Indus Valley houses and towns?”
🚀 Try it yourself
I am researching “[your topic]” for Class 8. Act as my research coach. Help me write 1 big question and 4 smaller questions. Give me 6 keywords to look up. Do not answer the questions. Tell me what kinds of sources (books, official sites) I should check.
❌ Weak prompt“Tell me about space.”
Too big and no direction.
✅ Good prompt“Give me 4 research questions about how rockets work and keywords to search.”
Focused, and you do the research.
🎉 Fun fact: Scientists say a good question is half the research. Spend time on your question first!

📝 Quick quiz

1. Why split a big question into small ones?

✅ Small questions are easier to research and answer.

2. What should you ask Claude for first?
A) The final answer   B) Questions and keywords

✅ B. Then you do the research.

3. What should you write down while researching?

✅ What you found, and where it came from.

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5.2 Know your sources

🎯 Goal: tell strong sources from weak ones
  • A source is where information originally comes from: a book, a report, an official website.
  • Not every source is equally trustworthy. Ask: Who wrote it? When? Why?
  • Claude is a guide, not a source. It helps you find and understand, but it can be wrong.
  • Important facts should be checked in at least 2 reliable sources.

🪜 The source ladder

⭐ Strong
Your textbook, encyclopedias, government and science-agency websites, well-known museums.
🟡 Use with care
News articles, videos and blogs. Check who made them and whether they show their own sources.
🔴 Weak
Anonymous posts, forwarded messages, pages with no author or date, quote websites that copy each other.
🤖 Claude
A helpful guide to explain and suggest. Not a source. Verify its facts elsewhere.

🕵️ The 3 source questions

👤Who?Who wrote it? Are they an expert?
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📅When?Is it recent enough?
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🎯Why?To teach, to sell, or to persuade?

🌍 Real-life examples

🌡️ Weather factsAn official weather department website beats a forwarded message with scary numbers.
🏛️ History dateYour textbook and an encyclopedia both give the same year. Now you can trust it.
🚀 Try it yourself
I found this claim: “[paste the claim]”. Do not tell me whether it is true. Instead, tell me what kinds of reliable sources I could check to verify it, and what questions I should ask about the source (who, when, why).
❌ Weak habit“Claude said it, so it must be true.”
Claude is not a source.
✅ Good habitCheck the claim in your textbook and one trusted website.
Two reliable sources agree.
🏆 Mini challenge: Pick a fact from your textbook and find it in one other reliable source. Do they agree?

📝 Quick quiz

1. Which is a strong source?

✅ A textbook, an encyclopedia or an official website.

2. Is Claude a source?
A) Yes   B) No, it is a guide

✅ B. Verify its facts in real sources.

3. What are the 3 source questions?

✅ Who wrote it? When? Why?

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5.3 Fact-check Claude

🎯 Goal: catch wrong or made-up details before you use them
  • Claude can sound very sure and still be wrong. It can even make up facts, quotes and web links.
  • Ask Claude “What should I double-check in your answer?” and “How sure are you?”
  • If your app can search the web, ask for sources, then open them yourself. Links may not work or may not say what Claude claims.
  • Check important facts in 2 reliable sources before using them.

🚩 Red flags in an answer

🔢Super-exact numbers“Exactly 73.4% of students…” with no source.
💬Famous quotesWords put in a famous person’s mouth with no source.
🔗Links and book titlesThey may not exist. Open them to check.
🗣️“Studies show…”Which studies? Who did them?

🔄 The Fact-check Loop

🤖1. Ask Claude“What should I verify?”
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📖2. Check source 1textbook or official site
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🌐3. Check source 2a different reliable source
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✅4. Decideuse, fix or drop it

🌍 Real-life examples

📅 A dateClaude gives a battle year. You check your textbook. If they differ, trust the textbook and tell your teacher.
💬 A quoteClaude gives a famous quote. You cannot find it in a reliable source, so you do not use it.
🚀 Try it yourself
Here is your earlier answer: [paste it]. List the 5 facts in it that I should double-check, and tell me how sure you are about each one (very sure, fairly sure, not sure). Do not invent sources. If you are not sure, say so.
❌ Weak habitCopy dates, numbers and quotes straight into your project.
One wrong fact can spoil it.
✅ Good habitAsk what to verify, then check each in 2 reliable sources.
Accurate and trustworthy.
🎉 Fun fact: When an AI confidently says something false, it is called a hallucination. Checking is how you stay safe from it!

📝 Quick quiz

1. Name two red flags.

✅ Any two of: super-exact numbers, unsourced quotes, links or books you cannot find, “studies show” with no source.

2. How many reliable sources should confirm an important fact?
A) 0   B) At least 2

✅ B. At least two.

3. What should you ask Claude after an answer?

✅ “What should I double-check?” and “How sure are you?”

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5.4 Cite and credit

🎯 Goal: show where your facts came from, in your own words
  • Citing means telling readers where a fact came from. It makes your work trustworthy.
  • Keep a source list while you research, not at the end!
  • Write facts in your own words. If you copy exact words, use quotation marks and name the source.
  • Copying without credit is plagiarism. Credit always, even for pictures and ideas.

🗂️ A simple source card

SOURCE #1
📖 Title
Science, Class 8 (the chapter on Light)
👤 Author
The textbook authors or organisation
📅 Date
Year of publishing
📍 Where
Page number or the website address

🌍 Real-life examples

🌿 Project end pageA “Sources” page lists the 3 books and 2 websites you used.
✍️ Own wordsInstead of copying a sentence, you read it, close the book and write it your own way. Then you credit the book.
🚀 Try it yourself
I am writing a sources page for my project. Here are the details of 3 sources I really used: [title, author, year, page or website]. Show me a simple, consistent way to list them. Do not add any sources I did not give you.
❌ Weak prompt“Give me some sources for my project.”
Claude might invent sources that do not exist.
✅ Good prompt“Format these 3 sources I used into a clean list.”
Only real sources, tidy format.
🏆 Mini challenge: Make 3 source cards for your next project, and add a “Sources” page at the end.

📝 Quick quiz

1. What does citing mean?

✅ Telling readers where a fact came from.

2. Should you ask Claude to invent sources for you?
A) Yes   B) No

✅ B. Only list sources you really used.

3. What is plagiarism?

✅ Copying someone’s words or ideas without giving credit.

🔏 Verdict Stamp

Read each case. Decide the verdict: VERIFIED (reliable sources agree it is true), FALSE (reliable sources say it is wrong) or UNVERIFIED (not enough reliable proof). 6 cases. Can you stamp 5 or more correctly?

💡 Tip: When two strong sources agree, you can be fairly sure. When you only find weak sources, say unverified and keep looking. Ask your teacher if you disagree with an answer!
🏅 CASE CLOSED

Chapter 5 summary

Ask strong questions • Judge your sources • Fact-check Claude • Cite and credit.

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