Planning

In my research, I plan to use About.com articles because they have a lot of information that is clear and understandable about a lot of topics. I also plan to use the links that I find on Wikipedia pages about my question. I will also use known news websites such as BBC because I know the information is accurate and it has a lot of helpful details that I may not find somewhere else.
It's not such a good idea to do a regular Google search rather than an advanced search because the regular search gives you very random websites about your topic that might not be relevant or true. When you use an advanced search, you get precise websites that have more information about what you're looking for and that are more useful to you.
It's better to get information from a book or online encyclopedia than finding a site through a research engine because you know that the information is true. When using a research engine, it's hard to be sure if the information is true.

Life on the Western Front

Dear family,

I could try to tell you that everything is fine, but truthfully it is not. I have been suffering here on the western front. Life in the trenches is harder than they talk about. I’m currently operating a machine gun, and I haven’t gotten a lot of sleep these past couple of days since many soldiers are injured and can’t take on their shifts. I miss you all so much. I have forgotten how it feels to have family around you since here all that surrounds me is constant death. My closest friend out here had become blind by poison gas that was sent by the Germans. When we were under attack, there was no one to help him find his way since everyone was busy with their posts. He was shot, and, after the attack, I tried to help him but he was too weak. I was very upset for weeks and it showed me the reality of my situation and that I could be close to death too. There is no space for those thoughts or feelings here, though. We’re constantly fighting for our lives.
I also haven’t been eating well lately with all the rats around. They poison our food. All the efforts back home to try to get us enough food are sometimes useless. They spread very quickly and are everywhere. Every now and then a stray dog may pass by, and we would capture it so that we can give it some of the food to check if it’s poisoned. A couple of my fellow soldiers had their feet amputated because they had trench foot. It’s very common in the trenches, but, thankfully, I haven’t had it. During my many years of training for this war, I could have never imagined how difficult it is. One of the smallest but most irritating issues is the lice. I have never been so itchy my entire life. And they spread so fast! Half of the soldiers in my trench got them within one week. The influenza has just reached us and many soldiers are catching it. Some only live for a couple of days once they have it. We have had to lock some soldiers up in the shelters so they don’t contaminate others. Our lives are among the last that have survived. I am afraid that I will be scarred for life after all the terrors that I have seen. I miss you all so much, you have not idea. If I could only be home for Christmas and celebrate with Aunt Sally’s delicious apple pie. The fighting has eased up a bit. There have been rumors going around the trenches that the war is close to an end. I pray for it to be true, and I am longing for the day we will be reunited.

Love,
your Thomas

Identifying and Analyzing Alternatives

1. An everyday problem in a teenager's life is going out alone with friends. This is part of growing up. It's a stepping stone to adulthood. To do this, they must gain their parents' trust.

2. The first solution that is usually proposed is to not go out. Parents might feel that it's dangerous to go out alone. They also might not trust their children when they are not supervised. Some parents don't even hear the children out. The second solution would be for a parent to come with the teenagers. This would be embarrassing, and they might not be comfortable.

3. If the children don't go out, then they will be safe but disappointed. By doing this, the children probably won't be trusted by their parents. If the parents come with the children, the children won't learn how to be independent and will probably also be disappointed.

4. I think that the teenager should gain the parents' trust. They could do this in small steps like babysitting younger siblings for example. Over time the parents will gain the teenager's trust and then they will be able to go out alone. The teenagers could also go out with a parent and show them that they are ready to go out alone by acting mature.